Sunday, January 9, 2011

Greeley Ponds Trail - Winter Hiking

There were only 3 of us on this hike and originally this hike was supposed to be along the Lincoln Woods trail to Franconia Falls. But when we met up in the parking lot of Lincoln Woods Visitor Center, we agreed to hike the Greeley Ponds trail instead.  The Greeley Ponds trail is a popular trail that leads to two ponds surrounded by the New Hampshire White Mountains. There aren't any panoramic views to get excited about but the overall terrain is even and the elevation gain is only 445 feet making this 4-mile hike enjoyable. So we took our time along this trail that also crosses several split log planks over frozen streams. At one point we ended up going down a ski trail that was marked with a blue hatch. We had to turn back and make certain that we stayed on the trail with the yellow hatch.

There was snowfall the entire day and my biggest challenge was keeping my camera dry. I hiked into the ponds with my camera tucked into my parka against my chest. I wasn't able to get any photos of the ponds itself because of the high winds....and well, let's face it, I didn't feel like pointing my camera directly into oncoming wind and snow!

Since this is a popular, well-traveled trail, there were many other hikers and cross country skiers out enjoying this trail as well.

Afterwards I was stopped back at the Lincoln Woods Visitor Center for a few photos on the bridge.

** Click on the photos to see a larger view















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