View From the Col Photo by Amie
On Sunday, Dec. 29th, the Bangor Outdoor Club met to hike Saddleback and the Horn. Frosty and I woke up at a rude hour to make it to the Rangley area by 7:00.
On the Ski Trail Heading up the Mountain
Even though the Saddleback ski resort isn’t currently operational, the parking was plowed. We met up with five other hikers: Brett, Mike, Christine, Amie, and Allie. We all put on microspikes and started our hike.
It’s a Steep Hike Up Photo by Allie
Although, it had been hard to wake up so early, it was nice to hike as the sun was rising. We hit the trail at about 7:15.
Heading up the Ski Trail Photo by Amie
We hiked the ski trails up Saddleback. Most of the trail was covered by a thin layer of crusty wind packed snow or ice. This is a steep hike. I was feeling how out of shape I was.
There Was More Frost and Snow on the Plants the Further up the Mountain We Went
We had some beautiful distance views heading up, lakes and mountains. The colors were beautiful in the light of the dawn.
The Views Were Great As We Hiked up the Ski Trails
The wind picked up as we got higher on the mountain. Frosty and I layered up before heading up on the ridge.
Heigh Ho! Heigh Ho! It’s off to Hike We Go! Ascending the Last Ski Trail Section
The Last Bit of Trail Before Emerging on the Ridge Photo by Aimee
On the ridge, it was very windy, and the visibility was bad. There were no distance views. After a summit photo, we headed off to the Horn. Slowly, as we headed toward the Horn, the skies cleared. Now, we had some beautiful distance views again.
There Weren’t Any Views When We Reached the Saddleback Summit
Saddleback Summit Photo by Amie
The terrain on the ridge was mostly ice and shallow wind packed snow. But every once in awhile we traveled through an area of deeper snow. Mostly, we were able to stay on top of the snow, but occasionally, one of us would break through. Usually, when this happened to me, my foot would sink into mid-calf or knee height. A couple times, though, I sunk in higher.
It was definitely windy up on the ridge, but really, not bad for a mountain top. We were very bundled up. We had very little exposed skin. There were a few spots that were a bit sheltered from the wind and made good places to stop for a rest, snack, or water.
I couldn’t believe how different this hike was from the Saddleback/Horn hike Frosty, Christine, and I took last March. That hike had so much more snow! Parts of this trail, in the trees near the bottom of the col, were unrecognizable to me with so much less snow.
View Heading Toward the Horn Photo by Brett
We made it up to the Horn. There was sun and lots of wind. A cloud blew through while we were snacking. We took some summit photos, then headed back to Saddleback.
The Horn Summit Photo
The sky kept changing today, from cloudy, to overcast, to sunny. I’m glad that we had some sun and that the wind was bearable. Also, there wasn’t any precipitation to deal with. All in all, it was a great day to be out.
A Cloud Went by While We Were at the Summit of the Horn
The clouds were starting to return on our second visit to the Saddleback summit, but it was much better conditions than when we were there earlier.
The View Was Better Our Second Time on the Saddleback Summit
From the summit, we headed back down to the parking lot. It ended up being about six hours round trip. It was great to have our first hike with Amie and Allie. We hope to hike with them again.
Leaving the Saddleback Summit to Head Back Down the Ski Trail
There are many more photos from this trip below.
The Horn Summit
The Horn Is in the Background Photo by Mike
Looking Toward Saddleback
Looking Toward the Horn
Looking Toward the Horn
The Horn Summit Sing
Looking Toward the Horn
Heading Back up to Saddleback Photo by Allie
Descending Into the Col From Saddleback Photo by Brett
The Last Push up to the Saddleback Ridge
I’ve Decided This Is Mountain Coral
Almost to the Saddleback Summit the First Time Photo by Amie
Looking Toward the Saddleback Summit
The Horn
View from the Col Photo by Brett
Looking up at the Upper Section of the Trip-Color Ski Trail
Saddleback
There Was Lots of Ice and Wind Packed Snow
There Were Interestingf Snow Patterns on the Ice
This Ladder Was Under Several Feet of Snow When We Were Here Last March
More Snow Patterns on the Ice
The Horn
Wind Blown Snow Patterns
