Date: 04/20/2014

Location: Pinkham Notch

Weather: Clear and warmer

Trails Taken: Rocky Branch, Bushwack to, Isolation trail. (out&back)

Start/Finish Time: 6:20 am to 1:20 pm (7 hrs)

Total miles: 12.5 Give or take

Comments: In the morning the trail was solid and easy to navigate. As it got warmer the snow became unstable. The bottom on the way out was very bad and we post holed many times. The bushwack was easy to find off of the main trail, but it was a bit harder to keep an eye on with the warmer weather melting the snow away on the mock trail. On the GPS it was a total of about 12.5 miles total. Give or take for accuracy. The summit was amazing on this clear day and we had wonderful views of the Presidential range and beyond. We stayed up there for the better part of an hour eating some food and taking in the views. I could have put on my snow shoes at the end of this hike, but I did not use them at all today. Spikes were good enough for me. 

Dog Notes: Dogs would have been just fine out there today. Though some might have had issues with the trail later in the day. 

Difficulty: Strenuous