grouseking
Well-known member
I probably shouldn't have hiked yesterday, but I needed to get out.
We arrived at the trailhead at 8:45 and were off by 9:00. I have been battling some sort of nasty cold this past week and before that I had just got over pneumonia so lets say my energy level was nowhere to be found. But I did ok to the first stream crossing and thankfully the first part of the Drakes Brook Trail is pretty darn easy because it saved me from having to turn back for sure.
I have hiked this mtn via the same loop once before and remember it being much easier than what was going on yesterday. I was stopping in places I'd thought I'd never stop...like on flat terrain...just to catch my breath and to keep the colors from changing in my eyes. Each step was a struggle but I kept going because I knew from proir experience that this trail isnt as steep as the Sandwich Mtn Trail. I found myself taking even more pics than normal (I take a ridiculous amount of pics inthe first place) so being sick had one silver lining. Anyways I stuggled up the trail and then finally made it to the switchbacks when it got almost unbarably steep for me so I just took turns sitting down or stopping for short stints and kept moving. It seemed like forever since I usually blaze up a trail and normally I think I'm going slow. Somehow, someway I made it to the Sandwich Trail junc under book time! That gave me a little boost of energy...and so did a 15 break!
So off we went up the rest of the trail....which was pretty but not as nice as late last summer when the ferns were in bloom....but the moss made up for the green. As I got higher I got tired again and was finding myself taking breaks. At one point I took a break on a steep slope and thought where the hell is the top?! I could have sworn.....and just like that I stood up, went around the corner, there was an opening from storm damage and I was there in 3 minutes. I unbelievable made it 30 min under booktime!!!
Last time I hiked Sandwich views were nonexsistent thanks to fog and spits of rain/snow (In early September...burr!) But today, albeit hazy, the views were much more spectacular than people say it is. I relaxed, ate some food, took a bunch of pics and then we were off. Jennings Peak was our next stop, and that has a short but very steep spur trail which nearly killed me. Views of Sandwich Dome and toward the south were hazy, but very nice.
Then it was time to leave. We descended down the Sandwich Mtn trail, which is a very pretty walk, but at this point I was tired, dehydrated (even after 5 bottles of water and a 32 oz Gatorade....) and gearing to take a nap. So the walk out was horrible. It wasn't quite a death march cause the landscape kept changing and the trail was interesting enough, but I swear it was the longest 2.5 miles of my life. Noon Peak was nice and then the steeps started in earnest, headin down. It seemed like they'd be done in no time, but I kept going and going and the trail never really let up. I knew I had to cross a stream at the end, so I listened closely for the running water....whcih was the biggest mistake of the day. There I was...waiting and waiting to hear the water and it never came.....until finally, I heard a faint roar. It was water for sure, and I hurried to get to it. This was also a mistake of course, as the stream had to have been still a mile away. Finally, after what seemed like the equivalent to 10 hikes and 100 switchbacks away from the water, I arrived absolutely out of it. To make matters worse, the crossing although doable, was a bit sketchy so I just waited for my Dad to arrive so I could do it with someone else around. The last thing I wanted to do was take a leap of faith from a rock and crack my head open cause I felt like crap. So he arrived, we crossed together and we waited for his friends to come down and then we proceeded to the car. It was a wonderful sight, but the sun was glazing at that point.. In the shade it was 65 at best but out in the sun it was 80-85 and that pretty much ended my day. We took a break at the end, drove to Campton, bought a bunch of water for me so I could recover and drove back to southern NH where I was later treated to dinner at CR Sparks in Bedford. The dinner of a lifetime!
So it was a good trip. I know my limits and I know I was pushing them, but I had to get out and hike. I just won't do this with such a bad cold again. And plus the fact that I've had no energy from recovering from pneumonia. Yuck!
My Webshots if anyone is interested I have an array of pics here, mainly of hiking. My Sandwich Mtn pics arent up yet, but I have some from bak in Sept. All in all, even though I was basically wiped out, I cannot wait for my next hike. The mtns keep calling me back, but I'll just wait to not be sick
Grouseking
We arrived at the trailhead at 8:45 and were off by 9:00. I have been battling some sort of nasty cold this past week and before that I had just got over pneumonia so lets say my energy level was nowhere to be found. But I did ok to the first stream crossing and thankfully the first part of the Drakes Brook Trail is pretty darn easy because it saved me from having to turn back for sure.
I have hiked this mtn via the same loop once before and remember it being much easier than what was going on yesterday. I was stopping in places I'd thought I'd never stop...like on flat terrain...just to catch my breath and to keep the colors from changing in my eyes. Each step was a struggle but I kept going because I knew from proir experience that this trail isnt as steep as the Sandwich Mtn Trail. I found myself taking even more pics than normal (I take a ridiculous amount of pics inthe first place) so being sick had one silver lining. Anyways I stuggled up the trail and then finally made it to the switchbacks when it got almost unbarably steep for me so I just took turns sitting down or stopping for short stints and kept moving. It seemed like forever since I usually blaze up a trail and normally I think I'm going slow. Somehow, someway I made it to the Sandwich Trail junc under book time! That gave me a little boost of energy...and so did a 15 break!
So off we went up the rest of the trail....which was pretty but not as nice as late last summer when the ferns were in bloom....but the moss made up for the green. As I got higher I got tired again and was finding myself taking breaks. At one point I took a break on a steep slope and thought where the hell is the top?! I could have sworn.....and just like that I stood up, went around the corner, there was an opening from storm damage and I was there in 3 minutes. I unbelievable made it 30 min under booktime!!!
Last time I hiked Sandwich views were nonexsistent thanks to fog and spits of rain/snow (In early September...burr!) But today, albeit hazy, the views were much more spectacular than people say it is. I relaxed, ate some food, took a bunch of pics and then we were off. Jennings Peak was our next stop, and that has a short but very steep spur trail which nearly killed me. Views of Sandwich Dome and toward the south were hazy, but very nice.
Then it was time to leave. We descended down the Sandwich Mtn trail, which is a very pretty walk, but at this point I was tired, dehydrated (even after 5 bottles of water and a 32 oz Gatorade....) and gearing to take a nap. So the walk out was horrible. It wasn't quite a death march cause the landscape kept changing and the trail was interesting enough, but I swear it was the longest 2.5 miles of my life. Noon Peak was nice and then the steeps started in earnest, headin down. It seemed like they'd be done in no time, but I kept going and going and the trail never really let up. I knew I had to cross a stream at the end, so I listened closely for the running water....whcih was the biggest mistake of the day. There I was...waiting and waiting to hear the water and it never came.....until finally, I heard a faint roar. It was water for sure, and I hurried to get to it. This was also a mistake of course, as the stream had to have been still a mile away. Finally, after what seemed like the equivalent to 10 hikes and 100 switchbacks away from the water, I arrived absolutely out of it. To make matters worse, the crossing although doable, was a bit sketchy so I just waited for my Dad to arrive so I could do it with someone else around. The last thing I wanted to do was take a leap of faith from a rock and crack my head open cause I felt like crap. So he arrived, we crossed together and we waited for his friends to come down and then we proceeded to the car. It was a wonderful sight, but the sun was glazing at that point.. In the shade it was 65 at best but out in the sun it was 80-85 and that pretty much ended my day. We took a break at the end, drove to Campton, bought a bunch of water for me so I could recover and drove back to southern NH where I was later treated to dinner at CR Sparks in Bedford. The dinner of a lifetime!
So it was a good trip. I know my limits and I know I was pushing them, but I had to get out and hike. I just won't do this with such a bad cold again. And plus the fact that I've had no energy from recovering from pneumonia. Yuck!
My Webshots if anyone is interested I have an array of pics here, mainly of hiking. My Sandwich Mtn pics arent up yet, but I have some from bak in Sept. All in all, even though I was basically wiped out, I cannot wait for my next hike. The mtns keep calling me back, but I'll just wait to not be sick
Grouseking
