Welch-Dickey loop

The usually mild mannered Welch-Dickey Trail turned out to be a bear of a hike as the previous day's rain turned its exposed ledges into a tricky slip & slide adventure.  Most of the members who had originally signed-up ended up bailing out, when informed on the previous day of the wet conditions, but five diehard GO members took up the challenge and decided to go on with the hike as scheduled.  It helped that the rain had stopped, and that the air was relatively dry, though not entirely, as we spent the day hiking in a foggy mist.  This undid Welch-Dickey's well deserved reputation for beautiful views, but the mist added its own charm to the hike.

The hike did indeed turn out to be a bit more challenging than usual, and most of the GO hikers were brought down to their knees at least once by the slippery slopes.  There was one GO member, who shall remain nameless, who was observed crawling on all fours on one of the steep ledges, but who gamely did not complain and made it to the top with the rest of us.  And, of course, who can forget the two members who unwisely wore cotton jeans, and were heard muttering about their wet butts for the rest of the day.  They will probably not forget the old AMC slogan of "cotton kills."

However, in spite of the challenge, or perhaps because of it, everyone noted how great they felt at the end.  This obviously had something to do with the fact that the hike had mercifully ended after nearly five miles of slipping and sliding, but it was more than that, as all genuinely felt a sense of accomplishment at overcoming an unexpectedly challening hike.

The Welch-Dickey loop trail hike is the ideal Spring warm-up hike for two big reasons:  It is among the first of the trails in NH's White Mountains to be clear of snow and ice in the spring; and at barely five miles in length, it offers pretty much everything that the White Mountains have to offer, but in small doses.  No wonder the AMC White Mountains Guide describes it as a trail that offers excellent views for a modest effort.  However, do not be deceived by this comment, as there are some steep sections which will give you a workout, even if they are indeed short.

This being April, be prepared for any type of weather, so bring layers to put on and take off accordingly.  Also bring one or two liters of water, as there is no potable water on the trail.  We plan to hike counterclockwise, which will take us to the ledges below the summit of Mt. Welch, and then to the summit itself, where we will stop for lunch.  So bring a lunch and/or snacks to share.  We should be done hiking by 3:00 p.m or so.