The route descriptions all say it is the easiest route, with 3,800-3,900 feet of elevation gain over 5.1 miles.

Wondering how much of the trail is runnable.

Aiming for July, in case it matters.

Thanks!

Running mount washington is kind of a strange idea - all the routes are crowded. You've got much better options elsewhere in New Hampshire.

What's "runnable" is a matter of opinion. How comfortable are you hopping over boulder fields?


The smoothest, most gradual route is the auto road (7.6 mi), though running is discouraged most days (they close the road for run/bike races a couple times a season). Go before 8 AM or after 6 PM and there will be no cars. (In July that kind of timing is a good idea anyway: the weather tends to be very hot and extremely humid.)

Jewell is certainly a strong contender for smoothest *trail*, with Ammonoosuc Ravine not far behind. Boott Spur, Glen Boulder, and Nelson Crag trails are all sort-of-runnable if you don't mind some rocks and some steeps. By contrast, the Tuckerman Ravine, Lion's Head, and Huntington Ravine trails have sustained sections that are too steep to run.

Crawford Path from the Crawford Visitor's center is probably the smoothest trail of all, but that's a lot of mileage.

what kind of sole pattern would you prefer for this? I'm finding it difficult to reconcile such major differences from the same manufacturer.

The North Face Hayasa II



The North Face Ultra Trail GTX

I strongly suspect that tread patterns basically don't matter.

There *is* a major difference in how well different shoes grip on wet rock, but unfortunately I haven't figured out how to predict which ones do well. Seems to be something about the type of rubber used, but it's not easy to find out exactly which compounds are in which shoe.

(And just because a shoe is sold for use in the water, doesn't mean it grips when wet.)

Get something light, breathable, and that fits well, and then return it if it slips on wet slab.

nartreb wrote:I strongly suspect that tread patterns basically don't matter.

There *is* a major difference in how well different shoes grip on wet rock, but unfortunately I haven't figured out how to predict which ones do well. Seems to be something about the type of rubber used, but it's not easy to find out exactly which compounds are in which shoe.

(And just because a shoe is sold for use in the water, doesn't mean it grips when wet.)

Get something light, breathable, and that fits well, and then return it if it slips on wet slab.

My Cyclocross Training tyres, are similar to the tread pattern on the second pair. They're great on dirt, but they get squiggly on pavement. I'm guessing the second pair, would also be better on rock. Maybe even wet rock. The first, would be better on pavement but probably not as good on natural. But I'm hoping the speed ascentionists will weigh in.

John Duffield wrote:what kind of sole pattern would you prefer for this? I'm finding it difficult to reconcile such major differences from the same manufacturer.

The North Face Hayasa II



The North Face Ultra Trail GTX

The shoes I use for trail running all come from inov-8.

FWIW, the description of each model on the website has ratings for different surfaces, etc.

Yury wrote:

deungsan wrote:The route descriptions all say it is the easiest route, with 3,800-3,900 feet of elevation gain over 5.1 miles.
Wondering how much of the trail is runnable.

deungsun,
Do you have any experience with Eastern trails?
Natreb, who has answered this question, is from the East and he may use a different definition of "runnable".

I ran Mt. Marcy in Upstate NY last year. I'm assuming this is similar...

(Have also done a number of mountain runs in California that involve elevation gains of 4,000-6,000 feet.)

I'd say that most of Jewell is similar to most of Marcy, or maybe even a little smoother. Up high (on and near the Gulfside trail) there are some boulderfields - worse footing than Marcy's summit but not as bad as most Northern Presidential routes.

This is a fair sample:


I haven't done much in California but out there they have these strange things called "switchbacks"

PS the shoes I switched to after ditching my slippery Salomon water shoes are Innov-8s Roclite 295s. Not as quick-drying as the Salomons, but far safer.

nartreb wrote:I'd say that most of Jewell is similar to most of Marcy, or maybe even a little smoother. Up high (on and near the Gulfside trail) there are some boulderfields - worse footing than Marcy's summit but not as bad as most Northern Presidential routes.

This is a fair sample:


I haven't done much in California but out there they have these strange things called "switchbacks"

PS the shoes I switched to after ditching my slippery Salomon water shoes are Innov-8s Roclite 295s. Not as quick-drying as the Salomons, but far safer.

Thanks for the extra info and the link.

I used the Roclite 295 for Marcy and a few mountains out here. I also have the Mudclaw 265, which is very nice, esp for softer surfaces.

nartreb wrote:Running mount washington is kind of a strange idea - all the routes are crowded. You've got much better options elsewhere in New Hampshire.

If you know a book or website that describes some of those other mountain-running options in the Northeast, I'd love to check it out. Thanks.

I don't know of anything encyclopedic that's specifically aimed at runners, but if you pick up a copy of the AMC's _White Mountain Guide_, take a look at the map for interesting loops, and check the trail descriptions in the book to avoid anything unusually difficult, you should have no trouble finding lots of options.
Avoid the peaks that people in California have heard of (Mt Washington, Mt Monadnock and that's about it) and you'll dodge most of the crowds. In the northern presis, I'd suggest going up Air Line and down Valley Way; while above treeline you can tag the summits of Adams and Madison if you don't mind boulder-hopping, or just stay on the Gulfside trail, which is smoother. In the southern presis, take Crawford Path from the Notch, and follow it along the ridge for as many miles as you like. It's a lovely smooth trail and the views are great once you're up on the ridge.

You could also browse the blogs of the local ultra-runners and see what they do on their lighter days. Here's one to get you started, follow the links and you'll find more: http://adamiata.blogspot.com/
(That first video looks like the Carriage Road route on Mt Moosilauke, a wide, smooth trail the whole way.)

This website is also very useful:
http://trailsnh.com/maps/index.php?redi ... 71.39&z=10

And if you haven't seen them yet, these two websites give succinct info for the 4000-footers:
http://home.earthlink.net/~ellozy/nhnotes.html
http://hikethewhites.com/mountains.html

edit to add: another great source for maps (with a built-in distance-mearusing widget):
http://caltopo.org
In the White Mountains, I like the US Forest Service map layer best - detailed but clean, with trails easy to see.