Wapack in early Spring

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Hey Michele is that snow I see? What began as an innocent comment would soon become the major theme of our “run” on the Wapack Trail last Saturday.

ShellyGirl and I have been training for the SweetH20 50k in Lithia Springs Georgia and were looking for one more weekend of long training runs before the race in two weeks. Unless it is a group run with the Bimblers, I am not a big fan of doing long runs on local trails. For me the time seems to go faster if the course is on new trails with some nice vistas along the way. With that philosophy in mind I suggested to ShellyGirl that we travel up to southern New Hampshire and run the Wapack Trail. With four mountains, two states and 18 miles of trails this sounded like a perfect plan. After bribing ShellyGirl with an opportunity to shop at her favorite mall in Massachusetts after the run we were set to go

We left Killingworth just after 6:00 a.m. and planned to be on the trail by 9:00. The day was warm, with clear skies, and we were excited to hit the road. By the time we got to New Hampshire it was already over 50 degrees and we thought, this is going to be a spectacular day but I hope it is not too warm. Than it happened, with about five miles to go we noticed something white on the ground. I said, “Is that snow?” Sure enough, pockets of snow began to appear in increasing amounts and by the time we reached the trail we went from worrying about the heat to wondering if we should have brought our yax traks.

Undeterred, we parked the car, got our stuff together and started heading up the hill to take on the Wapack. About two hundred yards before the trail we were stopped by a local ranger, “You folks heading up on the Wapack?” “Yes sir we are”. “Well, all right but I am going to close that trail today” “Why would that be sir?” “Mud and Snow” “Oh” I don’t know what it says about my wife and I but instead of beginning to question our plan we both simply turned toward the trail and continued our day.

[singlepic=5551,280,200,,right]The trail starts on a cross country skiing course and for those folks it was perfect conditions. For us it was “at least the snow is firm” and more discussion on how nice it would have been to have our yax traks. By the time we hit the single track we were both agreed. The Yax’s would not be of help cuz the snow was no longer firm and with many steps we simply went through the snow and needed to pull out before we could continue. Still the snow was not that deep and after a beautiful vista, with views of the four peaks we were attempting in sight, we began our first ascent to the top of Barrett Mountain. The ascent to Barrett is on the sunny side of the mountain so there was much less snow and a lot more mud and we could run and hike without much trouble. Both of us were never so glad to run through mud as we were heading up Barrett Mountain. By the time we got out of the sun and near the top of the mountain, the snow had returned. This time, I guess due to something known as altitude, there was a lot of snow. To compound matters we would crash through the snow with almost every step, many times up to our knees. I soon felt that this was becoming a Stairmaster workout rather than a run. We struggled on, alternating between laughing and cursing at our predicament. We reached peak number 2 (New Ipswich) and descended down the muddy back side to begin our ascent of Pratt Mountain. In my opinion, Pratt Mountain and the fourth peak, Mount Watatic, are the primary reasons to run this trail. Both have wonderful vistas and on this amazingly clear day we were determined to at least reach the top of Pratt, which has wonderful views of Monadnock, the Berkshires and the Green Mountains.

[singlepic=5559,280,200,,left]The final ascent to Pratt was definitely the most difficult part of the day. The ascent is on the sunny side of the mountain so the warm weather was melting the snow but this section was also the place where we encountered the deepest snow. The combination made for tough going, as each step became a challenge. Imagine having each step you take go about two feet deep into snow, picking your foot out of that snow and then doing it again until you reach the top. Good times! Anyway, we made it to the top and proceeded to take in the views. The added bonus for all of our efforts was that the weather at the summit was spectacular. With 70 degree weather and no wind, we stayed for about twenty minutes before deciding it was time to head back. We regretted missing Mount Watatic but our pace on this day was about 30 minutes a mile and we knew we had a long day ahead of us just to get back to the car.

Except for a close encounter with a dog and being told we were on a closed trail the return trip was simply more of the same. Not much running, slugging our way through deep snow and just putting one foot in front of the other.

In the end it was a wonderful day. Hard work, lots of laughs and simply a great way to enjoy a beautiful day, wonderful location and each others company. Can’t wait to see what will come next. Oh yeah, the SweetH20 50k. Does it snow in Georgia in April?

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