Monday- Run/Hike Franconia Ridge Loop. New PR-3 hours 20 min for loop.
Went up Falling waters over Franconia Ridge Down Old Bridle Path. I say PR for the loop, but I've never tried to run the loop before. My old fastest time for hiking this was just over 4 hours and actually during the winter, which I think is the fastest time of year for hiking this loop. With Crampons on the way up and a smooth trail you can run/slide down on the way down you can really move on this loop during winter.
Abbey and I got up early for this, because I had to be into work in Durham by 3pm. Got up there at around 8:15 and spent sometime trying to decide whether we wanted to carry water and food. I wanted to leave everything and just get some water at the hut on the way down. Abbey was the smart one and talked me into taking our camelbaks.
We got on the trail at 8:30 and were able to run for most of the first mile and a half, and kept a good pace on the steeps where we were hiking. I had really hoped to be able to just hike the steeps, and be able to run most of the switchbacks, but I found myself having to hike a lot more than I expected. We made it up Little Haystack in about an hour and 20 and we were both crawling the last quarter mile to the top. Took about 5 minutes or so up top to eat some clif bloks and drink some water. Really buggy! We got moving again and made it over to Lafayette in another half an hour, we ran about 2/3rds of the way over there, but I still found myself unable to run on terrain I really expected to be able to run on! 25 minutes for this section. 20 minutes down a very technical 1.1 from the summit of Lafayette to the Greenleaf Hut. We stopped here and chatted with some other hikers, went to the bathroom and filled my waterbottle. Made it down the last 2.8 miles in 50 minutes, running as much as possible, just going very very slowly in the sketchy spots.
I really expected to run a lot more of this, and so it's a little slower than I would have wanted, I'm not sure how Tilton and Nephew could ever run 6 something for the whole Pemi Loop, I took half their time for a quarter of the distance! It was a really nice run, and a gorgeous morning to be up there. I wish I could have gotten some pics. Not sure if I should count all those miles, but I was working hard the whole time so I'm gonna say yes.
I would definitely count em for the type of terrain it was and your heart rate was up the whole time. Sweet run. I am waiting to do one of these runs in the Whites. I want to do it with a group like DoubleJ, Tilton, and you. And any others that want to join.
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