Little Haystack

Today we hiked Little haystack mountain. High temp 5F. Winds 65mph to 90mph gust in the 120mph range. Wind chill pushing -40F. There was a group of 8 of us that headed out on the trail shortly after 930am this morning. We hiked up the falling waters trail. We were all in high spirits enjoying the conversation of catching up with old friends and meeting new ones. As the miles started to add on the group started to become strung out but would always wait for each other to catch up. As we got above tree line 5 of us braced the extremes of the weather at hand and summited. Our eye lashes got icicles, face masks started to freeze the beards, within a matter of minutes. After enjoying the view we started back down. Two of us tried to use our butt sleds but the conditions just were not there. We all had lunch at the trail junction, and stayed as a group as we headed back to the cars. Fun was had by all.

Highlights include beautiful views, waterfalls along the trail, and a well-marked path. Challenges are steep climbs and icy conditions requiring traction devices. Bringing extra layers, and sturdy footwear. Elevation gain 3031ft, length about 5.6 miles. Duration of hike will depend on trail conditions. Suggesting to bring lunch and snacks to keep up that manly energy!