At Four Thousand Feet

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

To shamelessly steal from my thread on Views from the Top…

After a whirlwind 54 days of hiking, starting on Christmas Day last year and ending, quite fittingly, on Presidents Day, I realized my goal of climbing all 48 NH four thousand footers in one winter season. My friends Cath and Tim were there to accompany me for my final seven peaks – namely, the Northern Presidentials on Sunday 15th February, and Pierce through Washington on Monday 16th February. We could not have asked for better conditions. The winds remained calm, the clouds and lighting wonderfully varied, the company… well, just marvelous!

It’s been a long, tough, yet infinitely rewarding journey for me. Initially, I didn’t believe myself to be strong enough (nor tenacious enough) to even attempt such a conquest. I was told by some that it’s simply too ambitious a goal to strive for. Nevertheless, as improbable as it may have seemed at the time, I was hell bent on at least attempting the “single season” challenge.

I’m glad that I did. Over the past two months, I’ve had the pleasure of meeting so many extraordinary people, and have come to realize that it’s truly possible to accomplish anything when you set your mind to it. Previously an adamant solo hiker, I quickly learned that hiking in the company of others is fun – in fact, I infinitely enjoy it over hiking alone (my only solo hike this winter – Waumbek – was certainly strange and lonely)… and most surprisingly to me, I actually grew to love my snowshoes, after tripping over them countless times on my first winter hike and angrily stating that I would never climb a mountain again whilst wearing them.

To all of you who have made this dream of mine a reality – I cannot thank you enough. Since I did a terrible job of posting accounts of my hikes to this blog, you’ll be able to access them directly following links. The hikes for which I did not have trip reports link directly to my Picasa Web Gallery:

• Jackson – 12/25/2008
• Liberty and Flume – 12/26/2008
• North and South Hancock – 12/27/2008
• Cannon – 12/28/2008
• Zealand, West Bond, Bond, and Bondcliff – 12/29/2008
• East Osceola and Osceola – 12/30/2008
• Field, Willey, and Tom – 12/31/2008
• North and Middle Tripyramid – 1/1/2009
• Isolation – 1/3/2009
• North and South Kinsman – 1/4/2009
• Lincoln, Lafayette, and Garfield – 1/10/2009
• Hale – 1/11/2009
• Cabot – 1/17/2009
• North Twin, South Twin, and Galehead – 1/18/2009
• Moosilauke – 1/19/2009
• Owl’s Head – 1/23/2009
• Waumbek – 1/24/2009
• Tecumseh – 1/25/2009
• Wildcats D & A, Carter Dome, South Carter, and Middle Carter – 1/31/2009
• Moriah – 2/1/2009
• Carrigain – 2/7/2009
• Whiteface and Passaconaway – 2/8/2009
• Jefferson, Adams, and Madison – 2/15/2009
• Pierce, Eisenhower, Monroe, and Washington – 2/16/2009

Oh, and please do be sure to check out my 48in1Winter.com page.

Recently, a thread was started on VFTT concerning the subject. Given that I’ve taken (literally) thousands of pictures this year, it was really quite tough for me to narrow them down to eight – In all honesty, there are still hundreds of photos that I have yet to go through. Nevertheless, I thought it might be fun for me to share the ones that I selected:

Pierce
I took the below picture this past January (1/21/2008, to be precise), during my first winter hike. If I recall correctly, it was one of the coldest days of the year – negative 10F at the trailhead. The summit was so dreadfully cold and windy that I could barely pull my camera out! Factoring in the windchill, I’m guessing that the temperature was well below -30F.

Carter Notch
This one was snapped on the 1st of July after a brief stop at Carter Notch Hut. I’d just descended from Carter Dome. The lovely variations in the cloud colors made for an interesting shot.

Boott Spur Trail
I opted to take a quick side trip up to Boott Spur during my first climb of Isolation this past October, and found the view as I headed back to the Glen Boulder Trail junction to be particularly dramatic.

Gulfside Trail
This one was taken during a mid-September hike up Washington, Clay, and Jefferson. It was one of my favorite hikes of the year, since I had the pleasure of obtaining a VFTT sponsor on that day, and because the conditions above treeline were simply fantastic.

Wildcat D
After traversing Wildcat Ridge from E Peak to A Peak, I shot this picture whilst descending via the ski trails. Oh how I love the Presis!

Moosilauke
8/17/2008 – The day before my 21st birthday, so I considered this my official “birthday” hike. The light cut rather dramatic lines across the domed summit as the cloud cover ebbed and flowed.

Isolation
My first official VFTT hike, on which I had the pleasure of meeting several people whom I now consider to be close friends. Isolation is a favorite peak of mine. I love how the snowy mass of Washington peeks up over the trees.

Franconia Ridge
The Franconia Ridge Loop is my all-time favorite hike in the White Mountains. I took this picture the day after my Washington/Jefferson ascent, and the trail was hugely crowded. Having always done the loop during non weekends and holidays, I was amused to watch the conga line of hikers ascending Lafayette during my descent.

So, those were the ones that I selected as my top 8 for the year. I do have three “runner-up” images that I’ll share as well…

Carter-Moriah Trail
This one was taken on the same day as Flags on the 48 (9/13/2008), as I made my way back towards South Carter on the Carter-Moriah Trail. It was really a lovely day to be out.

Flume
Lincoln and Lafayette stand imposingly in the background.

Glen Boulder Trail
This is perhaps the best trail sign shot that I’ve ever taken. The clouds kept sweeping back and forth along the ridge as I hiked towards Isolation – It was absolutely surreal.