2006.02.25 - Once again, work would allow me to get to a few more winter higpoints! This trip happend to be to the Baltimore, MD area, however, since I had already visited states in the immediate vicinity, I would be driving quite a long way. I would be getting to the Northeast early on a Saturday morning, and I planned on driving as far as I could to get through NYC before the weekend rush began. The plan was to get a few hours' sleep before going to climb Connecticut and Massachusetts the first day, followed by Vermont, New Hampshire and Rhode Island before my meetings on Tuesday.

I should know by know that my plans always change!

To make a long drive short, I drove through the night and got to Salisbury, CT at ~10 AM; the surprisingly low speed limits in NY made for slow travel time as did my multiple fuel stops in New Jersey to take advantage of the great gas prices there. Nevertheless, I arrived in the beautiful, New England hamlet tired but ready to start climbing! Surprisingly enough, Connecticut had closed off the driving route up to Mt. Frissell, so I had to regroup to make the circuitous drive up to the approach from the Massachusetts side. Despite the fresh snow that had fallen over the last few days, the roads were easily passable even in my 2WD rental. I finally got to the trailhead at ~11:00, much later than I wanted.

I threw my gear together quickly, since I didn't expect this to be a long hike, and rapidly added a few layers since I was still in my plane clothes. In a matter of minutes, I was on my way!

The red-blazed Mt. Frissell trail started out in earnest, but I soon came to the steep pitch up Round Mountain; normally a fun Class 2 scramble, the recent freeze/ thaw cycles had left a thin sheen of verglas on everything with a few milimeters of snow just for kicks. The result was an incredibly slippery, moderately steep route that would best be tackled with crampons. Having foregone my mountaineering boots and attempting this in my hiking shoes, I dealt with the conditions as best as I could with my axe in one hand and a half-way collapsed hiking pole in the other. This hodgepodge actually worked pretty well so I could make steady progress up the slopes of the mountain.

Since winter had stripped the trees of their usual dense coats, I had oretty decent views along the route. I didn't admire them much, though, as most of my attention was focused on maintaining my balance; a mis-step would have sent me sliding down the steep, rocky slopes for up to 40 feet in places. I figured that I could have survived a fall, but I really didn't want to test my theory out. Getting into a good rhythm, I arrived at the frosty and windy summit of Round Mountain. Eyeing the remainder of the route to the summit of Frissell, it looked much the same, though I was loath to tackle the descent off of my perch in these conditions. I again took a slow, controlled approach and made it safely down to the saddle.

The final ascending portion was much as the earlier parts had been, so I simply kept up my concentration to stay safe. Before long, I found myself skating up to the summit of Mt. Frissell, MA. On this most anticlimactic of state highpoints, I signed the register and began the short hike down the the highest point in Connecticut. This trail was much less steep, so I descended more quickly down to the "Green Stake," which marks the highpoint. By this point, the wind had picked up considerably, so I didn't spend a ton of time beating around the bush. Jacko hopped out for the brief summit photo, though I took a bit more time calling Carol to let her know I was safe. I also munched on a few handfuls of Fritos, my mountain-snack of choice, to keep my strength up before starting down the rest of my loop. While I had originally intended to go back the way I had come, I didn't feel comfortable descending the steep, icy slopes of Round Mountain. My map covered the easier alternate route down a broad valley, so it was an easy decision.

There was only once moderately steep slope on the South Slope of Mt Frissell, so I made great progress, jogging at times, before getting back to the trailhead ~ 2 hours after I had left. I spent quite a bit more time than I expected, but the normal description of this route doesn't do it justice, especially during winter conditions; I would give this at least a Class 3 rating under the state in which I found it. Arriving back at the car, I tossed my gear in the trunk and began heading away from the stateline; my first change of plans was already in the works as I headed not to Mt. Greylock, but toward the coastal state of Rhode Island.