Date Hiked: 11/24/07

Conditions: Dusting of snow at most; plenty of areas were dry. Down in Rider Hollow there are lots of water crossings, so beware of ice (mostly avoidable). North of the summit of Balsam there are some wet areas that have frozen enough to be crunchy icy mud. If it warms up they will be very soggy. Coming down off the summit Halia fell 5 times. Flammeus didn't fall once. The yaktrax were not used. Don't ask. It really didn't seem that slippery. The best fall came upon the heels of the comment: "I can't believe I keep falling. I'm not usually the one who falls."

Special Required Equipment: Blaze orange.

Comments: What a great little loop! Rider Hollow is so beautiful with all those streams. We were surprised it didn't seem more used. Great views from the top, and a few other tough souls out in the cold today.

Submitted by: Halia and Flammeus