Tripyramids Round 2

The last hike I had done was for mother’s day, and with the summer soon upon us, I was itching to get out to the mountains again. This past winter, some friends and I had hiked Middle Tripyramid from the Kanc. Due to tough conditions and our exhausted state, we had decided to just hit one peak, and left North and South Tripyramid for a later date. 

We pulled into the Livermore Road parking lot. I was surprised to see we were the only car there at 8:30am, but that didn’t last long. Fifteen minutes later, we were on our way, walking at a fast clip up the dirt road. The first couple miles are on a wide backcountry access road, which follows a brook as it gradually gains elevation. 

We took a quick detour to Norway rapids, 0.1 miles off of Livermore Road. The path was not well worn, and it led out onto a rocky riverbed, pock marked with several glacial potholes. The river flowed down the far side in a small series of waterfalls and rapids. Above us, the thick canopy of green leaves blocked much of the sun, only allowing in a smattering of dappled sunshine. The water was clear, and the wet rocks were slick with moss. Upstream the river rounded a bend, and the sunshine poured in. It was peaceful, secluded and beautifully mesmerizing.

At the trail junction we followed the trail that read 1.2 miles to North Tripyramid. After a 15 minute hike through the forest, we come to the base of the north slide, a huge scar on the mountainside visible from miles away. The bottom of the slide is no more than 10-15ft wide and is a mixture of downed tree limbs, massive boulders and gravel. It goes straight up. The trail up the north slide is one of the most difficult trails in the White Mountains, second only to the Huntington ravine trail in terms of steepness, and exposure.

I am scrambling up, holding on to whatever handholds I can find: rock, root, or tree. Once or twice I freeze up; I don’t like heights, or large exposed steep areas. It kind of freaks me out. The boy doesn’t enjoy heights either, but it doesn’t affect him as much and he’s enjoying the challenge of the scramble. We stop often to catch out breath, or to look for the trail ahead and find a suitable route.

Resting on the slide, we sip water and look out at some of the finest views in the Whites. Straight ahead sits Osceola; off to the left the trails of Waterville Valley can been seen next to the summit of Tecumseh; Franconia Ridge is partially obscured by Osceola, and the summit of Garfield pokes out over the shoulder of Osceola; in the far distance are the ridges of Tom, Field & Willey…and further northeast, the Presidential Range. If you turn your gaze to the far right, the distinctive humpback of Carrigain rises up. And if you look down, the trail drops away steeply, hundreds of feet.

We can hear another group of hikers below, but they’re out of sight. Ahead the slide appears to be an endless steep collection of slabs of rock and boulders and sandy gravel, all of which makes for tricky hiking conditions. We spy a yellow blaze, the first one we have seen all day. A few cairns rise about the slope, but the trail is sparsely marked, and we follow a route up the left portion of the slide, and then cross over to the right through a dense cluster of small trees and reconnect with the trail. A hundred yards later, we reach the top of the slide, and head back into the forest onto a mossy root-filled trail to the top of North Tripyramid. The shade is most welcome and the cool forest offers relief from the bright sunshine; our legs have been zapped of energy.

The summit of North Tripyramid is unimpressive and offers few views; one down, two to go. Relatively, the trail along the ridge is easy as it meanders along the ridge. A short but steep climb leads up to the top of Middle Tripyramid, which has views towards Passaconaway and the Kanc. Here we stop for a while to eat. Taking our packs off, the sweat slowly evaporates and we scarf down peanut butter Ritz Bitz, beef jerky, and trail mix. Some clouds have rolled in, and a slight breeze keeps the bugs away.

Onwards! After a short and steep descent, the trail gradually heads back up South Tripyramid’s wooded summit. From here, the trail drops quickly and soon comes out onto the south slide, a much smaller, narrower slide consisting of small boulders, gravel and pebbly sand. On tired legs, we carefully descend. We encounter a few backpackers, headed up to North Tripyramid for the night. They tell us they plan to head down the north slide; we tell them they might want to come back the way they came. I can’t imagine going down the north slide, not to mention with a heavy pack to throw off your center of balance.

After reaching the bottom of the south slide, the remainder of the trail is a gentle woods walk back to Livermore. Less than a mile from the trailhead, I spotted a huge boulder by the river. I wanted to go check it out. So we took a detour to the boulder; it was a massive glacial erratic. The boy took off his shirt and shoes, and wadded in up to his knees; then he jumped right into the chilly water. (Note: The following day, the boy jumped in the ocean, which he said was warmer than the mountain brook.)