Roxi
Active member
#23 Solo hiking Mt Hale 5/7/2006
First I need to thank MtnMagic and Kevin Rooney as they were the catalysts for today’s hike. MtnMagic wrote about hiking Mt. Hale via a closed Zealand Road and the Hale Brook Trail in early March, and I’ve kept that trip in my head wanting to repeat it in warmer temps. Kevin Rooney recently encouraged another hiker to consider Mt. Hale as a “spring training” hike, which is exactly what I wanted today. So “thank you” gentlemen.
Thanks also go to Mother Nature for a PERFECT day! Sunny skies, comfortable temps, and NO BUGS! What more could I ask for? I parked in the winter parking lot across from Zealand Campground and walked to the closed Zealand Road. There were 8 to 10 other vehicles in the lot when I arrived; at least 6 of them had Quebec plates. I was looking for other VFTT stickers which is how I noticed the plates.
After the initial hill on Zealand, the rest of the road was fairly flat and in good shape. I’m not sure why Zealand Rd. is still closed, but I don’t work for the WMNF. After about 2.5 miles, I arrived at the TH for the Hale Brook Trail. The trail was covered in last year’s dead leaves and fairly dry. A snake and I startled each other. S/he was gracious enough to slither off trail and allow me to pass. I also encountered a squirrel half way up a tree trunk who sounded like s/he was admonishing me for something, and several birds asking me if I had any food. Sorry, but I am very territorial about my peanut butter and fluff sandwiches.
Now part of today’s “magic” was not only the wonderful nearly 10 mile great workout that I got, or the beautiful weather, but two other things as well. First, for many years I had felt intimidated by the thought of hiking solo in the Whites. I hike solo in the Monadnocks monthly, but had feared hiking solo in the Whites, in part because of the death/murders of two women hiking solo in the Whites in the last ten years, and because I don’t know the Whites as well as the Monadnocks, except that the weather is usually worse and more unpredictable, resulting in greater care needed. So I had always made a point of hiking with someone, which I still think is a good idea. But realizing I’m afraid of something usually irritates the h*ll out of me! So I decided it was time I got over my fear of hiking solo in the Whites, and Mt. Hale seemed to be a good place to start.
The other magical thing that occurred today was that there was NO ONE else on the trail, or at the summit! I had Hale Brook Trail and the summit of Mt Hale entirely to myself (counting humans only) for my entire trip! I got to REALLY hike SOLO in the Whites! It was so cool! And weird. But when it came to things like answering nature’s call, it was so nice!
The Hale Brook Trail involved a steady hike upward. After ascending for a while, I came to where veins of snow and ice lingered on the trail above the second of the larger stream crossings. Several switchbacks later, I finally reached the summit. I saw the metal pipes and concrete supports left from the old fire tower. The summit was free of ice and snow, although it was a little moist in places. Being only 5 foot 3 inches tall, I had to climb on top of the rather large summit cairn so I could see over the treetops to get a glimpse of Mount Washington (and the other presidentials), which clearly still has snow on top of it. The summit was a little windy and cool, so I dropped back down into the trees, enjoyed my pb&f and a couple of chocolate chip cookies, and headed down. 4 hours and 15 minutes after beginning this hike, I finished it. If MtnMagic’s numbers were correct, the roundtrip mileage from the parking lot was 9.8 miles. I felt great! What a wonderful spring training hike!
So thanks Magic, Kevin, and Mother Nature for a fabulous day where fear was left behind on an uncrowded mountain top in gorgeous weather.
First I need to thank MtnMagic and Kevin Rooney as they were the catalysts for today’s hike. MtnMagic wrote about hiking Mt. Hale via a closed Zealand Road and the Hale Brook Trail in early March, and I’ve kept that trip in my head wanting to repeat it in warmer temps. Kevin Rooney recently encouraged another hiker to consider Mt. Hale as a “spring training” hike, which is exactly what I wanted today. So “thank you” gentlemen.
Thanks also go to Mother Nature for a PERFECT day! Sunny skies, comfortable temps, and NO BUGS! What more could I ask for? I parked in the winter parking lot across from Zealand Campground and walked to the closed Zealand Road. There were 8 to 10 other vehicles in the lot when I arrived; at least 6 of them had Quebec plates. I was looking for other VFTT stickers which is how I noticed the plates.
After the initial hill on Zealand, the rest of the road was fairly flat and in good shape. I’m not sure why Zealand Rd. is still closed, but I don’t work for the WMNF. After about 2.5 miles, I arrived at the TH for the Hale Brook Trail. The trail was covered in last year’s dead leaves and fairly dry. A snake and I startled each other. S/he was gracious enough to slither off trail and allow me to pass. I also encountered a squirrel half way up a tree trunk who sounded like s/he was admonishing me for something, and several birds asking me if I had any food. Sorry, but I am very territorial about my peanut butter and fluff sandwiches.
Now part of today’s “magic” was not only the wonderful nearly 10 mile great workout that I got, or the beautiful weather, but two other things as well. First, for many years I had felt intimidated by the thought of hiking solo in the Whites. I hike solo in the Monadnocks monthly, but had feared hiking solo in the Whites, in part because of the death/murders of two women hiking solo in the Whites in the last ten years, and because I don’t know the Whites as well as the Monadnocks, except that the weather is usually worse and more unpredictable, resulting in greater care needed. So I had always made a point of hiking with someone, which I still think is a good idea. But realizing I’m afraid of something usually irritates the h*ll out of me! So I decided it was time I got over my fear of hiking solo in the Whites, and Mt. Hale seemed to be a good place to start.
The other magical thing that occurred today was that there was NO ONE else on the trail, or at the summit! I had Hale Brook Trail and the summit of Mt Hale entirely to myself (counting humans only) for my entire trip! I got to REALLY hike SOLO in the Whites! It was so cool! And weird. But when it came to things like answering nature’s call, it was so nice!
The Hale Brook Trail involved a steady hike upward. After ascending for a while, I came to where veins of snow and ice lingered on the trail above the second of the larger stream crossings. Several switchbacks later, I finally reached the summit. I saw the metal pipes and concrete supports left from the old fire tower. The summit was free of ice and snow, although it was a little moist in places. Being only 5 foot 3 inches tall, I had to climb on top of the rather large summit cairn so I could see over the treetops to get a glimpse of Mount Washington (and the other presidentials), which clearly still has snow on top of it. The summit was a little windy and cool, so I dropped back down into the trees, enjoyed my pb&f and a couple of chocolate chip cookies, and headed down. 4 hours and 15 minutes after beginning this hike, I finished it. If MtnMagic’s numbers were correct, the roundtrip mileage from the parking lot was 9.8 miles. I felt great! What a wonderful spring training hike!
So thanks Magic, Kevin, and Mother Nature for a fabulous day where fear was left behind on an uncrowded mountain top in gorgeous weather.
