OverviewHere are the two possible routes to the Kinsman Pond Hut; we took the Alternate to avoid stream crossings. After the drive up, we left Lafayette Campground with blustery conditions, which soon abated in the forest. Look at this movie (38MB so wait while it loads) taken at our approach to Lonesome Lake. The day was fairly bright and cool; the night was cold. We stayed in the Kinsman Pond Hut, which was a little warmer than the outside temperature that reached -10 deg F, according to the NWS. The walk up took a little under 4 hours, so we had time to keep warm by gathering fire wood and building a snow wall at the hut door to keep some warmth inside. Dinner was shrimp with seasoned rice done royally by Chuck. Lea, Matt, and Ravi took early bedtimes after the anticipated fire would not stay light due to the melting snow. Chuck and Fred took another try at the fire, and Chuck cooked the venison. After a cold night in warm sleeping bags, we packed up and returned in two hours retracing our trail. The night was a indeed cold, but everybody did pretty well in their bags. |
![]() |
West side of Franconia Notch |
The trail was well packed except for the final 0.1 miles to the Hut. There was little post holing, only if you stepped off the trail (or were pushed!). We all wore bare boots up, but I wore my Microspikes coming down. Coming down involved some useful sliding at the steep sections of the Fishin' Jimmy Trail.
Chuck was the chef with a wonderful menu. In the evening, the shrimp and flavored rice cooked in his new frying pan was to be followed by venison steaks, broiled over the open fire. Unfortunately the open fire wasn't up to the task as it fizzled even with help from the experienced fire makers. After Lea, Matt, and Ravi retired to their bags, Chuck cooked some venison to perfection with the MSR WhisperLite stove. We ate it with bare teeth, tearing off morsels of marinated game seared to perfection. A slight leak in the WhisperLite got worse overnight, so it failed to light in the morning. Luckily Matt had his Pocket Rocket to cook the huevos rancheros. The frozen brick of EggBeaters needed to be ripped from its container, then thawed, combined with the similarly-frozen cheese and salsa, and then cooked. The cold almost overcame the small stove, but we did get the huevos (pero nada rancheros) before we left to return home. Chuck's efforts were notable. Thank you, Chuck.
My double sleeping bag kept me warm---what a treat. I used my Frostline kit bag inside Ceil and Jay's two-person bag. Lea and Matt slept on the hut floor; Matt had his new Marmot cold-weather bag. Chuck indicated a slight lack of warmth. All three of the older campers reported snoring from the others, but disbelief by the others accompanied each statement. Lea and Matt did not take sides in this debate.
It was cold. NWS weather map showed similar -10-deg-F temperatures on Mt Washington and the Kinsman Ridge, where we were. Lea, using her well-calibrated temperature sensing based on her teenage years in Minnesota, would not agree with lower estimates. 10 deg below zero is cold enough. Keeping feet and fingers warm is a must.
Based on the comparison of equipment, I now want down booties (no decent ones at REI), down mittens (hard to find good ones I think), a compression sack (numerous options), a headlamp, and a Leatherman mini.