THE TRAILHEADS
♦The Avalon Trail is a popular one because it's right off RT-301 at Crawford Depot in the Notch. It goes left towards Mt Avalon and then Mt Field where it hits the ♦Willey Ridge Trail.♦A-Z also connects to Avalon and goes to the Tom Col and then all the way to the ♦Zealand Trail.
♦Ethan Pond Trail is at RT-302 also down below the Willey tourist trap. It connects with the ♦Willey Range Trail over the summits of Willey and Field. I've used this as a loop with Avalon in summer. Ethan Pond is also used as a link to the Zealand Trail. The AT runs through here. Thoreau Falls on the EP trail is a worthwhile visit.
THE MOUNTAINS
As you drive through Crawford notch the imposing cliffs of Webster loom high above you on one side and the wall of the Willey range rises high on the other side. Mt's Willey, Field and Tom are the peaks of interest to 4K peakbaggers. As they are typically climbed together in one day I have grouped them together.
Mount Tom
Mt Tom is normally hiked out of Crawford notch on the Avalon trail near the depot in the heart of the notch. This climbs moderately to A-Z trail to the height of land at Tom col. Mt Tom is 4,047 feet high and the Mt Tom spur rises rather gradually to the summit
The first time I visited Tom was in 1997 on a peakbagging trip in the Pemigewassett on a rather cold and dismal June day. I had headed out on the A-Z trail from Zealand valley fighting some deep corn snow and mud. I reached the summit to find a thick grove of trees and very few views.
CHANGING VIEWS
The second time was in July of 2003, my wife needed the three summits so we did an out and back trip from Avalon to A-Z to Willey range trails and back making Tom our final summit of the day. I was shocked to see that the views had opened up with a wonderful view down into Zealand valley, Mt Carrigan and even over towards Crawford Notch.
My third time was a winter hike, again out of Avalon but we did a loop over Field, Willey and then down the steep Willey range to Ethan pond trail and out. Mt Tom was my 17th Winter 4K peak at that time. It was a cold February day as you can see from the picture at the top of this page
Mount Field
Mt Field is 4,340 feet high and is named for Darby Field, the first white man to climb Mt Washington. Views from it's tree fringed summit would rate about the same as Mt Hale. There's a small outlook where you can see the Mt Washington Hotel far below.
My first climb of Field was back in 1999. I'd stayed at Zealand hut and traversed the Ethan pond trail to the Willey ridge trail. There were several sets of wooden ladders, one or two rungs were springy. I remember the day being brutally hot and I hadn't carried enough water.
My only other Observation of Mt Field is that it seems to be a black fly breeding ground. On both summer summit visits I was swarmed by the nasty little bloodsuckers.
Mount Willey
Mt Willey (4,285) is named after the Willey family that died in a mudslide after a terrible storm in the 19th century. From the Ethan Pond trailhead it is an impressive looking mountain. Willey ridge trail either connects it to Mt Field or down the steep ladders as I mentioned to Ethan Pond. The ridge between the summits is one of my favorite places in summer.
There's a nice outlook near the summit looking down into the notch and across to the Presidential range. Blackflies also inhabit it well into summer so bring along the repellant if you want to hang out at the ledges.
Doing all three in a day in summer or winter is a blast, being prepared with enough food, water and the right gear is essential. If a loop is being done in summer I recommend parking one car at Ethan Pond trailhead and the other one 3 miles north across the street from the depot. Climbing up the ladders is much more fun than coming down them in summer as they can be slippery! As I found out many years later Willey is pronounced the same as "Billy" not like "Wiley" Coyote.
