![\"\"](\"https:\/\/peterdittman.com\/weblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/section-map.png\" "\\"AT")
<\/a>AT Section between Manchester, VT and Bromley Ski Resort. See it on everytrail.com<\/a>.<\/p><\/div>\n Unlike last winter, there’d been little snow in the north, so for our annual end-of-year trip to the Colonial House in VT<\/a>, we we decided to leave our skis\/boards at home. \u00a0 But we did bring the AT book, our hiking poles, and our snowshoes, and after a bit of research, we settled on a 5 mile section between Manchester and near the Bromley Ski Resort.<\/p>\n The weather leading up to New Year’s Eve had been pretty miserable for any outdoor activity – cold, though not cold enough to snow, and a persistent, misty rain. \u00a0 New Year’s Eve day improved a bit, so while the clouds remained, the mist was gone, leaving us with just a seasonably cold, winter day. \u00a0With two cars, we were able to spot one car at a parking area off Rt. 11, a few miles west of Bromley Ski Resort, where the AT crossed the roadway, and head toward Rootville Rd, just east of Manchester, where we parked at its end\/junction with a mountain\/fire road that intersected the AT, 5 miles south of the Rt.11 intersection.<\/p>\n Kara and Jeanne at the junction with the AT<\/p><\/div>\n Final hats, gloves, and gators on, Jeanne, Kara, and I set off shortly before noon on the fire road toward the AT. While the AT section appeared to be run parallel on the western slope of a ridge, the mountain road climbed steadily from the car, for the nearly 2 miles to get to the AT. Persistent, and relatively steep, it was good to be outdoors and moving, since it quickly brought warmth. With only about 4 inches of snow cover, footing was good, without the need for snowshoes. Plus, there were frequent reveals to bare ground, with rocks and leaves to provide more solid footing.<\/p>\n Junction with the AT<\/p><\/div>\n We took a sharp left at the junction with the AT, heading nearly due north to follow the ridge slope. \u00a0Fortunately, someone had gone before us, probably 2 or 3 days prior, leaving their foot tracks on the trail. \u00a0And at least for this section, the path was well marked, with white blazes on the trees – next almost always visible from the last. \u00a0There was only one time where the way wasn’t clear, but a few minutes of searching revealed the way ahead.<\/p>\n Wind flowing off flatter land accelerates as it bumps up against mountain ridges, with no where to go but up slope and over the ridge. \u00a0While refreshing in the summer, on this day,\u00a0the wind – flowing at maybe 5-8 mph, was out of the northwest (arctic!) and was bumping into the ridge we were following, so we had\u00a0were periods where we had a pretty strong breeze, maybe 20 mph and some strong wind chill effects as we followed the trail. \u00a0 We kept moving, and that kept us warm, and also brought us to other parts which were sheltered from the wind.<\/p>\n The day had continued to brighten, with a few patches of blue sky peeking through the clouds. \u00a0But as always seems to happen in the mountains in the winter, the mountain ridges cast shadows creating a false sense of dusk. \u00a0 \u00a0 Even by 3pm, the light already seemed to be fading, but we also started\u00a0to hear cars on Rt.11 – we knew we were close to done. \u00a0Traversing the slope, and continuing to gradually drop elevation, we soon came to the exit onto the roadway, though were reminded by a sign to use caution when crossing.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/a>