That shortcut on the Welch-Dickey loop nearly cost me my ankle

Tbh I thought I was being smart taking a worn-in side path off the main trail around the ledge scramble last Saturday. Turned out it ended at a steep gravel washout with no footing, and I slid about 10 feet before grabbing a root. Had to sit there for 20 minutes calming down and then backtrack to the real trail, adding an extra mile. Anyone else have a 'shortcut' that backfired on them in the Whites?

3 comments

3 Comments

adam_hernandez5d ago

Wait Welch-Dickey isn't even in the Whites technically, it's more over by Waterville Valley area. Still a nasty spot to take a bad shortcut though, I've seen people try to bypass the ledge scramble and end up worse off than the main trail. That loose gravel washout is a classic bait-and-switch, looks like a path but turns into a slide real quick.

veramiller5d ago

Funny how that washout fools everyone though...

cameron4265d ago

Hear me out. Is this really a "bait and switch" situation or is it just people not paying attention? I've hiked Welch-Dickey like 8 times now and that washout is pretty obvious if you look past the first 10 feet. The gravel shifts, yeah, but the trail beyond it is clearly eroded and narrow. Maybe the problem is people not looking up from their feet long enough. I get that shortcuts can be tempting but come on, the ledge scramble is the whole point of that hike.