All of our famed NH 4000-footer peaks may be accessed by different trails (or from different directions) affording hikers a change of pace if taking them on more than once. This also affords them an opportunity to go the short/easy way, the long/hard way, or in some cases, the scary/technical way. For example, two peaks on the Franconia Ridge, Mts. Flume and Liberty (4329′ and 4457′, respectively) may be accessed as an out-and-back using Liberty Spring and Franconia Ridge Trails. For some this might be the short/easy way. They can also be accessed via Lincoln Woods, Osseo, and Franconia Ridge Trails, and some may say this is the long way — though a truly longer/harder option does exist if hiking the entire ridge to include the north end. Another option is to make a loop using Flume Slide, a chunk of Franconia Ridge, and Liberty Spring Trails. This last option would arguably be the scary/technical choice since it ascends the notoriously steep Flume Slide Trail. This option was chosen by our most recent guest. The following’s a summary of the trip along with photos, both provided by Redline Guide Arlette Laan.
Flume and Liberty the Terrifying Way
On Monday, one of my favorite guests came back for more. More 4000 footers and more Terrifying 25 trails. After Caps Ridge with Jefferson and Washington, and Airline with Madison (and almost Adams), we set our sights on Flume and Liberty via the Flume Slide trail.
The weather had a small surprise shower on my drive up but after checking the RADAR it looked like we would be dry for the hike. That’s a good thing, we didn’t want to deal with a wet slabby slide. And it would be a bummer to not have a view from the summits.
The Flume Slide Trail starts off surprisingly mellow with a few easy rock hops and opportunities to fill up on water. But when it goes up, it goes UP! The hardest parts are the steeper slabs. We saw many herd paths around but didn’t want to take the easy way out. We were there for the challenge! Carefully picking our way we made good progress. Some of the wetter spots were a bit challenging and a two minor slips rattled my guest’s nerves a bit. But she rallied and got it done. The whole point of doing some of these more challenging routes is for her to get out of her comfort zone and build her confidence. I am there to encourage and help scout the best way to navigate the route but physically she’s doing it on her own. If needed I can lend a hand and just knowing there is that safety net is very reassuring for my guests.
While this guest may never do the slide again, she was very proud and relieved to have done it! Kudos to her! I can’t wait to pick another route for her hike in September. Oh, and congrats on two more peaks for the 4000 footer list. Ten down, thirty eight to go! —Arlette
