Mad Townie
New member
I awoke in the middle of the night and looked over my head out the window of my room. There were lots of smudges of light in the black sky, which resolved into stars when I put my glasses on for a better look. As the sun rose I could see Camel’s Hump out the window, and it was obviously going to be a glorious day to be in the mountains.
Brian offered to stay with the kids while Kirstin joined me for the climb of Abraham. (You didn’t think I’d go all that way and not climb BOTH mountains, did you?) We drove the short distance to the Battell Trail and were the first car at the trailhead. Donning our snowshoes, we headed up. One nice thing about this trail in winter is that you catch frequent glimpses of your goal as you hike through the open maple forest. Along the way we were passed by a solo hiker on snowshoes. Denim jacket, blue jeans, and a water bottle attached to his belt.
He was very friendly and was moving very fast, and he seemed to know his way around the area pretty well.
After awhile the hardwoods changed to conifers, heavily laden with snow. Talk about a winter wonderland! We made our way up along the switchbacks and in no time we reached the Long Trail intersection and the shelter. A great place for an early lunch break.
I dropped pack at the shelter, taking only a few essentials and my camera in my pocket. The hike from the shelter to the summit is about .9 miles, steep in places and great fun. We soon arrived at the summit. The Views from the Top were amazing! Incredible! Glorious! There was just the slightest little breeze from the north, and the sun was brilliant. We waved to all the folks on the Prezzies, Franconia Ridge, all of the other Vermont 4Ks, Whiteface, Marcy (I think) and the rest of the Whites and the Dacks. We also saw Moosilauke, my ultimate destination in a couple weeks.
We could have stayed at the summit forever, but I had a long drive back to Maine awaiting me. The sky had begun to haze up a little, and as we picked our way down the steeps we saw a multi-colored circle ‘round the sun! What a day! Our timing had been good, as we met a couple fairly large groups on their way up as we descended. (anyone from VftT?) It took us almost no time to fly down from the shelter to the parking lot, and soon after I was on the road home.
I won’t spoil the wonders of the day by talking about the gigantic traffic jam on 89 and 93 in NH. Let’s just say that many of the cars had plates from that state that many Mainers love to hate (and where many of us have spent at least part of our lives!).
Photos here.
Ever notice how beautiful days make shorter TRs?
Brian offered to stay with the kids while Kirstin joined me for the climb of Abraham. (You didn’t think I’d go all that way and not climb BOTH mountains, did you?) We drove the short distance to the Battell Trail and were the first car at the trailhead. Donning our snowshoes, we headed up. One nice thing about this trail in winter is that you catch frequent glimpses of your goal as you hike through the open maple forest. Along the way we were passed by a solo hiker on snowshoes. Denim jacket, blue jeans, and a water bottle attached to his belt.
He was very friendly and was moving very fast, and he seemed to know his way around the area pretty well.After awhile the hardwoods changed to conifers, heavily laden with snow. Talk about a winter wonderland! We made our way up along the switchbacks and in no time we reached the Long Trail intersection and the shelter. A great place for an early lunch break.
I dropped pack at the shelter, taking only a few essentials and my camera in my pocket. The hike from the shelter to the summit is about .9 miles, steep in places and great fun. We soon arrived at the summit. The Views from the Top were amazing! Incredible! Glorious! There was just the slightest little breeze from the north, and the sun was brilliant. We waved to all the folks on the Prezzies, Franconia Ridge, all of the other Vermont 4Ks, Whiteface, Marcy (I think) and the rest of the Whites and the Dacks. We also saw Moosilauke, my ultimate destination in a couple weeks.
We could have stayed at the summit forever, but I had a long drive back to Maine awaiting me. The sky had begun to haze up a little, and as we picked our way down the steeps we saw a multi-colored circle ‘round the sun! What a day! Our timing had been good, as we met a couple fairly large groups on their way up as we descended. (anyone from VftT?) It took us almost no time to fly down from the shelter to the parking lot, and soon after I was on the road home.
I won’t spoil the wonders of the day by talking about the gigantic traffic jam on 89 and 93 in NH. Let’s just say that many of the cars had plates from that state that many Mainers love to hate (and where many of us have spent at least part of our lives!).
Photos here.
Ever notice how beautiful days make shorter TRs?
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