A winter storm was moving through on Saturday morning. So we delayed our start to 8:30. South of Boston, the storm was rain, and then it turned to all snow at the NH border. The NH snowplows were on top of it and had the roads cleared as soon as the snow slowed down. We stopped for lunch at the Hooksett rest area. By the time that we got to Sandwich, NH, the snow was light. Even the side roads were well plowed and we arrived at the trailhead about 1pm. There was over one foot of fresh snow on top of a few feet of snow from storms earlier that week.
To hike to the camp, we used snowshoes and a sled to carry extra gear. Once we got to camp, we dug out a path to the cabin door and then used shovels to build our snow trenches.
When it started getting dark, we moved into the cabin and started a fire in the stove. The stove warmed up the cabin and dried our wet clothes. We also boiled water for our Mountain House dinners. It took a surprising long time for the water to boil. For an extra nice treat, Mr. Baker brought beef jerky which we heated up on the stove.
After dinner, the scouts played cards until 10pm and then settled into their snow caves. Overnight, the wind was calm and there was a light snow and the temperature wasn’t too cold, in the upper 20s. Everyone made it through the night in the snow caves.
In the morning, we packed up and hiked out. We stopped for breakfast at Dunkin and drove home.
For this trip, we rented a Ford Expedition from Hertz in Orleans so that we could all travel in one car which worked out very well. It was just enough room to fit 5 scouts, 2 adults and our gear.
