Nicholas won the toss and picked the West Ridge Trail, so we continued via that route. At the 1.1 mile mark, we crossed a footbridge named Cliff's Bridge. Beyond Cliff's Bridge, the trail immediately begins to rise up out of the forest, and the forest floor gives way to long stretches of walking on solid granite. As the trees began to fall away, we were rewarded with a rather nice view of Vermont's Green Mountains to the west. Soon we were up above the trees altogether, and were walking up towards the top on the sloped granite summit dome.
Mt. Cardigan is capped with a fire tower that is, apparently, still in use.
The unprotected summit was quite a bit windier than the lower slopes of the mountain, but it was still warm enough to be comfortable. We spent about 45 minutes on top. The White Mountains were clearly visible to the northeast, and I believe I was able to identify Moosilauke, Franconia Ridge, the Bonds, Mt. Cannon, and the Tripyramids, among others. Once we decided to start down, we had to pick a route. Most opted for returning via the West Ridge Trail, but Tony, along with my sons, chose the South Ridge Trail.