Cannon via Hi-Cannon and Lonesome Lake Loop (White Mountain National Forest)

Cannon via Hi-Cannon and Lonesome Lake Loop (White Mountain National Forest)

Hike Type: Lollipop Loopty Loop

Distance: 6.77 miles

Elevation: 2,418 feet

Time: 6 hours, 13 minutes (4 hours, 25 minutes moving)
Hiking Challenges: 52 Hike Challenge 2025; New Hampshire 4000 Footers; Terrifying 25

The Hike 

I am SO back... temporarily! After a quiet November, I soft-launched my reentry to the outdoors with the Ethan Pond hike. I was up at Jay Peak the past two days for my first ski days of the season (and to celebrate Emma's birthday), and now it was time to drive partway home to Cannon to hike and finish out Sarah's 48! We stayed at the Stateside Hotel for Emma's birthday, so it was nice to be leaving from Jay. I was up at 6:00am (Sarah was in charge of logistics... I would have started earlier...) and on the road just before 6:30am. I caught a shooting start driving down VT-242 and stopped for breakfast at my favorite Maplefields in Orleans before continuing down. Roads were thankfully in good shape minus 242, which was expected. 

I was about 18 minutes ahead of schedule, which did me good since the parking lot was unplowed and... I got stuck. I made it about 40 feet into the lot before my car wouldn't go any further because I tried to turn. My tires managed to scoop out the top layer of snow and revealed a THICK layer of boilerplace ice, which was... a bummer! There was an older couple at the trailhead watching me and passively offered me help, which I declined. I did wiggle my car back some by using normal wiggling techniques, including floor mats, but it just got stuck again (and almost skidded into a tree). I called Sarah and Alec and told them "soooo I'm having a bad time! I'm stuck in the parking lot!" - apparently the call dropped right after I said "bad time!" - which is a little funny. They pulled in and parked at the PLOWED trailhead down by the Pemi Trail before coming to my rescue. Sarah drove while Alec and I pushed, and we eventually got it out. It really was quite the workout BEFORE a hike!

Sarah drove my car to the plowed lot, I got suited up, and we were only 37 minutes behind schedule, which really isn't too bad! Thankfully, it was a beautiful morning with low winds and overcast skies - all the surrounding peaks were open! Sarah packed her Veuve Cliquot into her backpack, and we were off!

[9:07am - Start of Hike]

We FINALLY got started at 9:07am with a nice walk from the car to the trailhead proper. Spikes were on from the get-go and we took some photos with the boilerplate ice I had dug my tired into - I'm grateful to have friends that 1) will help me get out of a dumb situation and also 2) be in a good enough mood to make jokes about it!

[9:13am - Lonesome Lake Trail]

The Lonesome Lake Trail proper started near the end of the parking lot I failed to park in, marked with a trail sign, a sign from Cannon Mountain Ski Area saying "we won't save you!," and an iron ranger accepting donations. The trail immedaitely crossed the scenic Pemigewasset River on a snowy footbridge and then wiggled through the Lafayette Place Campground, easily gaining a little bit of elevation.

[9:17am - Lonesome Lake Trail/AMC Hut Sign]

After crossing a few rows of campsites we passed the sign for the AMC Lonesome Lake Hut, which is now open on a caretaker basis. I do want to do another winter hut stay - the one in Carter Notch was one of my favorite hikes to date! From the sign, the snowy Lonesome Lake Trail continued to climb at easy grades, eventually crossing a bridge over a freezing creek and landing at the junction with the Hi-Cannon Trail!

[9:29am - Hi-Cannon Trail]

To our delight, the Hi-Cannon Trail was well-broken out with a firm monorail (and about a foot of unconsolidated snow on either side. It started off with a nice meander through the woods before increasing in grade to the steepness that I "fondly" remember. It was MUCH nicer doing this stretch in the snow - the loose gravel was brutal in the summer! The other perk of hiking in the winter are the tree views over to Franconia Ridge - we particularly loved seeing the white slides scarring the mountains, including shining rock.

[10:09am - Hi Cannon Trail/Dodge Cut-Off]

We had a quick standing break at the Dodge Cut-Off junction, but I was down to my base layers and needed to keep moving to stay warm (especially since I knew we'd be climbing again shortly). We hiked through a winter wonderland with early-stage marshmallow trees that sometimes made the trail a little more narrow than we wanted. We also spent some time discussing the difference between rocks and stones (we LOVE a nonsensical question to power us through climbs) - we landed on that stones are somehow crafted by humans while rocks are nature's creations.

I started to get excited when the trail began to level out, which meant we'd be getting some views! The first peek-a-view was over to Mt. Liberty, which was looking incredibly moody in the wintry light. Just a bit further down the trail I did a classic "WOAH," followed by similar "WOAH"s from Sarah and Alec, respectively. We had a great view of the snow-capped Franconia Ridge, from Mt. Lafayette to Little Haystack, which really just looked incredible.

Soon after the views, the trail turned a corner and began to climb again, eventually bringing us to the terrifying ladders! They were not terrifying in the slighest over the summer, and even with the snow, they were still not that bad. I can imagine they'd get a little dicey with another foot or two, but in these conditions, it was totally fine. 

We enjoyed another view to the ridge from the top of the ladders as the Hi-Cannon Trail skirted the edge of some cliffs, providing additional views down south through Franconia Notch and to Lonesome Lake below.

Eventually, the trail began to climb again, this time at easier grades, as the temperature became noticeably colder. There were tree views to the Kinsmans as we skirted up some ledges that were not nearly as difficult as I anticipated, and we eventually landed at the height-of-land on the trail, which was just a beautiful winter wonderland. From here, the trail descended slightly to the Kinsman Ridge Trail.

[11:22am - Kinsman Ridge Trail]

We did another quick break at the Kinsman Ridge Trail - we were close now! The older couple from the parking lot were also taking a break at this junciton - I don't think they recognized me. The rest of the climb was a DELIGHT. Easy grades, lots of snow, and frosty trees. Plus, nearly endless snowshoe hare tracks! It really was so beautiful - we were all elated.

[11:34am - Rim Trail]

The beautiful forest led us to the White Mountain National Forest sign: "This marks the line between national forest and state park lands. The area in back of this sign is the White Mountain National Forest 724,333 acres. A multiple use area for the enjoyment of the people, protection and management of timber, water, wildlife." We followed the Rim Trail with Sarah in the lead to the top! I went to get my mittens since my hands were cold, but I realized I accidentally left them at home... sad!

[11:40am - Cannon Mountain Summit]

We made it! Sarah finished her 4000 Footers! It was fun to be there on her day, especially after she was there on mine! We first stopped at the actual summit underneath the observation tower, which had a neat coating of rime ice. Sarah took off her pack and made sure to give the top a "boop!" We exchanged congratulations, got some photos, and then threw our packs back on for Veuve Cliquot up top!

The stairs on the tower were pretty snowed-over, but took to spikes well. I forgot how insane the views from the top were! 360 degrees! The Kinsmans, Vermont (no 4000 Footers because of visibility), Willoughby Gap, The Percys, and of course, the Franconia Ridge. Sarah took out her sign for some more photos, we popped the champagne, took even more photos, and then RAN back down underneath the tower to enjoy our break out of the wind - it was COLD up top!

Our break wasn't too long due to the cold (18ish degrees with a slight breeze), but we enjoyed slacks and champagne. We had to drink the champagne a little faster than we would have liked, but it was still delicious! Sarah and I joked that we only have champagne on mountains (which also isn't really a joke...) since we've now had it at the Alpine Cabin at Black Mountain in Jackson, on Mt. Moriah, and now Cannon! We told Alec to get working on his 48 so we can have more! The folks from the parking lot eventually also made it to the top and shared their congratulations with Sarah before we packed it up and headed down on the Short Trail toward the Tram building.

[12:13pm - Short Trail]

We passed a skier hiking up on the Short Trail as we descended through more stunning woods to the top of the ski area. We were pretty sure it was going to be open, but we were ELATED to see the Cafe 4080' was open! We dropped our packs outside and RAN inside to warm up and get some provisions.

[12:20pm - Cafe 4080']

The Cafe was a DREAM. Both the food line and bar were open, and it was WARM. Plus, it was fun to be around skiers. I got a warm cinnamon roll and a hard cider, Alec and Sarah each got a bowl of chili, a hot chocolate, and they shared a warm cinnamon roll. Life was WONDERFUL again. We spent a nice chunk of time here alternating between yapping and staring into the void - we all started to get a little sleepy, and that is when we decided it was time to pack it up and head back out into the cold!

[1:08pm - Rim Trail]

It wasn't super clear where the Rim Trail picked up once we left the Tram building, but it was just to the left of the Short Trail sign, blocked by a blowdown. We carefully skirted around the blowdown and then continued on the wonderful trail. 

[1:11pm - Rim Trail & Kinsman Ridge Trail]

Shortly after, the Rim Trail joined the Kinsman Ridge Trail and opneed up some mroe wonderful views towards Franconia Ridge. The tippy top of Lafayette was now in the clouds, and flurries were beginning to fall like a snowglobe. The trees were absolutely caked in snow, and we could see down to Lafayette Place, including both the parking lot I failed to park in, and the parking lot where we did park! We soon dipped back into the woods, made it to the WMNF sign, and continued on the Kinsman Ridge Trail.

[1:17pm - Kinsman Ridge Trail]

The flurries were falling more steadily once back on the Kinsman Ridge Trail, which continued to be a freaking delight and visually stunning. Alec got a ahead for a bit while Sarah and I gabbed about who knows what. The two glasses of champagne and hard cider were definitely feeling good at this point!

[1:25pm - Kinsman Ridge Trail/Hi-Cannon Trail]

We continued on past the Hi-Cannon Trail junction and started our descent do the first col between Cannon and the Cannon Balls. The woods were STILL beautiful and thankfully the trail was still well-traveled and packed down. I stopped for a quick potty break, and between the etherial "you" and I, I love winter becuase I can pee right on the side of the trail and cover it up without question. Eventually, though, I heard Alec and Sarah go "oh." This marked the STEEP section.

The Kinsman Ridge Trail absolutely plummeted down, which in fairness, is what it's known for doing! We took a while in this stretch, which was not long, but we wanted to be safe. We crossed paths with two teenage-looking boys who were carrying snowshoes and said "we didn't think we'd need spikes on this one!" - which was confusing. Why bring snowshoes but not spikes? Who knows! I assume they made it out safely since I did not see anything on the Search and Rescue pages. 

We caught some views from the trail, which signaled that the steep stretch was almost over. It was Sarah's time to blast off ahead of us while Alec and I enjoyed the again beautiful woods. 

[1:51pm - Lonesome Lake Trail]

We were equally thrilled and relieved when we made it to the Lonesome Lake Trail junction. The flurries had increased to what I would call "snowing," so I asked Sarah to get my sunglasses out of my pack, only to find that I also didn't bring those! I have no idea where they could be... Strange that both my sunglasses and mittens are missing from the Ethan Pond hike? Hopefully I'll find them again! 

The Lonesome Lake Trail continued through beautiful woods at easy grades before descending again, but never getting nearly as steep as before. The steepest stretch was down what appeared to be a drainage of some sort, but it was mostly snow-covered sans a few open, wet spots. The trail soon bottomed out and followed a series of mostly-covered boardwalks with an occasional view back to Cannon through the trees.

[2:22pm - Around-Lonesome-Lake Trail]

The flats led us to the Around-Lonesome-Lake Trail and the lake proper. We could have turned left for a shorter way out, but I wanted to hit the hut and walk across the dam (and get the views), so we turned right. The trail led us through an absolutely beautiful snow-covered wetland that required a little bit of brain power to make sure we were stepping on the boardwalks and not into the pond inflows. Behind us was a great view to Cannon and the lake was on the left. This stretch was simply delightful!

We eventually began to catch some views over to the mostly-hidden Franconia Ridge on the far side of the lake. 

[2:34pm - Fishin' Jimmy Trail & Lonesome Lake Hut]

[2:42pm - Cascade Brook Trail]

We went back and forth about visiting the hut, and the fact that the sun was going to be setting soon was enough to keep us away from the main building, but we did do a quick bathroom break. We heard the caretaker splitting wood as we walked back down to the lake, and I reminisced about the time I was panic-sending sub plans from the dock on the lake a couple autumns ago!

We admired the view to Cannon from the dam and I tried to recreate a photo I got a little over a year ago of the lake before we continued onto the Cascade Brook Trail, which featured long boardwalks (the nice kind, not the rotting plank kind) that we walked along until we were back at the Lonesome Lake Trail.

[2:48pm - Lonesome Lake Trail]

The Lonesome Lake Trail rose gently for a short bit before starting the mile-long, gradual descent. The snow was back to flurries at this point, and we were cruising! We kept asking Sarah how it felt to be done and she was just so happy and proud! We did hit the delusional part of the hike where we were just splattering out anything that came to mind, which made conversations comical and nonsensical. 

[3:11pm - Lonesome Lake Trail/Hi-Cannon Trail]

[3:17pm - Lonesome Lake Trail/AMC Hut Sign]

We were thrilled to see the Hi-Cannon Trail sign, and even more thrilled to reach the AMC Hut sign! I picked up a forgotten car mat that I left in the unplowed lot, and soon we were back at our cars!

[3:23pm - End of Hike]

We exchanged a ground of cheers and hugs, changed our clothes, and then it was time for the pilgrimage back to Boston! I had a lovely cheese steak from the Common Man at the Hooksett Rest Area, and to my delight, was in bed nice and early! What a FANTASTIC weekend, and I'm feeling sad that I won't be able to get up there again until after Christmas!

Step-by-Step

- Park at Lafayette Place

- Start hike following signs to Lonesome Lake Trail.

- At trail sign, continue onto Lonesome Lake Trail.

- At jct., turn right onto Hi-Cannon Trail.

- At terminus, turn right onto Kinsman Ridge Trail.

- At jct., turn left onto Rim Trail.

- Summit Cannon Mountain.

- From summit, continue onto Short Trail.

- From tram building, continue onto Rim Trail (Kinsman Ridge Trail joins later).

- From jct., turn left onto Kinsman Ridge Trail.

- At jct., turn left onto Lonesome Lake Trail.

- At jct., turn right onto Around-Lonesome-Lake Trail.

- At jct., turn right onto Fishin' Jimmy Trail to hut.

- Turn around at hut.

- Continue onto Fishin' Jimmy Trail, then Cascade Brook Trail.

- At terminus, turn right onto Lonesome Lake Trail.

- Return to car.

Photo Album

Willey, Field, and Ethan Pond Loop (White Mountain National Forest)

Willey, Field, and Ethan Pond Loop (White Mountain National Forest)

Hike Type: Lollipop Loop

Distance: 15.51 miles

Elevation: 4,006 feet

Time: 10 hours, 38 minutes (9 hours, 8 minutes moving)
Hiking Challenges: 52 Hike Challenge 2025; Terrifying 25; New Hampshire Appalachian Trail

The Hike 

FINALLY time to get back into the Whites! It had been a long November of basically zero hikes, so I was itching to get back outside. After a wonderfully calm and quiet Thanksgiving, I woke up at 3:00am the next morning, scooped Sarah up (she was not pleased with the time, but we have LIMITED daylight this time of year), and we made our way up north! Neither of us had a good night's rest, so we were both feeling some kind of way. We got snacks at Hooksett and got breakfast at the Lincoln McDonalds right when they opened at 5:00am. There were some clouds overhead on the drive, but not nearly as much as we anticipated. We eventually made our way into Crawford Notch and down to the Willey House Site, where we parked the car and began to suit up. It was in the upper 20s with surprisingly no wind (the Higher Summits Forecast warned of ground blizzards, but thankfully it was quiety in the notch.

[6:07am - Kendron Flume Trail]

Our hike started on the Kendron Flume Trail in full layers and headlamps, but with some light already in the sky. Sunrise was slated for 6:59am - I always forget how early the first light is. The early stretch of trail was nice and easy to follow, and we quickly passed a sign for the Willey Boulders, which we decided to save for the end. The trailbed soon became very leafy and we passed a neat fallen limb with some fungus on it that looked like needle ice, but it was more or less hairy? We poked it with our poles and giggled. 

[6:24am - Kendron Flume Trail/Westside Trail]

We passed the junction for the Westside Trail at a bend in the trail, which was a little difficult to follow at times due to the leaves. The sky was now a very dark shade of blue, and soon we began to hike parallel and below the railroad tracks. We saw a neat and spooky tunnel that I can only guess is for drainage, and soon turned to cross the tracks!

[6:29am - Kendron Flume Trail/Railroad Crossing]

There was a nice view to Mt. Willard from the railroad tracks with cloudy skies overhead and just a pinch of horizon down where the sun was rising - it was neat! Across the tracks, the trail steeply climbed up to more switchbacking and leafy grade. It was getting brighter now, the trail was getting a bit more rugged, and there were a few patches of snow and ice along the trail - we didn't need spikes yet, though. We caught some early pink colors through the trees, and later we came to the namesake Kendron Flume!

[6:55am - Kendron Flume Trail/Kendron Flume]

The flume was really neat. A narrow band of water cascading down from above followed by a drop off with a view out to the shoulder of Mt. Webster. The rest of the scarred Mt. Webster was visible through the trees, and some higher-up vantage points were now illuminated in a magnificent orange glow. The crossing of the brook was relatively easy and just a little icy. We spent just a little bit of time here admiring everything before continuing on. 

The Kendron Flume Trail felt steeper and more rugged after Kendron Flume, with one slab that was iced over and had to be navigated around. Near the slab, the trail followed another slabby brook that was very scenic to look at. We trudged along, now in just our base layers, up until the grade began to ease near the terminus of the trail.

[7:22am - Ethan Pond Trail]

We could have put spikes on at the Ethan Pond Trail, but grades were easy to moderate and the trail was not slippery, so we waited just a bit longer, even though it was covered in 1-3" of snow now. We hopped across a little stream, and soon came up to the Willey Range Trail junction! I would also like to point out, I was absolutely killing it in the game of Fart Baseball (I was winning a little too solidly, and not having had used the bathroom earlier in the day made me quite worried). 

[7:34am - Willey Range Trail]

We took a very short break at the Willey Range Trail junction to swap out layers, water bottles, and put our spikes on. The snow was now deeper, but the trail was still a little bony. It started off slightly flat before recrossing the Kendron Brook and then the CLIMBING began - and boy did it begin! The first bit of climbing was with decent footing, which quickly deteriorated to a deeply eroded trailbed with a few iced-over logs to hold everything in place.

This was followed by some more stable log stairs that were equally as icy. Our blood was pumping, but we were just happy to be outside on such a surprisingly beautiful day!

About ten minutes later, we came to the first of the famed "terrifying" ladders. The first one was comically decimated - only the top rung remained. Thankfully, it was not steep enough at all to warrant a ladder. 

The next three ladders were steeper and a bit scarier to me. They had just a few missing rungs, but required icy transfers between each of them which had me spooked, but it was completely fine!

The ladder climbing continued for a bit with occasional peek-a-views through the trees to nearby mountains - notably of the Montalban Ridge and Carrigain. 

The Willey Range Trail leveled out briefly and traversed a blowdown patch with restricted views over to Carrigain with the Sandwich Range looming behind. The sun had been trying to show itself throughout the morning, but clouds had moved in and it began to flurry like a snowglobe!

Following the blowdown patch, the trail continued to climb with a few scrambles that would have been easy in summer conditions, but required a little bit of care with the snow and ice. We got another peek-a-view towards the Montalban Ridge and further peaks before a final push (that I may have pushed too hard for, again), to a fantastic view just before the summit!

[8:59am - Willey Range Trail/Viewpoint & Break]

This view was just what Sarah and I needed after a long, tough climb. We could see down into Crawford Notch, including US-302 and the railroad. Stairs, Resolution, and Crawford were all standing proudly at the bottom of the notch while the steep wall of Mt. Webster commanded the lefthand view. We could see over to Wildcat Ski Area and Mt. Chocorua, all with stunning sun rays. On the far left were the Presidentials, which were mostly in the clouds (besides Jackson, Pierce, and most of Eisenhower). We stopped here for about 20 minutes to have a snack, hydrate, and go "WOW!" The flurries continued while we were here, too.

[9:20am - Willey Range Trail/Mt. Willey Summit]

The walk from the viewpoint ot the summit was just a few yards - we were happy to hit the top finally! We noticed seemingly endless snowhsoe hare tracks all around the summit area, too. I've never seen one in it's winter colors - only in its three-season coat! We briefly enjoyed the standing view from the other side of the summit, but we had also found the wind, and it was COLD. We threw some layers back on and got back into the trees onto the wonderful stretch of trail between Mt. Willey and Mt. Field. 

The trail was now packed down and truly a delight to walk on. We crossed a blowdown patch that offered views over to Mt. Field and hit a few PUDs on our trip, and it was genuinely lovely. We also saw our first person du jour at this point - a solo hiker hiking from Field to Willey.

Somewhere after the Willey-Field col, we made two friends - two gray jays! They clearly wanted some snacks, but Sarah and I are both against feeding them. They did not agree with us, though, and truly followed us all the way up to the summit. We named them Helena and Greg, and it was honestly so fun to have them with us (even if they only wanted our food). We acted like they were our guides and ensuring we made it to the top safely! Naturally, I took well over a hundred photos of our new friends - they were WILDLY comfortable with us!

We caught a view over to the backside of Bond and Bondcliff, continued to chit-chat with Greg and Helena, and hit a few steeper sections of trail before making it up to the summit of Mt. Field!

[10:15am - Willey Range Trail/Mt. Field Summit]

There was a duo on Mt. Field also giggling at the gray jays, but they soon departed. Sarah and I did just a quick break at the top for a small snack, water, and some photos. We also enjoyed the few views the peak offers - notable down to the Omni Mt. Washington Resort, Mt. Tom, and the Twins. 

The initial descent on the Willey Range Trail had nice views to the Twins and soon entered a stunning, birch-filled winter wonderland - I remember LOVING this stretch of woods when I hiked these peaks for the first time. 

[10:22am - Willey Range Trail/Avalon Trail]

We soon hit the junction with the Avalon Trail, which we joked about "just running down for the view," but that joke quickly fled when I remembered how steep it was! We continued our descent through these lovely woods with a delightful footbed... for the first 10 minutes. The back half of this walk was rough with exposed rocks, frozen drainages, and icy postholes. 

[10:48am - A-Z Trail]

Thankfully, we soon hit the A-Z Trail. I emotionally wanted to hit Mt. Tom, but did not want to do the almost one-mile round trip when we still had MUCH hiking left to do. Sarah simply had no interest in going up Mt. Tom, so we had a quick snack again (I had a cookie!), saw our next duo of hikers, which turned out to be the last hikers we'd see for the rest of the hike!

The A-Z Trail was clearly less-traveled in this direction, but still easy enough to follow with the few inches of snow. It descended relatively easily before crossing a snowmobile trail, which led to the first water crossing, which turned out to be a long, semi-dreadful stretch of comically wet and only partially-frozen trail. We thought we'd be cruising through this stretch of trail, but boy, were we wrong! On the plus side, I was winning fart baseball by a landslide... If that's even a plus? The trail varied from frozen ground to lovely snow to thin ice to deep water to boardwalks to stream crossings... it was rough! Thankfully, it was at least a little pretty.

Eventually, we crossed a second snowmobile trail and began to descend again with a few more stream crossings, but overall a much higher quality of life. The snow flurries continued throughout the whole A-Z Trail, sometimes getting a little heavier than a snowglobe, but always beautiful. The trail began to get wet again with more boardwalks, and after who knows how long, we came up to the edge of a beaver pond, which was our signal that we were almost to salvation!

[12:37pm - Zealand Trail]

[12:42pm - Zealand Trail/Zealand Hut FPA]

We were THRILLED to finally make it to the Zealand Trail! The A-Z Trail wasn't hard grade-wise, but footing-wise, it was rough and slow. Sarah gave the Zealand Trail sign a big hug, but we decided we would get a little further down before taking a break.

From here, the Zealand Trail crossed a bridge with snowy views towards some landmass, entered the Forest Protection Area surrounding the Zealand Hut, and paralleled another pond, where we could hear Zealand Falls ROARING on the other side. 

[12:46pm - Ethan Pond Trail]

[12:55pm - Ethan Pond Trail/Departs FPA]

On the far side of the pond, the Zealand Trail turned right to climb up to Zealand Hut and the Ethan Pond Trail continued on the railroad grade ahead. We were DELIGHTED to be on railroad grade after the A-Z Trail! We took a quick break here for another snack and for a potty break. 

Along the delightful Ethan Pond Trail, the snow was beginning to pick up - enough to the point where I had to put my sunglasses (we LOVE PitVipers) on to keep the snow out of my eyes - I just wish I didn't have my dark shades with me - I have a pair of lighter ones that would have been perfect for overcast snow. We soon departed the FPA and were back to fully enjoying life and our hike!

[1:22pm - Ethan Pond Trail/Talus Field]

After almost a half hour of delight, we entered the talus field near Zealand Notch and Whitewall Mountain. I had seen this area on Facebook and YouTube, but never in person before. It was stunning - especially with the snow falling! Footing was still wonderful as we were on the railroad grade, and the views were really neat and unique. We could see up to either Zealand or Hale (I think Hale?) on the far right across the notch and there were dramatic cliffs overhead up on Whitewall Mountain. I'm curious how many people climb up this talus field to summit Whitewall?

[1:27pm - Ethan Pond Trail/Zeacliff Trail]

It was fun seeing the Pemigewasset Wilderness sign at the junction with the Zeacliff Trail - a trail that I simply must venture some day now. The views continued ahead toward some unnamed mountains (to my knowledge) before eventually reentering the woods, which to no surprise, were still lovely. Life was good again!

[1:41pm - Ethan Pond Trail/Thoreau Falls FPA]

[1:46pm - Ethan Pond Trail/Thoreau Falls Trail]

We thought about visiting Thoreau Falls when we entered the Thoreau Falls Forest Protection Area, but we were starting to feel tired and still had a good number of miles left (and fleeting daylight!), so we continued on past the FPA and junction.

[1:52pm - Ethan Pond Trail/Bridge]

[1:53pm - Ethan Pond Trail/Departs FPA]

We did come to a wonderful bridge over the North Fork East Branch of the Pemigewasset River (ridiculous name), which was a deep red from the tannins in the water (I assume). We took a few photos, exchanged a few "wow"s, and continued on the still-delightful railroad grade, existing the Forest Protection Area, and later landing at the Shoal Pond Trail junction.

[2:00pm - Ethan Pond Trail/Shoal Pond Trail]

I had a wonderful moment of forgetfulness at the Shoal Pond Trail junction. I had been saving a Celsius as a little reward/boost for later in the hike, and when we got on the Ethan Pond Trail I told myself (and Sarah) that I would open it at the Shoal Pond junction. I was a bit tired at this point, so I fully forgot, and I GASPED with excitement when Sarah reminded me. I took my pack off, and immediately forgot what I was looking for - Sarah reminded me, and again, I GASPED with excitement! We giggled, I went to grab it, and yet again forgot what I was doing, got reminded, and GASPED with excitemenet. Sometimes, it really is a joy to be a little dumb!

The Ethan Pond Trail got a little less wonderful after the Shoal Pond Trail junction, but it was still easy peasy. The trail came up to a beautiful stretch of the river that had wide, cascading slabs into what looked like a deep pool (Sarah mentally pinned it for a possible swimming spot when the weather is nice again). 

Slowly, the trail began to... deteriorate. Footing became similar to that of the A-Z Trail - rocky, wet, kind of frozen, but also kind of not frozen. Sometimes there was thick, stable ice that was perfect for spikes, and other times you'd look at the ice and fall into a mud pit. It was rough. It was slow. When we weren't rock hopping, we were navigating a series of partially burried, partially rotting bog boardwalks, never knowing which step would plummet us into a stream. It was BRUTAL. We were also into double-digit miles at this point, which had us TIRED. The two miles, although flat, took us a solid hour, and we EARNED those miles. My Celsius reward ended up being a challenge - trying to navigate the contstant rock hopping with a can in-hand wasn't as easy as I thought it'd be! We lamented, complained, and went silent on a rotating basis, and only felt a bit of exictement and joy when we finally made it to the Ethan Pond Campsite Forest Protection Area - thank GOODNESS.

[3:02pm - Ethan Pond Trail/Ethan Pond Campsite FPA]

[3:10pm - Ethan Pond Trail/Ethan Pond Campsite Spur]

We caught a few glimpses of the cliffs off of Mt. Willey through the trees - it was still snowing, but a bit less now (which was appreciated). Sarah and I were both on the same page that we wanted to 1) see Ethan Pond and 2) get the heck out of these woods - the only break we planned to take was a quick pee and to shove a little bit of food down our throats. 

We followed the Ethan Pond Campsite Spur down to the Ethan Pond viewpoint, which in fairness was beautiful, but we quickly turned it around to take care of our chores (plus it was COLD at the pond) and blast off to the car! We were slowly becoming aware of the setting sun...

[3:27pm - Ethan Pond Trail/Departs FPA]

We were delighted to be on a nicer trail again (the bad stretch was Shoal Pond Trail to Ethan Pond Campsite Spur - I wonder if it's always like that or if we just got "lucky") and even more delighted be to leaving the FPA. We were both on "go" mode at this point as I continued to rack up fart baseball points (that being said, Sarah had joined the game by this point!). 

[3:49pm - Ethan Pond Trail/Willey Range Trail]

[3:58pm - Kendron Flume Trail]

Adding to our delight, time felt to be moving faster again as we crossed the Willey Range Trail junction and were soon back on the Kendron Flume Trail! We were zooming down, only slowing down at that one icy slab we climbed up earlier. From there, I started to blast off ahead of Sarah because I have a hard time fighting gravity on tired legs. 

[4:12pm - Kendron Flume Trail/Kendron Flume]

We rendez-vous'd at the Kendron Flume, which was now beautifully dusted in snow, as flurries were still falling, slightly clouding the view toward Mt. Webster. The trail was a little hard to follow in the next stretch with the fresh coating of snow, but I only missed one (1) switchback and got fully off-trail one (1) other time. Sarah was grateful that I was the one to make the mistakes so she didn't have to!

[4:30pm - Kendron Flume Trail/Railroad Crossing]

I got ahead again, trying to move quickly to avoid needing my headlamp, but I accepted defeat at the railroad crossing. I also desperately had to pee. I waited again for Sarah, and she exasperatedly told me "you know you can keep going!" - I told her "I know! I need to pee and I need you to get my headlamp out of my pack!" She was also disappointed we'd need headlamps, but it was DEFINITELY time! She got ahead this time as I took a scenic bathroom break off of the railroad bridge, and then I basically chased her back to the car.

[4:38pm - Kendron Flume Trail/Westside Trail]

I knew I was close at the Westside Trail junction, and I soon caught up with Sarah as we passed the sign for the Willey Boulders, which we agreed we'd visit another day (ideally in daylight). We carefully shimmied down the final descent back to the parking lot and RAN to the car - it was COLD in the notch!

[4:45pm - End of Hike]

We did a QUICK change at the car. It was snowing and dark out! I felt the need to rush out of there because I had friends coming over that night and I was simply far away from home and had no service to tell them - thankfully all was fine! We carefully drove up back through Crawford Notch, around US-3, and down through Franconia Notch, all with plenty of snow falling. Roads improved once we got through the notch, and we ordered pickup from the Common Man Roadside in Plymouth for dinner, which was excellent! The rest of the drive was easy-peasy, albeit a little sleepy. It was SO nice to be back up in the Whites!

Step-by-Step

- Park at Willey House Site.

- Start hike on Kendron Flume Trail.

- At terminus, turn right onto Ethan Pond Trail.

- At jct., turn right onto Willey Range Trail.

- At terminus, turn left onto A-Z Trail.

- At terminus, turn left onto Zealand Trail.

- At jct., turn left onto Ethan Pond Trail.

- After many miles, turn left onto Kendron Flume Trail.

- Return to car.

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