Monadnock February 2008

Yesterday morning Austin and I attempted Mt. Monadnock. It was about 20 degrees F, which is surprisingly comfortable while mountain climbing.

The parking lot was packed, helping the mountain live up to its reputation as the most hiked mountain in the world (since they built a tram up Mt. Fuji). We stopped off at the Park Ranger store to pay our fee. One of the rangers asked if we had cramp-ons, and when we said no he scoffed and said that we wouldn't make it to the summit.

-Side story: Kimberly and I once arrived at Monadnock mid-afternoon one spring along with the Kelihers. The ranger told us that we were starting way too late and that the mountain was covered in snow. He then turned to me (as opposed to my tall, athletic looking friend Nathan) and said something along the lines of "you know how experiences YOU are but you don't know about your friends." We've joked ever since that his judgment was a reaction to my full beard and Nathan's freshly shaved face. We went on to reach the summit, trudging through nearly half and inch of snow in some places and made it back to the car with ample daylight to spare.

Needless to say, Austin and I were skeptical of his prediction.

Off we went. There was quite a bit of snow on the trail, but we ascended the White Spot Trail, the most popular path to the summit, so the trail was well worn.

Austin on the White Spot Trail

It was a gorgeous day without a cloud in the sky so the views were great. The snow was covered everywhere with a thick layer of ice and for the portion below the tree line icicles that had fallen every branch of each tree littered the landscape.

A tree still covered in ice.

As we approached the summit the path forged by people who trend before us grew narrower and narrower.

Ice everywhere, and the incline was steep.

Within the final 0.1 miles (summit in sight) the trail that could be traversed without cramp-ons came to an end. We each took turns losing our footing and barreling down several feet (into a bush in Austin's case, into Austin in my case) and then finally admitted defeat and headed back.

We descended the White Cross Trail, which was unproven in comparison, with only a few footprints rather than a trampled path.

Me near the bottom, where the White Cross/Spruce Link rejoins the main trail.

So we didn't reach the peak and had to settle for my car as an alternate spot to eat our lunch, but we were very glad to get out and enjoy the beautiful day and a bit of winter adventure with the precarious summit approach. It was really great to get back on the trail after so many months.

Pemi Loop

On October 6, Nathan and I embarked on a ridiculously ambitious one-day endeavor. We had decided to attempt the Pemigewasset Loop, a 31+ mile day hike over 10+ 4000 foot peaks.

We arrived at the Kancamagus highway late on the night of the 5th, hoping to find a spot to camp at the trailhead, the Lincoln Woods trailhead. We arrived at Lincoln Woods to find posted restrictions on camping for miles around. We would have had to hike in for over a mile and a half (it was after 10PM at this point) to reach a viable camping zone, and we were not prepared to carry backpacking gear on the entire loop.

So we set out to find a spot to spend the night. The surrounding campgrounds were all at capacity, so we drove up the road a few miles. We found a parking lot for a kiddy nature walk called the Discovery Trail. There was an unpaved overflow lot that was barricaded off, around a corner and hidden by trees. Perfect! We covertly gathered our gear and set up camp in my small backpacking tent, right on the corner of the gravel lot. Nathan remained pensive over the arrangement throughout the night, but we had a few good hours of sleep before the big day.

On the morning of the 6th we awoke at 5:30AM or so. We quickly packed up and returned to Lincoln Woods.

Lincoln Woods trailhead, around 6AM

After following Franconia Brook for several miles, we ascended the first peak of the loop - Bondcliff.

Bondcliff - this was one of the highlights of the trip

The Bonds would make an excellent (sensible) day hike by themselves.

the summit of West Bond

After the Bonds (Bondcliff, West Bond, Bond) came Mt. Guyot, South Twin, Galehead, then Garfield.

the wooded summit of Galehead


Galehead from the summit of Garfield - there is a storm rolling in...

The halfway point was between Galehead and Garfield. After Garfield came a long and grueling ascent to 5260 ft. Lafayette, a mountain that we had summited many times, but never from this approach (and never as a passing peak in the middle of a 33 mile day trip).

The weather turned after we summited Garfield, and by the time we topped Lafayette we were very cold and wet. We did our best to layer up and keep moving,

and the weather soon let up.

My favorite picture of the day. Wet air would flow to the top of Franconia Ridge (from the left), hit the cool summit air, and barrel over into the valley to the right as fog.

We were now on familiar turf, the Franconia Ridge Trail, which we had hiked many times, but it was getting late. Before reached the last two peaks of the ridge, Liberty and Flume, the sun set.

We had some difficulty keeping the trail on the open fields of the mountain summits, but otherwise it was pretty smooth night hiking.

After we summited Flume we descended a trail that was new to both of us, the Osseo Trail. Descending an unknown 4.5 mile trail in the dark in wet conditions was an uneasy prospect, but we soon discovered that the trail was extremely groomed, wide, and safe.

Wooden stairs! (Note the stylish headlamp courtesy of Nathan.)

Nathan in the dark.

So we made it! The last leg of the hike, all down hill and through the woods, seemed to take an eternity, but we at least knew we were in relative safety and heading in the right direction.

We made it back to the car at 10:20PM or so. 33 1/2 miles and just under 10,000 ft of elevation gain in little over 16 hour. We had completed a loop that was named the second hardest day hike in America (you're next, Mt. Hood!) and even added a couple of detours to bag some peaks not included in that assessment. It was an accomplishment that neither of us will soon forget, and it puts other area challenges that we've yet to attempt, such as a Presidential Range traverse in perspective.

Nathan has a Picasa album with all of these photos and more, each with captions and his own summary of the hike here.

Two Awesome Weekends

Two weekends ago, before I started the new job, Kimberly and I went to Keene, NH for exploring, camping, and hiking. We left Friday afternoon intending to camp for one night, but after setting up camp I decided that we needed an extra night there, so we reserved Saturday night as well.

Friday night we ate here:

A seafood place called Nick's. We couldn't resist. The food was actually really good.

The campground was gorgeous. The sites were big, riverside, and clean.

Saturday morning we headed to town and ate at a local diner, then went and did some hiking on Mt. Monadnock. This was the first time I've ever summited Monadnock twice in one week!

After the hike we showered and went back to town for dinner. We ate at the Margaritas in town (shameful that we went for a familiar chain instead of a local place, I know, but it was what we were really craving in the moment). Keene is a very cool college town, with an active main street complete with local shops. We bought a nice art print and some supplies, visited a musical instrument store, and a record store.

a yet-to-be-molded record bowl

Both nights we made a great campfire and had s'mores. Here are some shots from Saturday.

a single star on 8-second long time exposure. These are my hand movements and I tried to hold the camera steady without a tripod.

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This past weekend we went to the annual cookout at Kimberly's parents' camp in Northern Maine and Nathan and Priscila decided to come along with us! We left Friday night, stopping off in Portland for a late dinner, Yarmouth for a visit to Delorme and the world's largest revolving globe, and arrived at Kimberly's parents' house at 1AM.

Her name is Eartha. Kimberly and I always give her at least a nod on our way through in Maine.

Saturday morning we got up and went to Tim Hortons for breakfast. Nathan and Priscila were very excited for the opportunity, since Tim Hortons is a staple in Quebec where they lived previously, and it has expanded all throughout Maine, but there are none near us in eastern Mass. After breakfast Kimberly and Priscila went shopping while Nathan and I hiked Blue Hill Mountain 20 miles southeast of our hometown, Bucksport.

Nathan taking pictures on the summit.

The mountains of Mt. Desert Island

We met back at the house and then continued on an additional 100+ miles to the camp in Merrill, ME. We stopped off at an outlook with a view of Mt. Katahdin on the way. After the party we visited with Kimberly's family, had a huge campfire, and slept in tents.

We buried our ferret, Rocky, who passed away in January. I picked up Kimberly's little cousin's First Act accordion and worked out Amazing Grace for the ceremony.

The Katahdin outlook:

The campfire:

On Sunday we took all day to travel back, stopping at the Kenduskeag stream and our favorite bagel shop in Bangor, visiting my family in Bucksport, eating dinner in Augusta, and outlet shopping in Freeport.

It was the first time we had a chance to show our friends from Massachusetts our home state and it was great to see all the familiar places and people in a vicariously new light.

Morning trek to Mt. Wachusett

This morning I made some coffee for Kimberly, saw her off to work, and then prepared for a hike on Mt. Wachusett in Princeton, MA. It was a nice drive on Rt. 2 through Fitchburg, not too far out of the way.

The temperature was in the high 80s at the trailhead, but a bit cooler in the shade of the wilderness. I took a fairly long loop suggested on this site: Conditioning Hikes Near Boston

Here is what I did (starting at the ski lodge in the upper right):

click to enlarge

The trip involved summiting the mountain twice, which was interesting and fine, since the total elevation gain was still under 2k. Here are my stats:

Distance: 6.2 mi
Time: 2h 10min
Elevation gain: ~1900 ft
Pace: 2.86 mph

And here are some interesting pics:

Balancing Rock, not far from the trailhead. A glacial feature.



examples of the hard to capture beauty of the ascent up Old Indian trail. It seemed to me that there were far more flat, flaky sedimentary rocks mixed in with the glacial igneous and metamorphics that are so prevalent throughout New England.


a closed up fire tower at the top. Had it not been so hazy I might have bothered to jump the fence and take a peak.


the Boston skyline should be in this shot, but the ozone levels were higher than I've ever seen.

Mt. Monadnock made difficult.

On Monday I took a trip to Mt. Monadnock. I've gone hiking here many many times (this is the second time this year), but I've never started from any trailhead other than the state park HQ.

I began at the Dublin Lake trailhead, north of Monadnock. It is 4.4 miles on the Pumpelly trail from the trailhead to the summit. After I reached the top, I went down the entire White Cross trail and across (mostly back up) the east face of the mountain on the Cascade Link, which then rejoined Pumpelly 3 miles from the trailhead.

My goal, since I was hiking solo, was to see how fast I could complete the loop. These are my results:

Distance: 10.28 mi
Time: 3h 50min
Elevation gain ~2500 ft
Pace: 2.67 mph

Some pictures:

a typical shot of the Pumpelly trail


a view of the summit with some hikers


a summit view of the Pumpelly trail extending from Dublin Lake on the left, all the way up the northern ridge of Monadnock

someone's home beside the Cascade Link trail

Cannon Mtn.

Yesterday I got up bright and early and went hiking with Ben on Cannon Mountain in Franconia Notch State Park. It was a beautiful clear day and the trail was in great condition (it was the first time I've been mountain climbing this year when I haven't encountered any snow). We reached the summit in no time, even while taking a moderate pace.

Here are some photos from the trip:

Ben looking manly on the trail.


A view of I-93 from an amazing overlook near the summit.



A handy compass at the observation tower on the peak that indicates what mountain you're looking at.


Enjoying our time at the peak.

Highlights from my spring trips.

In March Kimberly and I went to Pittsburgh so that she could present a paper. We stayed in the heart of downtown Pittsburgh

where we had a lot of great food (such as sushi)

at great prices (much cheaper than east coast cities) and we took in a bit of culture

including these sculptures, but also a play and walks through historic places.

Pittsburgh was a fun place to visit, but I wouldn't recommend it for a week without a car. It's not a walking city like San Francisco or even Boston or New York.

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In April I went to Las Vegas for a week on business. It was my second National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) convention and my first one being in charge of the setup and operation. Due to a semi-scam from the agency we booked our hotel block with, we ended up at the Tropicana instead of the brand new Westin. It was mostly a painless downgrade, though the decor was exceptionally tacky.


Vegas was still Vegas, which I'm thoroughly sick of after about 30 minutes, but the show setup was a big success. Here's the finished booth:


Some other photo highlights:


Me with the international sales manager, Lars-olof Janflod.


Myspace-style picture from the hotel room.

The lobby of the Beatles Love Cirque du Soleil show at the Mirage.

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The very day I returned via red-eye flight from Las Vegas we went picnicking

and hiking

with the Kelihers at a state park called Purgatory Chasm outside of Worcester. It is a beautiful natural feature that was quite accessible for a short hike.

I fell asleep in their car on the way back, but I was so glad to get some fresh air after being stuck in the mire of Las Vegas life for an entire week.

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On the following week (near the end of April at this point) I got my daily job responsibilities back in order and then took a Wednesday off to go do some more serious hiking. I chose Mt. Moosilauke in the White Mountains since it was the only 4000 footer that Nathan had bagged without me last year.

I chose to attempt the steepest approach, only to find several feet of snow still on the ground.

The snowy hike was certainly grueling, but provided many beautiful sights.


I thought this natural ice sculpture was particularly inspiring.

As I approached the summit, the snow suddenly gave way.

The last several hundred feet were totally clear.

Ominous Mt. Washington in the distance.

I had a friend that I met on the trail snap a picture of me at the summit.


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My next adventure was a Mt. Monadnock hike with the Kelihers, including Nathan's brother Josh who sold me my Corolla but who I hadn't had the chance to really hang out with.



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We made it up to Maine once this spring. Here are some pics of us with my siblings.



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Our last big adventure of the spring was a trip to the Adirondacks.

Kimberly picked me up at work on Friday, we ate some good dinner at the Melting Pot in Framingham, and then we headed west on the Mass Pike. We ended up in Lee, MA Friday night, where we parked at the end of a trail near the AT and camped by our car.

Saturday we had breakfast at a local diner and then continued into New York. We checked out Lake Placid and then went on our first overnight backpacking trip.


Here we are loaded up with our gear.

We camped on the side of Mt. Marcy, the highest peak in New York state.

Our tiny campsite we scouted out.

Due to Kimberly forgetting her brand new hiking boots and there being much more snow than we had anticipated, we didn't go for the summit. On the way back down it rained, so we broke out the ponchos.



After we got back to the car we drove to the ferry that goes from Port Kent, NY to Burlington, VT where we checked into a hotel to shower and relax for the evening.

On Monday we took a trip through Stowe, VT to eat at our favorite pizza place there, Pie in the Sky, and then went to the Cabot Creamery. Since it was Memorial Day the cheddar guys had the day off, so we didn't get to take the tour.

On our way back through New Hampshire we stopped in Tilton and met up with the Havens and Nathan K. who were on their way back from Montreal. We did a Nathan swap and he had dinner with us in Tilton and then joined us for the rest of the trip.

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I'll try to keep up with my happenings a bit better from now on to keep the entry length down. The best thing I have to post this week is an amazing comic by Kimberly and Shannon, courtesy of the built in camera and software in Kimberly's new MacBook.


(click to enlarge and admire)