12/26/2014

Tom 4,051′, Field 4,340′, Willey 4,285′,  Avalon 3,442′

Avalon Trail, A-Z Trail, Mt. Tom Spur, Willey Range Trail, Avalon trail

7:00 AM – 12:00 PM

10 miles

After an exhausting day on mount Hale Lucy and I attempt a night hike of the Willey range. Once again high water cause us to wait till morning. Once we get going though the trails prove to be a refrozen sidewalk of enjoyable miles across a great set of mountains. Making for a winter peak bagging game of catch up from the previous days slow goings.

The morning was windy and a lot colder than the previous day. I was happy about this now it would make things a bit more solid and the hiking would be easier. It was a bit icy so I put on microspikes and that was all I needed. Lucy and I made great time up the Avalon path before deciding to go up Tom first. Once on Tom Lucy and I got a great view of the mountain that caused us so much grief the day before, Hale.

It is a slow incline up the Willey range trail to Field. Once there Lucy and I had a quick break and went over to Willey. There were a good amount of blowdowns due to the heavy winds and it slowed us down a little bit. We had a good long break on Willey and had some food taking in the wonderful scenery.

After our break we made way back to Field. I decided that I would make camp at Barnes field tonight in order to have a good place to start out a Presi traverse from on Saturday. I was to pick up Abby so she could car spot the hike wherever we needed to be picked up. The weather called for some uncertain action so we wanted to have options. I worked off of the mountains quickly but I stopped on Avalon on the way down to catch a look at the mountains I would be hiking the next day.

Lucy and I had a great hike and it was a great relief to the previous day. We went home to grab the rest of our pack as we were to make camp that evening. I would say that this hike is a great winter bet for anyone who wants to get out on the trails. All I would recommend is microspikes.