Friendly, hungry gray jay on Mt. Field, NH

10/30/10: It was with great satisfaction and delight that Sheeba and I summitted Mt. Field on Saturday, after our aborted attempt in August due to intense heat and humidity. Though we were prepared for winter weather, we were surprised at the amount of snow and wind. It was 30 degrees at trailhead and snowed steadily during our ascent.

From Crawford Depot off of Route 302, Avalon Trail crosses Crawford Brook twice, before turning abruptly southeast towards the summit of Mt. Avalon. The path is moderately steep and rough at times and we had to take care due to some icy sections (though not enough to require stabilicers). After Mt. Avalon, the trail becomes quite pleasant and in the lee from wind. We had no view from Mt. Field's summit due to encroaching clouds, though the sun did grace us with its presence for 10 seconds or so a few times. About 1" of snow was on top.

The aggressive gray jay who joined us while we ate lunch swooped down on our food several times, clearly annoyed that we weren't more generous with our food!

The ice on the lower part of the trail had melted by our descent, and we were amused to find our winter boots covered not in snow, but in black mud. :-)

5.6 miles, 2,400' elevation gain (6.5 hours due to near-winter conditions)
Summit: Mt. Field (4,340')
Route: Avalon Trail