At Four Thousand Feet

Trail runners and MSR snowshoes? I’ll admit, at first I was a little wary. As a rather clumsy individual prone to excessive ankle rolling, I grimaced at the thought of teetering along an unstable spring snow monorail, my delicate ankles just begging for an injury. But with the coming of warm weather, my shiny new pair of Inov-8 Rocklite 312 GTXs were just itching to get out. I must say, wrapped up in winter gaiters they looked positively adorable:

How wonderful it felt to finally be out of winter boots. So wonderful, in fact, that my friend Eric and I decided to go on a spring hiking rampage. Over the course of a single April weekend, we tore up the Willey Range, the Wildcats, the Hancocks, and Garfield – 41 miles in total (thanks to the Gale River road walk). Not an ambitious distance by a long stretch, but I was quite pleased by our effort given the tough conditions that we faced.

What of the trail runners? Well, I’m glad to report that they held up fantastically, as did my ankles. Dare I say I’m wildly excited to have discovered this combination?

Unfortunately, picture taking conditions were sub-par. Nevertheless, here are a few photos:

…more here.

Last year on Presidents Day Weekend I (rather fittingly) hiked to the top of Mount Washington. This year it wasn’t meant to be. Three days of achingly grey and windy weather kept me well below treeline. There were few views to be had, and I have few stories to tell. Heck, I couldn’t even come up with an interesting title for this post.

A few pictures:

Perhaps Not Worth Your Time »

Extreme cold, frostnip, wind, and 2+ feet of new snow – week two of my vacation was certainly tough. Nonetheless, I refused to let the conditions hold me back. Heading into my winter hiking extravaganza, I didn’t have any lofty goals in mind. Therefore, I was pleasantly surprised to have…

Covered: 171.1 miles in distance
Gained: 55,550 vertical feet in elevation
Stood Atop: 30 4,000 footers

…in 15 days out on the trail. A quick recap of week two:

• 12/28 – Moriah
• 12/29 – Tecumseh
• 12/30 – Zealand
• 12/31 – North Twin, South Twin, and Galehead
• 1/1 – Liberty and Flume
• 1/2 – Tom, Field, and Willey
• 1/3 – Cannon

Not surprisingly, it was a terrible week for pictures! Here are a few of the better ones (please take that with a grain of salt)…

More Pictures Behind the Cut »

I’ve finally sorted through the pictures from my Thanksgiving vacation. What strikes me the most about this particular set of images is the wonderfully apparent transitioning of the seasons. Since my previous post on the topic shamefully did not admit the mountains that I climbed, here’s a brief synopsis:

• 11/21 – North Twin, South Twin, Galehead, and Garfield
• 11/22 – North and South Hancock
• 11/23 – Lafayette, Lincoln, Liberty, and Flume
• 11/24 – Tom, Field, and Willey
• 11/25 – Zealand, West Bond, Bond, and Bondcliff
• 11/26 – Pierce, Eisenhower, and Jackson
• 11/27 – Waumbek
• 11/28 – Moriah
• 11/29 – East Osceola, Osceola, and Tecumseh

It certainly was a week of milestones for me. Not only did I reach my halfway point – and my 300th peak! – on the grid, but also ended November with a total of 44 4,000 footers climbed.

Below are a handful of my favorite images. The entire gallery may be viewed here…

It’s been an exciting month for hiking. The weather up north has been lovely, and the conditions – for the most part – just excellent. Although I find myself strangely saddened to be leaving winter behind, I’m also very much looking forward to the warmer seasons ahead.

North and South Kinsman

Date: March 1st, 2009
Distance: 10 miles
Elevation Gain: 3,575 feet
Trails Used: Lonesome Lake, Fishin’ Jimmy, Kinsman Ridge

Tecumseh, Osceola, and East Osceola

Date: March 7th, 2009
Distance: ~16.5 miles
Elevation Gain: ~5,350 feet
Trails Used: Mt. Tecumseh, Tripoli Road, Mount Osceola

Tom, Field, Willey, and Avalon

Date: March 8th, 2009
Distance: 10 miles
Elevation Gain: ~3,500 feet
Trails Used: Avalon, A-Z, Mt. Tom Spur, Willey Range

Passaconaway and Whiteface

Date: March 14th, 2009
Distance: ~18.4 miles
Elevation Gain: ~5,400 feet
Trails Used: Oliverian Brook, Passaconaway Cutoff, Square Ledge, Walden, Rollins, Blueberry Ledge, Old Mast Road

Moosilauke

Date: March 15th, 2009
Distance: 7.8 miles
Elevation Gain: 3,300 feet
Trails Used: Glencliff and Carriage Road