Climbing Iron Mountain

Sitting west of Jackson, New Hampshire lays Iron Mountain, a peak defined by it's steep southern cliffs and abandoned fire tower. While the cliffs are quite beautiful, there are many ruins that sit in despair along the slopes of the mountain. The scenic cliffs and fields along the trail are certainly the main highlight of the hike.

The Presidential Range from the trailhead.

We started the hike with cloudy skies, which means we missed out on the first couple of viewing areas, including the large meadow at the trailhead. The trail enters the forest and is very muddy, only to get very eroded, and then very slippery. It's safe to say that the trail could use some maintenance.

The eroded trail leading to the summit.

The trail found it's way to the summit after a steep, eroded climb. There are no views to be had from here, but there are ruins of the old fire tower. From here, we continued over the summit and down the south side, where the trail became rougher and rougher, and still very slippery. It went up and down several times, until it eventually lead to the junction.

The ruins of the fire tower.

A very warn trail sign.

At the junction, we went right, which quickly brought us to the southern cliffs, which offer amazing views over the surrounding peaks. From here can be seen Kearsarge North, North Moat Mountain, Mt.Stanton, Mt.Pickering, Attitash Mountain, Bear Mountain, Mt.Chocorua, Mt.Passaconaway, Mt.Nancy, and Mt.Carrigain.

Looking west from Iron Mountain.

Looking off from a ledge. The ski slopes of Attitash are visible.

From left to right includes the Moats, Little and Big Attitash Mountain, and Mt.Chocorua in the distance.

Mt.Carrigain is seen towering above the landscape. Mt.Parker is seen in the front.

Kearsarge North from the ledges.

While the ledges are beautiful, they are not the only attraction on the mountain. Later at the junction, we went left, where the trail took a steep descent down to the now abandoned iron mines. All that can be found there now is a flooded quarry and a dank tunnel leading into the mountain, which is impossible to enter unless you don't mind getting your feet wet.

Looking into the quarry.

An unofficial trail sign.

The overgrown tunnel.

Inside the old mine.

We took the trail back up to the summit, where we were awarded with a minor view of Mt.Washington. We had missed out on many views on the way up, as during our descent, we went to a nearby ledge which also offered a great view of the Presidential Range.

The view from the ledge.

At the trailhead, the skies cleared up, and from the meadow, we got an amazing view of the Presidential Range, with great views toward Mt.Eisenhower, Mt.Monroe, Mt.Washington and Mt.Madison. There were even views toward the Wildcats and Carters.

Mt.Monroe,Mt.Washington, and Mt.Madison from the meadows.

Through the trees.

Mt.Washington and the Wildcat-Carter Range.

What a house!

Iron Mountain is a rugged climb, there's no doubt about it, but it's well worth the climb. The views are unique, and the mountain has been developed so many times that you'll always be finding new ruins, whether it's from the mine, the fire tower, or even the now abandoned ski area. There's a lot to do here, and you can only discover it yourself if you get on the trail.

Mt.Adams via Kings Ravine

Mt.Adams has a variety of different routes that can be taken to ascend it. The Randolph Mountain Club controls quite an extensive trail system on the northern side of the mountain. Some of these trails  happened to be on the Terrifying 25 list, a list of 25 hiking trails in the White Mountains that are known for being difficult/exciting. On this trip, I planned to ascend Kings Ravine and descend using the Airline Trail, while revisiting the summit of Mt.Adams. The last time I was on the summit of Mt.Adams was actually when I finished the New Hampshire 48.

A view of Mt.Madison and the Mahoosucs to the left.

Instead of taking the quickest route to the top, my dad and I chose to visit some waterfalls on the way up. We went up Snyder Brook, which is home to three waterfalls. These falls include Gordon Fall, Salroc Fall, and Tama Fall. Tama Fall is the tallest, at 35 feet.

The 12 foot drop of Gordon Fall.

A portion of Salroc Fall.

The 35 foot drop of Tama Fall.

After visiting the falls, we hooked onto Randolph Path, which obviously doesn't get as much use as other trails as it leads from the falls to Short Line Trail. We followed Short Line Trail from here to the base of Kings Ravine and Mossy Falls. Though obstructed a bit, Mossy Falls was yet another beautiful site along our journey.

The lower portion of Mossy Falls.

The upper section of the falls.

From here, Kings Ravine Trail starts a boulder filled ascent to the alpine zone. As we reached the rocky ravine, we achieved some great views looking north at Mt.Randolph and the Pilot/Pliny Range.

Looking north, with Mt.Randolph to the right and the Pilot-Pliny Range to the left.

After a while, we reached the junction with Chemin des Dames (Trail of the Ladies) and the Subway. The Subway and Kings Ravine Trail are both on the Terrifying 25 list, and there's good reason for this. The Subway branches off the Kings Ravine Trail, and it winds through many caves and boulders. We took it, and it was a real treat.

From inside the Subway.

From atop the Subway.

There are some tight squeezes in the trail where my dad had to take off his backpack and pass it to me so he could fit through the caves. Some of the crevasses in the caves were filled with ice from the past winter. The Subway itself is quite short, but if your nervous in certain sections or wearing a big pack, it may take longer then expected.

One of the tight squeezes.

Probably the tightest of all the spots.

Once we had passed through the entirety of the Subway and hooked back onto the Kings Ravine Trail, we came across the Ice Caves. We were going to go through them, but since there was still a ton of ice and slick rocks inside, we didn't go through.

Looking into the ice caves of Kings Ravine.

The trail starts a steep and rocky ascent up Kings Ravine. The lower portion includes large rocks and great views looking back down to the Subway and Crag Camp up above the ravine. We could also see the remaining portions of snow lying high above on the ridge.

Kings Ravine, as it rises above us.

Now the upper portion of the ravine is different. The trail ascends a gravely slide with very poor footing. We were able to climb up the large rocks alongside the slide, but even this was loose. As a warning, if there are people behind you, be aware of dislodging rocks. Many large cliffs also rise up around the trail at this point, and there's a nice display of flowers.

The Kings Ravine Trail.

More of the trail.

We reached the Airline Trail and followed it to the summit of Mt.Adams. As I said in the beginning, Mt.Adams is where I finished the New Hampshire 48 last year, so of course the mountain is important to me. From the summit, we could see Mt.Cabot, the Carter-Moriah Range, Mt.Washington, Mt.Carrigain, Mt.Jefferson and even Burke Mountain all the way in Vermont.

Wildcat Mountain, with the Doubleheads and Kearsarge North behind it.

Mt.Washington, Mt.Clay, and Mt.Jefferson, with Crawford Notch visible in the background.

The summit was pretty crowded due to the beautiful weather. Many people on the summit began to head down to Madison Spring Hut, so we eventually got the summit all to ourselves. We began our descent on the Airline Trail, another trail on the Terrifying 25 list. The trail was pleasant. as it traveled atop the cliffs above Kings Ravine.

The cliffs of the Airline Trail from Kings Ravine.

On the trail, we had a great view looking back to Mt.Madison and Madison Spring Hut. Many cliffs and overhangs hovered above Kings Ravine. The trail is very scenic, and it's clear why its a popular trail. 

Looking up the Airline Trail.

Once we dipped back into the trees, we passed through several areas that could use some work, as many trees had toppled over onto the trail. The caterpillars were also butchering the trees, and they were practically carpeting the ground with all the chewed up leaves.

GALLERY

Notice Crag Camp on the ridge, high above the ravine.

Above the Subway.

A waterfall alongside the ravine.

This is where the Subway comes out. Can you tell?

Mt.Madison and Madison Spring Hut.

Looking north. The mountain along the ridge with the talus field is Mt.Cabot.

Mt.Madison and the Carter-Moriah range to the east.

Looking down Airline Trail!

Overall, it was a very scenic day. We were staying in Attitash at the time, and I wasn't able to write this blog until now, so sorry if it sounds a bit too third person. It was definitely an exciting day full of thrills and great views. Also, being able to knock off three Terrifying 25 trails was quite thrilling. I should have many new blogs coming out very soon!