#67 - Mt Mansfield 9/17/05

[MichaelJ]

Michael, congratulations, and I'll wait a respectable length of time before I start nagging you about the NE100!

80 down, only 20 to go!

 

[Stephen]

Michael,

A true inspiration! Congrats.

-Stephen

 

[MichaelJ]

Thank you, Stephen, but really, not me. Like I said earlier, the inspiration was everyone around me - you folks.

It goes back to when I first started on VFTT and the other boards. I was just learning to hike for the sake of hiking; the idea of the lists was only just introduced to me.

As I met more people, this one had finished the 48, that one was working on the winter list, another one was finishing the 100 ... it felt like a challenge to me. Could I really be "one of those hikers" and complete a list? Could I truly take this activity and make it my own?

And so hiking became not just a reason for improving my physical health, not just a means to try to achieve a spiritual peace among the mountains, but now a challenge to see if I could be a part of the group.

Yup, it felt like trying to get into a clique, to be one of the cool kids with a patch on my pack. Sure, my first trip reports were all about doing my hikes for the sake of everyone else, the reading audience. But as the summits slipped by, as the numbers got higher, it changed. The feedback from my posts, more trips hiking with friends and in groups, the realization of the "VFTT family", that's really what made it happen.

I finished my 48 with a huge crowd and it was truly wonderful; however, I wanted something a little more mellow for my 67. I wanted to make sure I did it for myself - that the goal wasn't the summit party but the mountain.

I didn't hike up the trail alone, and I knew people would be there, but when I came through the fog to the summit, I realized what I had. You had climbed up this mountain with me, for me - my stepping on a little brass disc mattered.

That was the inspiration - the world this board has created, the people here behind the screen names, the common ground we share when we leave our homes and step from the rocks into the mud. We do, in fact, reach our summits for ourselves but we will get there together. And so long as we continue to celebrate each other, I will take all of the inspiration I can get from you to continue my journeys.

Okay, that's waaaaaay too sappy for a trip report. Quick, I must agree with Post'r Boy about something...

 

[J&J]

Congratulations Michael! Hard to believe you were just working on the NH peaks last summer and here you are completing New England--well done! There are even more great peaks and trails out there--keep on hiking and we'll see you on the trail.
June and John

 

[amstony]

Congratulations MichaelJ, those NEHH are not too far away from completion for you either!!

 

[Stan]

Congratulations, Michael J, for your milestone! I'm so glad to catch up with you all at the summit after my characteristically late start well after the crack of noon. Good luck on the next 20.

 

[arghman]

woohoo! congrats.

ok, so which are MichaelJ's Top Ten Picks for the NE67?

 

[Head]

Hey man! Congrats on the New England 4000 Footers! A great accomplishment there! Thanks fer the TR!

 

[MichaelJ]

ok, so which are MichaelJ's Top Ten Picks for the NE67?

THAT is really tough. I have to think about the peak, the potential of the peak if it was bad weather, and the hike I took to get there, and meld them all together. Well ... in no particular order:

Mt. Katahdin
The Bigelows
Jefferson
Mansfield
Camel's Hump
Eisenhower
West Bond
Garfield
Lafayette
Moosilauke

and I should add ...
coming in at a close #11 ...
you know I liked it ...
you know I've been back ...
I'll be back again ...

Owl's Head

 

[SteveHiker]

well since this thread is more popular than mine and I just finished too, I'll chime in with my favorite 10 as well. In no particular order:

Bondcliff
South Twin
Avery
Hamlin
Baxter
Adams
Garfield
Flume (because of the slide)
North Tripyramid (same reason)
South Kinsman

what? no Vermont peaks on my list? well to be fair it was either cloudy, hazy or foggy when I was on them, otherwise Killington would have made it. I would make it a very close 11th.

 

[mtnpa]

MichaelJ,
Hearty congratulations from mtnmama and I. We've both enjoyed sharing hikes and beers with you. We're new to vftt but have been hiking for most of our lives. It's nice to meet people who don't think that we're nuts. See you on the trails.

 

[coldfeet]

Congrats MichaelJ...I was glad to be with the group that was going to meet up with you. I didn't know it was a special hike until Mad Townie mentioned that Periwinkle was carrying champagne in her pack and we should help bring it up. It just so happens that i had it at the end, it was all hers. I just started this amazing hobby last year and i to am doing it for a few reasons but also to be "part of a special group". It was a pleasure to be there and see the look of excitement on your face. don't forget to send me info on how i can send you your video...

 

[MichaelJ]

Right - I almost forgot. I'll write that up in the morning (I'm falling asleep right now).

 

[MEB]

Way to Go Michael J!!

I was stewing all weekend about bailing on this trip...I wish I had been there to celebrate with you!! Sounds like you all had lots of fun!

-MEB

 

[Periwinkle]

Pictures are finally done. Hopefully, this link works (nothing else on WebShots was! ).

http://community.webshots.com/album/461661123ODxKQe

 

[Rob S]

Nice photos ....... Congrats again, Michael!! Despite a little dampness, it appears to have been a blast. Wishin I had been there .......


Yup, your link works, Peri! Good job!

 

[MichaelJ]

The link does, in fact, work, and the pictures are wonderful! Webshots was a little cranky about showing me two of them, but the others all came through fine.

Thank you, Periwinkle!

 

[bunchberry]

Great Photos Periwinkle and Coldfeet! I especially loved the one early on you called "seasons change" with the fallen autumn leaves on the wet ground, and of course all of the great summit shots. When I get back to Mansfield some day so I can see the VFTT, maybe I'll hike up your way--looked fun!
-katie

 

[coldfeet]

Peri....very cool....going to send u more pics.....can u say Tequila?
ps ... You mean Bert from Bert and Ernie

 

[bubba]

Peri... nice shots. Looks like it was a fun trip. The last photo looks like it has some great possibilities (leaving mtn) -- neat retreat into the fog...