Welsh-Dickey Loop Hike

Part 1: The Trip

Negotiating the trip details with Borb, we agreed to meet at 7:00AM on the day after Thanksgiving, at the parking lot in the Blue Hills.
On that morning, we were abandoned by Borb, who backed out, claiming severity of weather & a bad back. Since he was the designated driver, I defaulted to chauffeur. Tom drove to my house, we departed for Canton at 6:30, and met Matt in the parking lot on time. The trip up was uneventful; stopping momentarily in Manchester for coffee.
The weather was alternately encouraging & not, with heavy clouds circulating around an upper level low stuck in southern Canada. Occaisional showers spattered the windshield while we made excuses for the lingering storm in the highlands. As we approached the Waterville Valley area; we had our first surprise, the hills were marked by a snow line at 2000'. The cliffs of Dickey were a dull white in the misty distance.
Exiting 93, a few miles up the Mad River, & we were winding our way on wet roads to the trailhead. Amazingly, there were several cars already there.

Part 2: The Hike

The trees were bare, and the forest quiet as we set out on the trail. Not paying attention at the outset, we headed off to Dickey, missing the Welsh sign at the trailhead. This was a disappointment to me, as I had a preconceived idea of getting the worst part of the trail over with first, concluding with the easier Dickey. But we were too far into the trail to turn around.
The trail climbed steadily, not revealing too much beyond the bare trees. Suddenly we were at the snow line. The light dusting presented no impediment, and soon we were into a totally white woods. The howl of the wind could be heard in the upper branches, signalling a severe & possibly dangerous ascent ahead.
The Dickey cliffs present their back side to the forest, with a row of sedimentary rock walls. The trail climbs to the top & turns abruptly onto the cliff face. This transition from the protected forest to the open elements was dramatic & profound, with wind blown snow gusting over the rocks as we made the turn.

Out on the cliff face, the harsh winter reality was upon us. A monochromatic picture of grey & white, with snow & slush ice covering all branches & surfaces to 2" deep. A low ceiling of gloomy dark clouds racing closely overhead completed the picture of Arctic environs. The danger of the steep cliffs was enhanced by the possibility of slipping on the obscured trail. The reassuring yellow blazes were covered by the snow.
We had hoped for a panoramic view. The low ceiling & occasional precipitation band made this difficult. The view toward Tripyramids was typical of the atmospheric transparency from Dickey Cliffs.
The exposed trail required more clothing. We dug out the winter wear & prepared for the assault. The view toward the south showed the more clement lowlands. But we were in the snow, and the view up the cliff trail offerred more snow & ice. There were wild animal footprints at intervals. The flat rock planes of Dickey presented confusion since some of the blazes were covered. We backtracked several times. The crusty quality of the snow made traction better than expected.

The summit of Dickey was spotted with low trees but gave little protection. The branches grew away from the prevailing winds. An icy view of Welsh previewed the coming difficulties. The steep trail required us to go off trail for traction. Tree cover assisted the descent to the col. A hemlock forest provided a calm respite.
From the large cairn at the col, the trail climbed steeply up Welsh. The last part of the ascent was adjacent to a cliff, and was mostly ice. We crawled to the summit, wind blown & severe. The summit group shot shows a happy countenance but belied the pain & hardship. The wind gusts were strong on the rocky knoll.
The descent of Welsh was horror & misery. We followed footsteps from a previous group who had come up the Welsh trail no further than the summit. The steep rock faces were unrelenting. We slid down the ice in crouched positions. There were numerous cutbacks & ledges. The ski gloves became soaked. My down jacket was wet at this point. The exertion kept us warm.

We met another party of frustrated skiers who decided to substitute a hike for the more philistine activity of downhill & lifts. They were clad in sneakers; we gave them little hope of attaining the summit.
We arrived at the protected fauna cliff, overlooking the Mad River. This was a welcome milestone; beyond this point the trail re-enters the forest.
By this time I was in a state of pain & exhaustion. My right foot difficulty had caused me to adapt, resulting in a bad right knee. The descent aggravated this condition. Adjusting my gait for the knee then caused a left hip pain. My compatriots vanished in the distance as my pace slowed to a crawl. The continuing precipitation caused the lower woods to be wetter than the ascent; numerous rivelets crossed the trail. It was difficult to stay dry.
A medium sized stream flows down the ravine between Welsh & dickey. The descent trail followed the stream below snow line. At last, the end of the trail. There were more cars than ever, even though we met only three parties. We changed clothes & continued to Waterville Valley for beer & burritos. The ride home was uneventful.

The consensus of the group: This was the closest to the often hyped near death experience for all of us.