Mts. Avalon, Field, Willey, & Tom (White Mountain National Forest)
Hike Type: Three-Stem Lollipop Loop
Distance: 10.68 miles
Elevation: 3,455 feet
Time: 6 hours, 49 minutes (6 hours, 21 minutes moving)
Hiking Challenges: 52 Hike Challenge; New Hampshire 48 4000-Footers; 52 With a View
The Hike
My weekend in Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom was officially over and it was time to take the scenic route home! I left Vermont a bit before 6:30am and made my first stop at the Littleton Walmart as my body was ready to expel all of the sins ingested in the past 48 hours… at least I’m consistent? I stopped at the Crawford Path trailhead for its composting toilet as a “just in case stop,” may have ran into “Finding Philip” (as we know I don’t talk to internet celebrities during these sightings), and then finally landed at the Crawford Depot around 8:30am. The clouds were comically low (maybe 100ft. above the height of the notch?), the air was cool and wet, bugs were at bay, and my water bladder was leaking. Apparently I had bitten through the mouth nozzle… whoops! I was trying to keep my expectations low for the day - I know weather had been rough, I forgot to read the White Mountain Guide beforehand, and this would be my first solo 4000 footer(s)! I finally got my hike going around 8:45am.
I crossed the tracks, entered the woods, and waved “goodbye” to the Mt. Willey Trail sign, comically joking to myself that “maybe I’ll head up there at the end” (spoiler: I did not have the energy to do such). There was someone about 200ft. ahead of me who turned around at the Crawford Brook crossing, which was rock hoppable. I did have to think for a minute, but I made it through no problem. I was delighted to see that the bugs were still asleep, for now… (they stayed that way!) except for the slugs who were EVERYWHERE. I truly was worried I was going to commit a genocide with how many I was almost stepping on. Curious if it was because of the time of the year or because it had been raining or just for fun?
The Avalon Trail continued straight at a junction with the “Cascade Loop,” which looked short on the AllTrails map, and who doesn’t love cascades?? I made the left turn and was immediately delighted with my decision. The trail on the Cascade Loop is narrower and leads to two named cascades/waterfalls, “Beecher Cascade” and “Pearle Cascade,” both have herd paths that explore the riverbank to get different views from the cascades. The slugs painted the way along the trees to the end of the loop which connects back to the Avalon Trail, a bit further up.
The Avalon Trail from here continued onward, steadily and slowly increasing in grade. There were a few sections that were wet and muddy, but the kind of wet and muddy that is bearable (not like Stannard Lookout…). There are a few more cascades with herd paths to viewpoints along the trail and eventually a second brook crossing, which was also not a problem. The higher up I climbed the foggier the world became around me, and as the trail continued to get steeper, I saw the first major junction sign through the clouds!
The Avalon Trail turned left here as the A-Z Trail continued straight (I would return this way much later). I had read that the final push up to Avalon was a doozy, and the warnings were very correct. One of those steep sections full of boulders that make you giggle to yourself and think “why on gods earth did I CHOOSE to do this again?” It didn’t help that with all the rain, and literally being in a cloud, has left the whole trail soaked. Thankfully there were plenty of decent spots to put the feet so even though it was ridiculously steep and visibly dangerous, it never felt as such.
Turning around, the likely would have been obstructed tree views, but I was deep into a cloud so all I could see were my immediate surroundings. Eventually the trail began to level out and continue towards another trail sign, signifying that the Avalon Summit was just 100 yds. away! Of course I took the spur path with the assumption and understanding that I would likely have no view.
The spur to Avalon was back to being steep with rough footing, and the last scramble before the summit was particularly comical. I think I grabbed onto a root and threw myself up on the ledge? Truly a mystery. To no surprise the view was of the inside of a cloud, so I found a sitting spot, plopped my soaking wet body down, and like magic the clouds parted just enough for me to get a daunting view of Mt. Field towering above me! It wasn’t nearly as magical as when the same thing happened to me on Mt. Crawford, but I’ll take my wins when I can get them! I enjoyed a slice of Parker Pie Pizza (the pizza stone, to be specific), and had my first of many encounters with a man I named “Gator,” from the Florida Gators shirt he was wearing (and thick southern accent).
Food was in the belly, shirt was rung out, clouds were back, and it was time to continue on! I followed a herd path around the silly scramble and almost instantly regretted it when I nearly grabbed onto a skinny tree trunk COVERED in slugs. Thankfully I survived, but that was almost the end. The Avalon Trail continued in the Field/Avalon col through some beautiful, mossy, wet but not bothersome woods. The flat walking break is short lived, because it soon begins steeply climbing once again. There were a few wet slabs I was nervous about, but thankfully they weren’t slippery.
Higher up, the trail enters one of the more beautiful forests I’ve had the privilege of hiking through- truly the type of forest I believe authors imagine when writing fairytales. Gorgeous green mosses everywhere with a gentle bed of needles and soil on the ground, plus the scent that matches. I was in absolute awe!
The trail continues to level out until it reaches its terminus with the Willey Range Trail. Turning left goes immediately to Mt. Field and later Mt. Willey, and right leads to Mt. Tom - I continued left, climbing quickly and steeply out of the enchanted forest to the summit of Mt. Field, which is marked by a large cairn in a medium-sized clearing.
It was evident there are usually some views off the summit (specifically one off a small spur on the left, and another looking back north along the Willey Range Trail), but as we all know by now, it was a cloudy day. Gator was at the summit and we commiserated about the lack of views, but he mentioned that he did Webster and Jackson last week in the rain, which is objectively worse for numerous reasons. I had a small snack before continuing on to high peak #2, Mt. Willey.
The trail gently meanders the summit “plateau” (if you can even call it that, more like the summit 200 sq. feet) and then immediately plummets into purgatory, or at least it feels like it. The trail was a stream up top and then entered an eroded, gravelly section that was truly a wild ride to get down. The only positive was that it was so steep there were some partial views into the distance, and this is also where I noticed the clouds were starting to lift - yay! Once the initial ridiculous descent concludes, the hiker is greeted with a very… cozy trail. Cozy with scratchy evergreens on both sides, and a soaking wet, muddy ground to keep the feet cool. Once released from the grips of the trees, the trail goes up, then down, then up, then down… It was rough going. The best part was when the trail entered a blowdown area with a nice view back toward Mt. Field.
The trail then continued to climb, now at a more reasonable grade, eventually opening to a nice standing view into the Pemigewasset Wilderness, with I believe Mts. Carrigain and Bond being the primary peaks in the area. I nodded at Gator, continued to the small summit cairn where a few hikers were chit chatting, and sat along the trail about 10 feet away from the cairn for some privacy, when the unthinkable happened. I took out my second slice of pizza and noticed something was… off. The plastic wrap looked like it was tugged at, torn a bit. I inspected further and noticed a small crescent was nibbled out of my pizza, maybe 3/4” in diameter. I fully contemplated throwing myself off the mountain in this moment. There were three possibilities of how this happened: 1) Emma has a mouse in her house and it ate my pizza last night (very likely), 2) there is a mouse in my car who had a snack as I was fighting for my bowel’s life this morning (not the most unlikely), 3) a mouse climbed into my bag at some point and I’ve been carrying extra weight (the worst possible scenario). I do think it was scenario #1, but I was UPSET. I did weigh the risks of eating the pizza anyway, and I was hungry, so I turned my brain off and went to town on Mickey’s leftover. Horrible.
I didn’t stay up on Willey for too long since the bugs were starting to wake up. My return trip was much quicker, physically and mentally. I passed a few separate groups of people likely doing the same hike that I (and Gator) were doing. I slipped a few times on the eroded/gravelly climb, and my legs were DEFINITELY feeling the burn on the final push back to Field, but I was impressed with how not-awful I felt!
I took a shorter break this time up on Field to have another snack and take some photos now that the clouds have started to dissipate. From the short spur on the left of the trail is a view toward Bretton Woods, and looking north on the trail is a neat view toward Tom and some big peaks in the distance… maybe Zealand/Guyot/Bond? I have no idea why I didn’t take out my PeakFinder app here. Next time!
The descent back to the Willey Range Trail/Avalon Trail junction was steep, but then leveled out once back in the magnificent fairytale forest. I wish I could have bottled up the scent and turned it into a candle, but the Yankee Candle Balsam & Cedar will have to do for now! The trail gradually got wetter, denser, and muddier the further along I went, but the forest was still beautiful throughout. I did hear a dog barking off in the distance which was weird… or maybe it was bigfoot. Unclear.
I found my way to my next junction of the day - the terminus of the Willey Range Trail at the A-Z (Avalon - Zealand) Trail! I turned right to hike toward the Mt. Tom Spur, and then soon turned left to hike the spur to my fourth and final peak of the day (or fifth if you count the second time up Field…). The trail overall is gentle, but there are two steep/scrambly areas that were, shockingly, insanely wet and muddy. A disgruntled dad and I played leap frog in this area, as his impatient family continued on toward the summit.
The trail was beautifully green even with all the moisture, and just before the summit I ran into my good friend Gator one last time! I also ran out of water at this point… oops. The trail opens up at a false summit area that apparently used to have a great view, and the trail continues left to the actual summit marked by a large cairn. There is a spur path that leads further, but that is another grown-in view. The summit was buggy and I was out of water to I booped the top and quickly turned around for my final descent back into civilization.
The trip back down Tom Spur was quick, and my initial descent on A-Z was slow - very steep and wet which required care to not slip and fall. I also noticed I was starting to cramp up, so I was gentle with my movements. There were two water crossing (both easy) - I filled up my gatorade bottle and threw two nuun tablets in to rehydrate my dying body, and FULLY cramped up bending over. It’s definitely summer hiking again! I had gotten use to not needing 1,000 gallons of water per hike in the cooler months. I was also too lazy to fish out my filter, but as of writing this I have not gotten sick, so that is a win!
The Nuun truly saved my hike because I was back and not cramping in just a few minutes after chugging it. The second crossing was along a beautiful mossy, cascading brook, and eventually I landed back onto the Avalon Trail, which apparently follows a beautiful ravine. It was fun getting to see the tree views without the clouds now. I slipped the Cascade Loop on this return trip, but did consider taking a small bath in the Crawford Brook… another day. I didn’t see anyone on my return trip until I hit the Willard junction, then I saw the whole world heading up for their family friendly hikes.
I took a few final photos back at Crawford Depot and was DELIGHTED to see the real bathrooms were open. I got changed, washed up as best I could, marveled at my nose which was covered in dried blood? (How did I miss that???) I did a bit of note taking for this eventual journal entry, and began my long drive home to Boston to kick of my last week of the school year!
Step-By-Step
- Park at Crawford Depot.
- Cross railroad tracks to start hike on Avalon Trail.
- At jct. with Mt. Willard Trail, continue left on Avalon Trail.
- At next jct., turn left onto Cascade Loop.
- Hike spurs to cascades and complete loop.
- At terminus, turn left to rejoin Avalon Trail.
- At next jct. with A-Z Trail, turn left to stay on Avalon Trail.
- At next jct., turn left to hike spur to Mt. Avalon.
- Enjoy view, turn around.
- Back at jct., turn left to continue along Avalon Trail.
- At terminus, turn left onto Willey Range Trail.
- Summit Mt. Field, continue on Willey Range Trail.
- Summit Mt. Willey, turn around.
- Summit Mt. Field, continue on Willey Range Trail.
- At terminus, turn right onto A-Z Trail.
- At next jct., turn left onto Mt. Tom Spur.
- Summit Mt. Tom, retrace steps.
- At jct., turn left onto A-Z Trail.
- At terminus, continue left onto Avalon Trail.
- Follow Avalon Trail back to Crawford Depot.
“Avalon Trail” from AMC White Mountain Guide (31st Ed.)
This trail runs from AMC’s Macomber Family Information Center (at Crawford Depot) on the west side of US 302 to Willey Range Trail, 90 yd. north of the summit of Mt. Field, passing a spur path to the fine outlook on Mt. Avalon along the way. Some parts of Avalon Trail are steep and rough. For parking, see the Mt. Willard Trail description.
Yellow-blazed Avalon Trail begins across the rain road tracks (caution: active tourist railroad) just south of the information center. It coincides with Mt. Willard Trail for 0.1 mi., continuing ahead where Mt. Willard Trail leaves left. Avalon Trail ascends gradually and crosses Crawford Brook (may be difficult in high water) at 0.3 mi. About 80 yd. beyond this crossing, a loop path 0.1 mi. long (sign: “Cascade Loop”) diverges left.
On Cascade Loop (easy grades and good footing), in 40 yd., a spur (sign: “Beecher Cascade”) descends 35 yd. left to the base of Beecher Cascade, turning sharply right near the bottom (use caution). The loop path then ascends 125 yd. to a bank (sign: “Pearl Cascade”) where a short, steep descent to the left provides a look upstream to Pearl Cascade. The loop path then ascends 75 yd. to rejoin Avalon Trail.
Avalon Trail climbs at a moderate grade past the upper jct. with Cascade Loop and bears right, away from the brook, at 0.6 mi. on a somewhat rough relocated section. Just before this turn, a side path left leads a few steps to a view over the brook, and an unsigned branch path descends 35 yd. left to a view on an attractive flume and cascade. The main trail recrosses the brook at 0.8 mi. and continuing so its moderate ascent. At 1.3 mi., after a steeper pitch, Avalon Trail bears left at a former trail jct., and in 80 yd., A-Z Trail to Zealand Trail and Zealand Falls Hut diverges right at the relocated jct. Avalon Trail soon begins a sustained climb that is steep, very rough, and rocky. Near the top, the grade moderates and the footing improves, and at 1.8 mi., in the small col just below Mt. Avalon’s summit, a 100-yd. side path diverges left. This path climbs steeply with several ledge scrambles to this fine ledgy viewpoint; the uppermost and most difficult scramble can be bypassed by an informal switchback path on the left. Various ledges around the summit area provide views of the Presidentials, Crawford Notch, and the upper Willey Range. Beyond the spur trail jct., Avalon Trail passes through a flat, ledgy area with restricted views, climbs easily through a switchback, and then swings right for a steep, rough climb, with some slippery ledges and one restricted view to the northeast. The trail then continues with easier grades and one final steeper pitch to Willey Range Trail. For the summit of Mt. Field, go left (south) 100 yd.
“Willey Range Trail” from AMC White Mountain Guide (31st Ed.)
This blue-blazed trail begins on Ethan Pond Trail, 1.6 mi. from the Willey House Station site, and then runs over the summits of Mt. Willey and Field to A-Z Trail in the Field-Tom col. In combination with Ethan Pond, A-Z, and Avalon trails, Willey Range Trail makes possible various trips over the Willey Range to or from the Willey House Station site, AMC’s Macomber Family Information Center (at Crawford Depot), and Zealand Falls Hut. The section on the south slope of Mt. Willey is very steep and rough.
[…]. Willey Range Trail swings left over the summit at 1.1 mi. and circles around to the southwest outlook, which affords a sweeping view (best seen standing) over the northeastern part of the Pemigewasset Wilderness. The trail then turns right (north) and descends gradually, swinging over to the east side of the ridge and then back to the west side. It climbs over a knob and descends to the Field-Willey col at 2.0 mi. It then climbs, steeply at times, along the west side of the ridge, passing a blowdown patch that offers restricted views into the Pemigewasset Wilderness. At 2.5 mi., Willey Range Trail reaches a clearing with a large cairn at the summit of Mt. Field, where a short side path on the right descends to a northeast outlook. Just north of the summit is a partial view west, and in 100 yd., after a short, steep descent, Avalon Trail diverges right. Willey Range Trail climbs over a small knob and descends gradually northewest to A-Z Trail, just below the Field-Tom col at 3.4 mi. Turn left for Zealand Falls Hut or right for Mt. Tom Spur (80 yd.), Macomber Family Information Center (at Crawford Depot), and US 302.
“Mt. Tom Spur” from AMC White Mountain Guide (31st Ed.)
This short trail runs from A-Z Trail to the summit of Mt. Tom. Mt. Tom Spur leaves A-Z Trail at the height-of-land, 80 yd. east of the Willey Range Trail jct., and climbs at easy grades - with one steep, rocky pitch - to a false summit. Here, at a fork, an overgrown, well-beaten side path on the right leads 70 yd. to a clearing where the former good views from a blowdown patch are now almost completely obscured. From the fork, Mt. Tom Spur swings left and reaches the true summit (cairn) in another 60 yd. The former open view west from another blowdown patch just beyond the summit has also been obstructed by tree growth. In winter, with deep snow, views are still attained at these two locations.
“A-Z Trail” from AMC White Mountain Guide (31st Ed.)
This trail runs to Zealand Trail from Avalon Trail, 1.3 mi. from AMC’s Macomber Family Information Center (at Crawford Depot), crossing the Willey Range at the Field-Tom col, and thus provides a route between Zealand Falls Hut and the Macomber Family Information Center and US 302 at the high point of Crawford Notch. It also provides access to the north end of the Willey Range from either starting point. (Note: The footing is often wet on some sections of the trail west of the Willey Range.)
Yellow-blazed A-Z Trail diverges right from Avalon Trail 80 yd. up from the former jct. and follows a relocated section that skirts the head of a steep gully (where the trail formerly crossed) at easy grades, descending slightly. It then climbs steadily, angling up along the side of the brook valley that has its head at the Field-Tom col. At 0.6 mi., A-Z Trail descends slightly, crosses the brook, swings right, and soon begins to climb more steeply. The trail bears left and continues climbing steadily, reaching the height-of-land at 1.0 mi., where Mt. Tom Spur diverges right. A-Z Trail starts to descend gradually, and in 80 yd., Willey Range Trail enters on the left. […].
