Mount Hale at a book time pace.

[Mohamed Ellozy]

My second "book time hike" with the nice folks from VFTT, this one organized by Darwin.

Darwin, Stopher and I met at the Zealand parking at 9 AM and started hiking almost imediately. It took us about 1:15 to reach the trailhead at my slow pace. On the way in we met the croo member (there is only one midweek in winter, so I wonder how appropriate the name "croo" is) going out.

The lower part of the trail has moderate grades, and the footing was excellent, a couple of inches of soft snow on top of a solid base. Beautiful open hardwoods down low.

About midway up we crossed a stream that, as usual, was icy, but with enough fresh snow on top to allow us to walk with little difficulty. On the way up I thought that I had left my insteps at home, even after finding them I did not use them on the way down.

After the icy section things got a bit steeper, but the steepest slopes can be dealt with if you go slowly. Darwin clearly could have hiked much faster, but he appeared to be happy to keep a pace that I could follow. We reached the summit in 2:06 from the trailhead, versus a book time of 2:15. Pathetic, I know, but that is the best I can do right now.

On the summit I scouted out the old Firewarden's Trail, and as soon as I saw it and moved enthusiastically foreward I fell into a spruce trap up to my armpits. Darwin stomped on the snow behind me, and I eventually backed out, not too gracefully.

The trip down reminded my once again that gravity is much pleasanter when it is working for you rather than against you! Somehow we walked out from the trailhead to our cars in roughy 45 minutes, versus 1:15 on the way in. I guess we decided that the hike was over and it was time to go home! We reached the cars a few minutes after 3 PM, for six hours and a few minutes total trip time.

For the sake of symetry, on the way out we met the replacement croo member going to the hut.

Many thanks to Darwin and Stopher for putting up with my pace!

 

[stopher]

I like your pace, Mohamed. But I'm gonna have to learn to eat while hiking. You never stop!

 

[ChrisB]

What's the problem?

Hey Mo,

Any winter hike I can do in "book time" is a hike done at a good clip! Glad to see you're getting back in the groove.

Is it too early to raise the prospect of June 21, 2004???

Hope to see you soon,

cb

 

[Mohamed Ellozy]

Chris,

Good to hear from you again! You post with many aliases, but always sign "cb" so I am pretty sure I know who you are.

Is it too early to raise the prospect of June 21, 2004???

I certainly hope to be able to climb individual Presi peaks by then, but the whole lot? Surely you jest But thanks for the implicit good wishes!

 

[BrentD22]

It's been some time since I've hiked on a regular basis, but book time in winter is a good time for me.

I recently hiked Lowe's Path to Gray Knob. Having to deal with crampon problem that I was helping another hiker with and my gigantic blisters it took me 5:20 hours. Book time is 3:10 only 2:10 over book time which is really really slow! I think if my blisters where not present I might have shaved an hour off of the time, but that still would only take me down to 1:10 minutes over book time, granted it is winter.

To make a long story short I NEED TO GET INTO SHAPE and START HIKING MORE OFTEN!

Attached is a picture of me looking like I just went through hell. Well thats cause I just did...

 

[Dennis C.]

Mohamed, you mentioned the Old Firewardens Trail. Have you ever done Hale using this route? It is, without a doubt, the best, easiest, and (maybe the) shortest approach to this peak. It's one of my favorites.

 

[Mohamed Ellozy]

Dennis,

All four of my winter ascents of Hale have been up and down the Hale Brook Trail. In summer I once did a traverse (up Firewarden, down Hale Brook), and two or more big loops: Twins, Guyot, Zealand, Hale and down by Firewarden or vice versa.

I love the open woods and easy grades in summer, should one year do it in winter.

 

[MadRiver]

Mohamed, I saw your letter to the editor in the newest AMC Outdoors. I do have one question, where is New Campton? Do I have to change my address?

 

[Mohamed Ellozy]

I would guess that it's not too far from Old Thornton

 

[MadRiver]

As a fellow Thorntonian, you must be tired as I am of the confusion between the two towns. We should just request a post office and be done with it!

 

[Cath]

We had a Post Office for years. It was located at the Thornton General Store (at the end of the Mirror Lake Rd). If you were a real local, you knew it as "Dirty Gert's". There were these great antique style, numbered boxes for the mail distribution. Very much like the set up still in use at the Woodstock Country Store. The Thornton PO "left" town around 1989. Campton & Thornton have been "married" to each other for years........ shared dump (now the Recycling /Transfer station), the Fire Department, etc. The town-folk know the difference, but the out-a-towners have a problem with Thornton not having it's own established main st. In the not so distant past, the Gas Station / mechanic shop, Thornton Farm Kitchen, McNamara's Upholstry, Conkey's Auction Barn, & Thornton General Store and Post Office all were open for business on "Main Street" (aka Rt 3) simultaneously. The "town clerks" office was located at the Gross's residence, that is near the end of Mirror Lake Rd, just a click up from the Thornton Rug Shop (a tourist trap). You can still see the Town Clock, mounted on the front of Smitty's Garage, near the peak of the roof. That was the site of Conkey's Building Construction, and Mr. Conkey was a selectman in town for years. Times have changed, and Thornton has grown into more of a bedroom community.

 

[MadRiver]

I remember Mrs. Gross. I always thought it was quaint to conduct town business in one’s parlor. Although I am a recent visitor (1983) to Thornton, my wife has been coming here since birth, about 46 years. She still remembers when Waterville Valley only had the ski area and no condos, just the hotel, which eventually burned down.

Her grandparents bought a place in 1964 which was the site of a double murder. Apparently a card game got out of hand. We chatted with the curator of the Campton Historical Society and he remembered the incident.

After her grandparents passed away, we inherited the place. I know we are only “Weekenders” now, but we do eventually plan to move to Thornton.