On Martin Luther King Day, known to be one of the most crowded days on the ski hill in New Hampshire, I opted to avoid the crowds and hit the hiking trail instead. I had never climbed Artist’s Bluff in the wintertime before, and I thought I’d take a stab at it, hoping it would be devoid of people after the recent snowfall.
It was a good guess. Unlike the summer and fall, where scores of hikers clog up much of the trail, my hiking companions and I only bumped into four other people. This gave us a better chance to take in the remarkable scenery—both from the summit and along the candy-coated path. It’s got me thinking that the next time I come this way, climbing Artist’s Bluff in the wintertime is the play.
View along the Artist’s Bluff Loop Trail
The Artist’s Bluff Loop
For this excursion, my brother-in-law (a frequent climbing buddy) was with me, and we were fortunate enough to pull in my cousin-in-law for the first time as well. (I don’t believe I’ve ever even thought the word cousin-in-law until now.) New to the area, he was curious what we were up to, and after finding a collection of ad hoc gear for him, he suited up to join us.
The hike was great, as to be expected. Artist’s Bluff is a quintessential New Hampshire viewpoint—one you are sure to have seen a photo of online before, if you’ve ever googled images of New Hampshire. Only .6 miles to the top, it gives you a fantastic view of Echo Lake from its summit, making for a quick reward that is well worth the effort. If you are willing to hike the full Artist Bluff Loop, you can also head up to Bald Mountain, where after a steep little pitch, you arrive at a spectacular mountain scene yielding a grand view of Cannon Mountain and Franconia Notch.
Descending Bald Mountain
The Conditions
For this excursion, we used a mix of snowshoes and spikes. I snowshoed most of the way until it was time to descend from the summit of Bald Mountain—it was just a little too steep, and a little too icy, to risk staying in the snowshoes. The other hikers we ran into were doing so without any traction for their feet, so it was doable, but slow-going. None of them were able to head up to Bald Mountain either, which was evidenced by the fact that ours were the first tracks up.
The total hike took us about an hour and a half. We took our time at the summit of Bald, snacking on trail mix and enjoying the scenery, even laying down on snow. It was a lovely afternoon. But the best part of the journey wasn’t the views; it was that we roped in another hiking enthusiast. Snagged another one! Sharing the joy of hiking with friends and family has made this past year all the more rewarding. Different friends and conversation add color to a mountain adventure and form bonds that are hard to replicate in other social interactions. Taking on a challenge together, laughing through it, and admitting our mutual love of nature, is a gift. And when that gift spreads? Damn—it feels good to be a hiker.
Wintertime might be the play when it comes to hiking Artist’s Bluff and Bald Mountain
Field Notes
- The trailhead is at the backend of the parking lot across from Cannon Mountain.
- Right now, you can do the entire loop in snowshoes, no problem, unless you want to tag Bald Mountain as well. My companions ascended Bald with their spikes on, whereas I stubbornly stuck with snowshoes. But on the descent, it wasn’t worth the risk. I’d expect that on most winter ascents, spikes would be sufficient for the entire loop, but I was trying to pack the trail down.
- The trail is 1.5 miles long. If you’re going to force me to pick a direction to hike it, heading to Artist’s Bluff first and then Bald Mountain, worked well, and is probably the preferred approach. You will probably have to climb on your hands and feet a few times during a winter ascent, so the more gradual approach to Artist’s Bluff gives you some time to warmup for the steeper Bald Mountain.