Rant: I used to love hiking the Franconia Ridge in under 4 hours, now it takes me 6

Ever since the parking lot started filling up by 6 AM and the trail got super rocky from erosion, I can't even get there before 9. Had to carry an extra 2 liters of water last Saturday just to deal with the heat. Anyone else notice the trails are way more trashed than 5 years ago?

3 comments

3 Comments

janab8225d ago

wait but isn't part of the point of hiking that things are gonna change and you just adapt? like yeah of course the trails are more crowded and eroded, thats what happens when more people discover them. I actually think the parking situation is better now because it forces people to plan ahead instead of just rolling out of bed whenever. and the extra water weight? thats just training for longer trips honestly. I did Franconia two Sundays ago and started at 10 and honestly the heat made it feel more like a real accomplishment.

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victor_carr2525d ago

My buddy Mark came back from the Kinsmans last month and said the exact same thing about the heat making it feel more legit. He texted me a photo from the summit and you could see the sweat stains all over his shirt, he was so proud of it. But here's the thing, he also said the trail was torn up worse than he'd ever seen it, like erosion gullies you could twist an ankle in. And he had to wait twenty minutes just to get a spot at the parking lot, which he said was a nightmare because he'd planned ahead and everything. @patriciacarr I get your point about the circus though, because Mark said there were people blasting music from speakers and leaving their wrappers on the rocks. That part doesn't feel like adaptation to me, it just feels like losing some of the quiet that used to be out there.

patriciacarr25d ago

Disagree that crowds are just adaptation, some of us liked when it wasn't a circus.