A tale of a January trip to Cardigan High Cabin Outing Featuring Snow and Good Fun, by David Koerber of AMC Berkshire’s Outings Committee…
Eight adventurous hikers started out on minimal snow for the Cardigan High Cabin on Saturday, Jan. 13, for a weekend trip. All plans for a ski and snowshoe weekend were forgotten and we trekked in with just hiking boots with a thin layer of snow on the ground. We didn’t encounter slippery conditions until we reached the cabin and it started to snow steadily. It would be more winter than any of us had seen so far, so all was not lost. The AMC cabin caretaker, who was just leaving as we arrived, took a group picture.
Saturday was spent getting settled in, planning the weekend, gathering water, and chopping wood. Getting water was a treat with the ice all around. Andy Gagner chopped away while others got the stove going, and the rest of us carried wood and stocked up the split wood pile. Saturday evening was a cordial dinner session with many conversations, and the evening ended with a game of pitch/set-back. We had Andy’s gas lantern and enough candles going to hold a séance. Sam kept a watch on the wood stove all night and we slept well, keeping nice and toasty. It snowed all night and into the day on Sunday.
Sunday morning brought the need to climb. We strapped on what gear we had and headed up the mountain. We tried several approaches, trying to get everyone to the summit, but it was just too steep for those with creepers and yax trax. Three of us with full crampons eventually made it to the top, while the others chose lower trails where the going was a little friendlier. There were no views due to the snow and fog, but it was interesting to scale the summit anyway, and we returned to the cabin for a late lunch. Three members of our group decided to head home with the weather report for the overnight calling for more snow. With their departure, the rest of us decided we’d go out for more exploring and took a trail we hadn’t been on yet.
We had another cordial dinner and conversation on Sunday night, but this night the fire went out and we slept without heat. We were all pretty comfortable as we had our deep winter bags. Monday morning we packed up, cleaned the cabin, and hiked out in fresh snow. Four inches of snow were on the ground as we walked down the mountain to Cardigan Lodge. We shook off our gear and enjoyed a cup of hot chocolate while waiting for the sanding trucks to arrive. Guests at the Lodge were also waiting to leave and we “convoyed” out behind the plow truck as it made its exit. The remaining five of us stopped at a brew pub in W. Lebanon, NH, for one last “cold one” and lunch before going our separate ways and heading back to the “regular” stuff of life.
We all had a great time and thank Donna Walters for allowing us to use the reservation when she could not be there to lead. Participants were Sam Richardson, Don Murphy, John Murphy, Bob Napolitano, Andy Gagner, Amy Risen, Cory Ptak, and Dave Koerber.