Sometimes you just have to look at the 48 as a different kind of goal. It's not just about a summit - it's also about the journey to get there. Back in the summer of 2000 I had climbed North Kinsman while staying at Lonesome Lake, but never made it to South Kinsman. This summer, I would return and hike both peaks while joining my friend Poison Ivy, who is section-hiking the AT, and her friend Poetree on a 16-mile journey over two days across Kinsman Ridge and down into Franconia Notch.
We had an early start on the highway and made excellent time getting to the Whitehouse Trailhead. There, we left the car and took a ride with The Shuttle Connection over to the AT at the Rte 112 crossing. We had a little difficulty and lost some time due to a downed power line at a construction site on the road, and finally got onto the trail shortly before 11am.
The Kinsman Ridge Trail wastes no time in steeply climbing up out of Kinsman Notch - it was a tough way to warm up our legs. Fortunately, it only took a half-hour to crest the ridgeline and start rambling over a sequence of puncheoned sags and minor humps. This is a fine section of trail, very much a walk in the woods. Occasionally there was a view to the east peeking through the trees ... we caught glimpses of the Osceolas as well as of the next hump we had to traverse. It was very dry, a condition we'd planned on.
The trail kept going and going, until around midafternoon when we reached Mt. Wolf and took in excellent views of Franconia Ridge, sunlit but capped by clouds. It was tempting to relax but we still had miles to go before our destination, the Eliza Brook Shelter. The trail continued much as it had been until we hit the Reel Brook Trail junction at the 6-1/2 mile mark. Finally, the end was in sight as we only had a mile to go. We picked up the pace but were mesmerized by the sudden opening in the woods as we passed through what was originally known as Kinsman Notch, the pass between Mt. Wolf and South Kinsman, which is traversed by high-voltage power lines. It was pretty wild, standing there and looking out along the corridor as it carves its way down the slope, across Bog Pond, and disappears over the next ridge.
A trivial half-mile later we were at Eliza Brook Shelter. This was a magnificent location, nestled on the eastern side of the ridge in the shallow ravine of Eliza Brook. The lean-to shelter was in great condition (even though it looked like it was leaning to one side), there were two landscaped tent pads plus several more suitable areas off in the woods, and the site was equipped with a fire ring, composting privy, and a bear box. We filtered our water directly out of the brook, which ran alongside about ten feet down from the site and would make a soothing, burbling white noise all night.
The rest of the evening was fairly typical for a campsite. We changed into dry, comfortable clothes, claimed our spots in the shelter, cooked & ate dinner, and settled in for quiet reading prior to falling asleep. Remarkably, almost everyone (we had eight in the shelter) was asleep while it was still bright out, just after 8:00. I wasn't that tired yet, so I stayed up reading for a while, as did Poetree. I eventually fell asleep - it was such a beautiful evening that I was utterly relaxed and at peace.
The only way to improve on a beautiful evening is to have a beautiful night. Sometime in the heart of the night I woke up with a headlamp shining in my eyes, only it wasn't a headlamp - it was a bright, rising moon. This was a great opportunity to take a walk under the moonshine, so I did. Sigh.
Sunrise was early and motivating. We all got up, ate breakfast, packed, and enjoyed the experience of the morning woods. By 8:00 we were on the trail, winding our way up the trail as it follows Eliza Brook. The trail here consists of short, steep steps following the ravine past cascades and pools that begged for swimmers. This took about an hour, and then we came into the open on the shore of Harrington Pond, looking up at the ledgy shoulder of South Kinsman extending up into the swiftly-moving, wet-looking clouds. We took a snack stop and put on our shells, which would prove to be unnecessary as the clouds would lift just ahead of us.
In fact, I quickly found myself overheating as the next section of trail was the steepest of the entire trip, stepping and scrambling up boulders and ledges. I kept reminding myself that the advantage of such a steep trail was that it wouldn't last for long; then I'd turn a corner and find another pitch waiting to be climbed. They weren't difficult scrambles, per se, they just required effort and caution. It would be over an hour of this before cresting onto the bare summit of South Kinsman.
It was cold and windblown, but it was my 38th 4000-footer! We sheltered ourselves among the rocks to rest and enjoy a snack. The clouds had risen and the views, while not sunlit, were clear and distant. We spent some time eating there, before we were forced to recognize how many miles remained on our trip and start moving towards North Kinsman.
The trail through the col between the Kinsmans is easy, at a gentle grade with good footing, and it took us only another half-hour to arrive on North Kinsman and make our way to the fantastic lookout ledges. The sun was peeking through the clouds, we were sheltered from the wind, and with the incredible vista out to Cannon, Franconia Notch, and across to Franconia Ridge, we knew we'd be spending some time there. As Poison Ivy and Poetree stretched out on the upper ledge, I made my way down the little-known trail to the lower ledge with its views of Kinsman Pond. Here I was on my 3rd 4000-footer, almost four years later.
At that moment, I heard a voice with an accent I recognized. I looked back up to the upper ledge and saw there a familiar face ... it was HikerBob! I rushed back up to say hello, and after exchanging introductions we were dazzled by not one or two, but three gliders riding the thermals just over the ridge. We also had caught back up with Riverwizard, a northbound through-hiker with whom we'd shared the shelter back at Eliza Brook. It was as fun a moment as I've ever had on a summit, but it was already after noon and we still had over five miles to go. We packed up, gave our regards to HikerBob & Karen (on their way to the South peak), and started down towards Kinsman Junction and the Fishin' Jimmy trail.
As I'd remembered it, Fishin' Jimmy has a little of everything - stepping, scrambling, stairs, and woods walking. Also as I'd remembered it, the trail goes on farther than it has any right to, including some ascents that my quads fought vehemently. It does pass through attractive forest, through a sag on puncheons, past some great-looking campsites (though in the middle of nowhere), and along a neat ravine; however it just continues and continues. When I was on the verge of being completely fed up, we arrived at Lonesome Lake Hut. This was a shock, as it was mobbed with people, children running and screaming. Poetree and I succumbed to a Mexican calzone while Poison Ivy gave into temptation and went for a swim in the lake.
After Ivy dried off and we got all our gear together, we hit the homestretch: the Cascade Brook Trail. It started off with a rocky segment, but soon settled into a smooth walk on an easy grade. When a trail doesn't double as a streambed it remains in excellent condition, and at one point I even found myself running down the trail, my knees thrilled at the movement. Sure, it was a long trail, but when it's this mellow, it doesn't matter.
We crossed under I-93 and at the bike path passed the last white blaze of this trip. Ivy would be returning to this point for her next section hike, but for now we on the blues, making our way over the Pemi towards the car. However, where the trail turned off the bike path we made the decision to not follow the incarnation of evil that is the Whitehouse Trail but rather to stay on the bike path, which leads to the same parking lot only without the unnecessary rough ups and downs.
The hike ended with ice-cold sodas out of the cooler in the back of the car, then a visit to Periwinkle at her store for pizza, subs, and hot dogs. These were two excellent days of hiking - the Kinsmans had a little bit of everything to offer, and they did so generously. Thanks especially to Poison Ivy & Poetree for this great trip. I highly recommend it.
As always, I have pictures.
We had an early start on the highway and made excellent time getting to the Whitehouse Trailhead. There, we left the car and took a ride with The Shuttle Connection over to the AT at the Rte 112 crossing. We had a little difficulty and lost some time due to a downed power line at a construction site on the road, and finally got onto the trail shortly before 11am.
The Kinsman Ridge Trail wastes no time in steeply climbing up out of Kinsman Notch - it was a tough way to warm up our legs. Fortunately, it only took a half-hour to crest the ridgeline and start rambling over a sequence of puncheoned sags and minor humps. This is a fine section of trail, very much a walk in the woods. Occasionally there was a view to the east peeking through the trees ... we caught glimpses of the Osceolas as well as of the next hump we had to traverse. It was very dry, a condition we'd planned on.
The trail kept going and going, until around midafternoon when we reached Mt. Wolf and took in excellent views of Franconia Ridge, sunlit but capped by clouds. It was tempting to relax but we still had miles to go before our destination, the Eliza Brook Shelter. The trail continued much as it had been until we hit the Reel Brook Trail junction at the 6-1/2 mile mark. Finally, the end was in sight as we only had a mile to go. We picked up the pace but were mesmerized by the sudden opening in the woods as we passed through what was originally known as Kinsman Notch, the pass between Mt. Wolf and South Kinsman, which is traversed by high-voltage power lines. It was pretty wild, standing there and looking out along the corridor as it carves its way down the slope, across Bog Pond, and disappears over the next ridge.
A trivial half-mile later we were at Eliza Brook Shelter. This was a magnificent location, nestled on the eastern side of the ridge in the shallow ravine of Eliza Brook. The lean-to shelter was in great condition (even though it looked like it was leaning to one side), there were two landscaped tent pads plus several more suitable areas off in the woods, and the site was equipped with a fire ring, composting privy, and a bear box. We filtered our water directly out of the brook, which ran alongside about ten feet down from the site and would make a soothing, burbling white noise all night.
The rest of the evening was fairly typical for a campsite. We changed into dry, comfortable clothes, claimed our spots in the shelter, cooked & ate dinner, and settled in for quiet reading prior to falling asleep. Remarkably, almost everyone (we had eight in the shelter) was asleep while it was still bright out, just after 8:00. I wasn't that tired yet, so I stayed up reading for a while, as did Poetree. I eventually fell asleep - it was such a beautiful evening that I was utterly relaxed and at peace.
The only way to improve on a beautiful evening is to have a beautiful night. Sometime in the heart of the night I woke up with a headlamp shining in my eyes, only it wasn't a headlamp - it was a bright, rising moon. This was a great opportunity to take a walk under the moonshine, so I did. Sigh.
Sunrise was early and motivating. We all got up, ate breakfast, packed, and enjoyed the experience of the morning woods. By 8:00 we were on the trail, winding our way up the trail as it follows Eliza Brook. The trail here consists of short, steep steps following the ravine past cascades and pools that begged for swimmers. This took about an hour, and then we came into the open on the shore of Harrington Pond, looking up at the ledgy shoulder of South Kinsman extending up into the swiftly-moving, wet-looking clouds. We took a snack stop and put on our shells, which would prove to be unnecessary as the clouds would lift just ahead of us.
In fact, I quickly found myself overheating as the next section of trail was the steepest of the entire trip, stepping and scrambling up boulders and ledges. I kept reminding myself that the advantage of such a steep trail was that it wouldn't last for long; then I'd turn a corner and find another pitch waiting to be climbed. They weren't difficult scrambles, per se, they just required effort and caution. It would be over an hour of this before cresting onto the bare summit of South Kinsman.
It was cold and windblown, but it was my 38th 4000-footer! We sheltered ourselves among the rocks to rest and enjoy a snack. The clouds had risen and the views, while not sunlit, were clear and distant. We spent some time eating there, before we were forced to recognize how many miles remained on our trip and start moving towards North Kinsman.
The trail through the col between the Kinsmans is easy, at a gentle grade with good footing, and it took us only another half-hour to arrive on North Kinsman and make our way to the fantastic lookout ledges. The sun was peeking through the clouds, we were sheltered from the wind, and with the incredible vista out to Cannon, Franconia Notch, and across to Franconia Ridge, we knew we'd be spending some time there. As Poison Ivy and Poetree stretched out on the upper ledge, I made my way down the little-known trail to the lower ledge with its views of Kinsman Pond. Here I was on my 3rd 4000-footer, almost four years later.
At that moment, I heard a voice with an accent I recognized. I looked back up to the upper ledge and saw there a familiar face ... it was HikerBob! I rushed back up to say hello, and after exchanging introductions we were dazzled by not one or two, but three gliders riding the thermals just over the ridge. We also had caught back up with Riverwizard, a northbound through-hiker with whom we'd shared the shelter back at Eliza Brook. It was as fun a moment as I've ever had on a summit, but it was already after noon and we still had over five miles to go. We packed up, gave our regards to HikerBob & Karen (on their way to the South peak), and started down towards Kinsman Junction and the Fishin' Jimmy trail.
As I'd remembered it, Fishin' Jimmy has a little of everything - stepping, scrambling, stairs, and woods walking. Also as I'd remembered it, the trail goes on farther than it has any right to, including some ascents that my quads fought vehemently. It does pass through attractive forest, through a sag on puncheons, past some great-looking campsites (though in the middle of nowhere), and along a neat ravine; however it just continues and continues. When I was on the verge of being completely fed up, we arrived at Lonesome Lake Hut. This was a shock, as it was mobbed with people, children running and screaming. Poetree and I succumbed to a Mexican calzone while Poison Ivy gave into temptation and went for a swim in the lake.
After Ivy dried off and we got all our gear together, we hit the homestretch: the Cascade Brook Trail. It started off with a rocky segment, but soon settled into a smooth walk on an easy grade. When a trail doesn't double as a streambed it remains in excellent condition, and at one point I even found myself running down the trail, my knees thrilled at the movement. Sure, it was a long trail, but when it's this mellow, it doesn't matter.
We crossed under I-93 and at the bike path passed the last white blaze of this trip. Ivy would be returning to this point for her next section hike, but for now we on the blues, making our way over the Pemi towards the car. However, where the trail turned off the bike path we made the decision to not follow the incarnation of evil that is the Whitehouse Trail but rather to stay on the bike path, which leads to the same parking lot only without the unnecessary rough ups and downs.
The hike ended with ice-cold sodas out of the cooler in the back of the car, then a visit to Periwinkle at her store for pizza, subs, and hot dogs. These were two excellent days of hiking - the Kinsmans had a little bit of everything to offer, and they did so generously. Thanks especially to Poison Ivy & Poetree for this great trip. I highly recommend it.
As always, I have pictures.
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