Bearpen Roundtop hike
Posted: Tue Feb 16, 2010 3:30 pm
Drove up Ski Run Road with a 4wd to get to the trail head. The road wasn't plowed, but okay for a good 4wd. It is about 1.1 miles to the parking area. I decided to park about 1/10 mile before the trail head. It was starting to snow, and it was windy on top of the mountain.
Put my snowshoes on, and headed up the road. There was plenty of snow, and no rocks poking thru the snow. It was about 1-1/2 miles to the col. As I approached the col, the wind picked up.
When I arrived, there were two snowmobilers talking. Talked with them for a while, while I cooled off.
I then headed up the trail to the summit of Bearpen Roundtop. The trail was moderately steep with lots of snowdrifts. The trail was not broken, so going was tough. In some areas, the snow drifts were 6' deep. The snow was pretty dense, so I only sunk in 1-2'. It was still difficult traveling.
At first I came to a false summit. But, after checking my GPS, I discovered that I had to travel some more. At this point the trail was rather flat with big drifts. The summit had a little bob to it. After I climbed up this little hill, and I was on the summit. I walked past the summit to a limited view. I then headed back to the car.
The short trail to the summit of Bearpen was deep with snow, and it wear me out quickly. The picture below is taken from the col of Roundtop Mountain on a clear day.
Put my snowshoes on, and headed up the road. There was plenty of snow, and no rocks poking thru the snow. It was about 1-1/2 miles to the col. As I approached the col, the wind picked up.
When I arrived, there were two snowmobilers talking. Talked with them for a while, while I cooled off.
I then headed up the trail to the summit of Bearpen Roundtop. The trail was moderately steep with lots of snowdrifts. The trail was not broken, so going was tough. In some areas, the snow drifts were 6' deep. The snow was pretty dense, so I only sunk in 1-2'. It was still difficult traveling.
At first I came to a false summit. But, after checking my GPS, I discovered that I had to travel some more. At this point the trail was rather flat with big drifts. The summit had a little bob to it. After I climbed up this little hill, and I was on the summit. I walked past the summit to a limited view. I then headed back to the car.
The short trail to the summit of Bearpen was deep with snow, and it wear me out quickly. The picture below is taken from the col of Roundtop Mountain on a clear day.