March is here and with spring just
around the corner, the temperatures are on the rise. This, I think, is causing people to flood
into Crawford Notch to try and get what might be their last bit of winter hiking
and skiing in. Our parking lot at the
Highland Center has been packed and cars parked off the side of the road. I was
hard pressed to find a spot when I came in for work especially this past
weekend. The vernal equinox is March 20th,
which signifies that were officially in spring.
Being a lover of the plant world, I have to say I can’t wait to see some
flowers but I’m still not ready for winter to be over but I’m here to tell you
just that, that it isn’t over just yet!
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Temperatures here have been steadily
in the mid-thirties all week long but the consistent few inches of snow each
day has kept the trails nicely covered.
The slight, steady breeze has kept the snow good and firm and most of
the trails in Crawford Notch are packed out nicely. Earlier this in the week we were plagued with
the wet, heavy, mash potato snow which made snowshoeing and skiing quite
challenging. I guided a few small hikes
those days and found the snow was sticking to the bottom of my snowshoes and
bogging me down as I hiked on.

In the middle of the week we were
experiencing blizzard like conditions with high wind speed and white out
conditions. Some were expecting a foot
of snow during the storm but I think the majority of it blew away. This created some awesome snow drifts around
the center which keep just piling higher and higher it seems. After the storm, the temperatures cooled just
a little but enough that the snow would harden over and make the snow
perfect. The past few days the snow hasn’t
stuck to my snowshoes at all and it hasn’t been unfavorably cold. The forecast
was also calling for rain the past few days but it hasn’t happened yet (knock
on wood), and has only been snowing.

The consistent snowfall didn’t just
improve the hiking and skiing trails but it’s also been great conditions for snow
shelter building here at the Highland Center.
Remember those snow drifts I mentioned earlier?
Well those drifts had a ton of snow plowed onto
them when the walkway was being cleared which made for an excellent sow
cave.
We offer snow shelter building as a
guided activity here at the Highland center among many other guided programs
like the Nordic ski tours and Skins and Skulls.
Snow shelter building has to be one of my
favorite winter activities here as its cool to see where your ideas for a
shelter design might take you; a nice cozy cave dug out or intricate tunnel
systems that lead to a hidden chamber.
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Ocsar and Bernie (matching blue suits) with thir older brother Lucas and mother Clare joined us for a few hours of snow shelter building. |

This week to come looks a lot like
this past week with temperatures in the low to mid-thirties and snow almost
every day in the forecast.
Winter isn’t over
yet folks but spring is lurking so come by to get some winter excursions out of
your system while getting is good. Happy
hiking!
Mitra Karimian,
Adventure Guide
For more information on activities and reservations at the Highland Center please call us at (603)-278-HIKE
Labels: Highland Center, New Hampshire, showshoeing, skiing