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Everytime you plan hikes in uncovered terrain, it’s helpful to plan out escape routes in case an sudden thunderstorm storm or blizzard blows in, you encounter white-out circumstances, avalanche circumstances, flash floods, forest fires, or it’s good to evacuate a companion.

I do contingency planning like this when mountain climbing throughout uncovered terrain with out a lot cowl, above-treeline, or in winter, when there’s an actual threat of bodily hurt or dying if issues go pear-shaped. Relying on rescue or extraction in such excessive circumstances seldom pays off and the one option to save your butt is to reserve it your self.

Whereas native data, specifically planning with somebody who is aware of the native terrain nicely is beneficial, you don’t at all times have entry to it. Conversely, since you are native, complacency will be harmful except you suppose out the professionals and cons of various routes along with your companions prematurely.

An instance is so as. Whereas it will show most helpful for White Mountain winter hikers, it makes some common factors about plan winter escape routes which are relevant for anybody planning an above-treeline hike or ski tour.

Above-Treeline Warning Signal, Presidential Vary, White Mountains, New Hampshire

Winter Escape Routes within the Presidential Vary

The Presidential Vary is a mountain vary in New Hampshire’s White Mountains that hyperlinks Mt Washington’s northern and southern ridges. The vary consists of 9 mountain summits which are 4000 toes or increased, together with Mts. Madison, Adams, Jefferson, Clay, Washington, Monroe, Eisenhower, Pierce, and Jackson. A full nineteen-mile traverse of those peaks is named a Presidential Traverse and consists of 9 miles of above-treeline mountain climbing with 9,000-10,000 toes of cumulative elevation achieve. Quite a few winter hikers additionally climb the person peaks or subsets of the complete traverse.

The ridge is bounded to the east and west by steep ravines and glacial cirques. Whereas a number of dozens mountain climbing trails climb to the ridgeline, most are too harmful or distant to make use of in winter, limiting the variety of good winter escape routes accessible.

Winter Escape Routes – Presidential Vary, White Mountains, New Hampshire. The pink areas are shaded slopes. (click on if you wish to drill into this map on Caltopo)

The perfect winter escape routes (marked in black) within the Presidential Vary are:

Valley Method Path – Simple to search out from the Madison Springs Hut (closed in winter). Closely wooded beneath treeline (4500′) offering good safety. Runs immediately to the Appalachia Trailhead and Rt 2.
Lowes Path – May be tough to observe with out a compass from Thunderstorm Junction to treeline in dangerous visibility, however results in the Grey Knob cabin which is manned and has a radio. Runs on to Lowes Storage and Rt 2.
Jewell Path – The highest of the path is uncovered, however is simple to observe by Krummholz. Runs on to the Cog Railroad lot with good winter street entry.
The Cog Railroad – Arduous to overlook. Observe the railroad monitor all the way down to the Cog station. It has good street entry year-round.
Ammonoosuc Path – Simple to search out from Lakes of the Clouds Hut (closed in winter). Very icy on the high and a bit exhausting to observe in poor visibility. Traces a protected route down the ravine and runs on to Cog railroad lot with good winter street entry.
Edmands Path – Prime will be blocked by deep snow, however drops into the bushes rapidly and results in a street with good snowmobile entry. As soon as down, you’ll be able to stroll out to the AMC Highland Middle and Rt 302 in Crawford Notch.

All of those routes keep away from harmful terrain and serve to get you beneath treeline and into cowl as rapidly as attainable. Most are simple to observe with a compass in a white-out or as a result of they observe apparent geographic options that power you to hike in the best course. In lots of instances, they’re additionally the one protected route off the ridgeline and out to security, as a result of different routes are too harmful to observe.

Winter Hazards

In the event you take a look at a map of the Presidential Vary, there are about two dozen trails that lead above-treeline to the summits alongside the ridge. Why are most of them impassable in winter? What makes a path that’s protected for three-season use, harmful in winter circumstances?

Avalanche Zones

The prevailing winds that sweep the Presidential Vary run from the west to the east, blowing snow off the ridge into the japanese cirques and ravines that are susceptible to avalanche exercise. Whereas avalanche forecasting is out there for Tuckerman Ravine and Huntington Ravine on the east facet of Mt Washington (due to their reputation with skiers and ice climbers) avalanche circumstances can happen in different places, together with north and western-facing slopes comparable to King Ravine, Fortress Ravine, and the Ammonoosuc Ravine. Whereas a 35-45 diploma slope angle is a helpful avalanche forecasting heuristic, slides do happen on slope angles better than 45 levels within the Presidential Vary. The perfect technique is to take an avalanche consciousness class and discover ways to learn the snow pack.

Cairns are tough to see when coated with snow or the fog is down

Visibility

Above-treeline trails are marked with rock cairns that will be very tough to observe in dense fog or white-out circumstances as a result of they mix in with the boulder-strewn panorama. Trails which are simple to observe the remainder of the yr, can simply vanish below snow cowl and turn out to be very tough to search out. It’s not that uncommon to observe a compass bearing when mountain climbing above-treeline in winter when landmarks or trails aren’t seen.

Snow depth

Mountaineering off the ridge and into an space with deep snow must be averted due to the effort and time required to hike out. For instance, you wouldn’t need to hike down into Oakes Gulf within the Dry River Wilderness since you’d have to interrupt path for miles to get again to a street. That may be just about inconceivable with out a huge group.

The Osgood Path could be very uncovered to dangerous climate and makes a poor winter escape route

Publicity

The common wind pace on Mt Washington is 40-45 mph from January by March. Whereas wind speeds are usually a bit decrease on the opposite Presidential peaks, frostbite is at all times an enormous concern above-treeline making many exit routes much less fascinating than others. For instance, you wouldn’t need to hike down the Osgood Path, the Airline Path, the Howker Ridge Path, or the Fortress Path in winter as a result of they’ve a lot unprotected publicity to the wind and precipitation. The Mt Washington Auto Highway additionally has an amazing quantity of publicity, though it may be used as a final resort off Washington in dangerous visibility as a result of the street is simpler to search out than most above-treeline trails.

Poor Highway Entry

Many roads shut and turn out to be inaccessible in backcountry areas throughout winter, which might additionally make escape routes much less fascinating. For instance, mountain climbing out the highly-exposed Caps Ridge Path from Mt Jefferson results in a seasonal street that’s impassable and closed in winter, aside from snowmobile visitors. When planning a winter journey, it’s essential to find out about seasonal street closures and entry.

Choice Factors

Whereas escape route planning is a crucial side of winter navigation, you shouldn’t overlook the necessity to plan out determination factors throughout your hike or tour. These are places the place you’ll resolve to maintain going alongside your meant route, flip round, or hike out one in all your pre-planned escape routes (maybe to a pre-planned automotive spot.) These determination factors ought to embody the junction of your route with every pre-planned escape route, amongst others.

When planning a call level, it’s essential to specify the place the choice will happen and the factors you’ll use to make your determination, notably when you’re main a gaggle or mountain climbing in a gaggle of friends with out a designated chief. Whereas the dynamics of group decision-making are past the scope of this text, this matter is roofed closely in AIARE avalanche consciousness programs, which I like to recommend you’re taking when you plan to hike, ski, or climb above the treeline in winter.

Up to date 2023.

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