FranklinSites.com Hiking Guide
Home

States
 Colorado
 Connecticut
 Maine
 Massachusetts
 New Hampshire
 New York
 Rhode Island
 Utah
 Vermont

 View All

Lists
 NE 4,000 Footers
 NE 100 Highest
 NH 4,000 Footers
 NH 100 Highest
 NH 52 With A View
 NH Belknap Range
 NH Ossipee 10

Links

Trail Conditions

Trip Log
 Sunrises
 Sunsets


About


Mt. Field, Mt. Willey, Mt. Tom
Carroll, NH, Bethlehem, NH

Trailheads, measurements, times, distances, and maps are all approximate and relative to the hike(s) as shown below.
Looking up the Willey Range Trail near the Mt. Field summit
Looking up the Willey Range Trail near the Mt. Field summit

Route: Avalon Trail, (spur trail to summit), (Mt. Avalon), (spur trail from summit), Avalon Trail, Willey Range Trail, (Mt. Field), Willey Range Trail, (Mt. Willey), Willey Range Trail, (Mt. Field), Willey Range Trail, A-Z Trail, Mt. Tom Spur Trail, (Mt. Tom), Mt. Tom Spur Trail, A-Z Trail, Avalon Trail

After a somewhat rough day in the Osceolas, the Tom-Field-Willey Range looked like an attractive hike. Arriving at the Webster-Jackson Trail parking area, it was cold, windy, and snowy. After doing the roadwalk to the Avalon Trail trailhead, we decided to bareboot as long as we could, as the trail looking to be rather well packed (and was).

The first water crossing was somewhat interesting, as someone had recently (since my last visit a month and a half earlier) pulled some of the random old pipes in the woods together and created a partial bridge. At the other end of it, the brook had partially frozen, making a fairly easy crossing.

Reaching the A-Z junction, we decided to put on snowshoes, as the Avalon Trail above this point looked to be a bit slippery. The new inch or two of snow (with 1-2' drifts in a few places) covered up some rather slippery frozen granular, packed down by buttsliders.

Since things were looking to be socked in, we skipped Mt. Avalon and continued up to Mt. Field along the now somewhat badly postholed trail. The Mt. Field viewpoint offered limited views due to the light snow, however the white trees all around were nonetheless scenic.

After regrouping at the summit, we made our way down the Willey Range Trail to Mt. Willey. A few sections of the trail had drifted nicely - fortunately I had been out on this stretch a few times before, as the trail was virtually gone in a few key turns (which could really use some blazes). Just prior to reaching the Mt. Willey summit, we were treated to some decent views of Mt. Carrigain, which was donning a small cloud around its summit.

Beyond the Mt. Willey summit, we headed down to the other viewpoint, just in time to see some blue sky and, surprisingly, Mt. Washington and Mt. Jefferson peaking out from the clouds and fog! What a sight!

Back on the Willey Range Trail, we worked our way back up to Mt. Field and then over to Mt. Tom. Temperatures and visibility seemed to be dropping, whilst the winds were picking up slightly. Thus, as has been my luck for 60% of my Mt. Tom trips, I had no views.

We made fairly decent time on the descent, keeping our snowshoes on until reaching the railroad tracks.


Hike Ratings
Getting To Trailhead: Easy
Destination: Mt. Field
Length: Moderate
Steepness: Difficult
Navigation: Easy
Views: Moderate due to weather
Crowds: Minimal
Destination: Mt. Willey
Length: Moderate
Steepness: Difficult
Navigation: Moderate
Views: Excellent
Crowds: Minimal
Destination: Mt. Field
Length: Moderate
Steepness: Difficult
Navigation: Easy
Views: Minimal due to weather
Crowds: Minimal
Destination: Mt. Tom
Length: Moderate
Steepness: Difficult
Navigation: Easy
Views: Minimal due to weather
Crowds: Minimal


Hike Stats
Date Hiked: Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Hike Commenced: 9:31 AM
Parking Elevation: 1,900'
Destination: Mt. Field
Ascent Commenced: 9:38 AM
Summit Reached: 11:30 AM
Time Elapsed: 01:52
Trailhead Elevation: 1,900'
Summit Elevation: 4,340'
Distance: 2.8 miles
Vertical Gain: 2,542'
Destination: Mt. Willey
Ascent Commenced: 11:37 AM
Summit Reached: 12:26 PM
Time Elapsed: 00:49
Trailhead Elevation: 4,340'
Summit Elevation: 4,285'
Distance: 1.4 miles
Vertical Gain: 465'
Destination: Mt. Field
Ascent Commenced: 12:30 PM
Summit Reached: 1:11 PM
Time Elapsed: 00:41
Trailhead Elevation: 4,285'
Summit Elevation: 4,340'
Distance: 1.4 miles
Vertical Gain: 520'
Destination: Mt. Tom
Ascent Commenced: 1:11 PM
Summit Reached: 1:49 PM
Time Elapsed: 00:38
Trailhead Elevation: 4,340'
Summit Elevation: 4,051'
Distance: 1.5 miles
Vertical Gain: 411'
Hike Ended: 3:05 PM
Hike Time Elapsed: 05:34
Hike Distance: 9.8 miles
Hike Vertical Gain: 3,978'


The Avalon Trail trailhead next to the train station
The Avalon Trail trailhead next to the train station

Limited views from the Mt. Field viewpoint - Click to enlarge
Limited views from the Mt. Field viewpoint

The drifted Willey Range Trail to Mt. Willey
The drifted Willey Range Trail to Mt. Willey

Looking at Mt. Washington from one of the Mt. Willey viewpoints - Click to enlarge
Looking at Mt. Washington from one of the Mt. Willey viewpoints

The Mt. Tom Spur Trail
The Mt. Tom Spur Trail

Looking into the clouds from the Mt. Tom summit - Click to enlarge
Looking into the clouds from the Mt. Tom summit

Topographic map of Mt. Field, Mt. Willey, Mt. Tom - Click to enlarge


Directions to trailhead: Take Route 302 west from Bartlett, NH. In the winter, at least, there is sometimes-plowed parking next to the train station and at the Webster-Jackson lot. Trailhead is across the tracks from the train station.

Back to Mt. Field Profile
Back to Mt. Willey Profile
Back to Mt. Tom Profile




Copyright 2002-2021, All Rights Reserved.
www.FranklinSites.com