Mad Townie
New member
There are times to turn back, there are times to forget it, and there are times to go for it. I didn't plan on doing all three in just two weekends!
After the Redington "disappointment" of the previous weekend, I was fired up to complete #48, Moosilauke, on March 17th. Quite a few folks said they'd be there, which made it that much sweeter to contemplate. Thanks to Mtnmama and Mtnpa I had the world's best base camp, not too far from the mountain. What wonderful hospitality! I drove up late Friday afternoon, just ahead of the storm.
As we watched the Weather Channel Friday evening while the storm raged outside, it quickly became apparent that Saturday was NOT going to be a good day for this hike. Forgetting it for the day was a wise choice. Since I was out of Internet contact, Abster graciously posted a note telling people we were moving the hike to Sunday, the 18th. I assuaged my sadness on Saturday by playing a few tunes with Gris and SherpaK and Mike H. Tough to take.
Because I couldn't read Trips & Events, I had no idea who'd be joining me on Sunday. I did know that some very special people wouldn't be able to join in because of the change in schedule, and in some cases for other reasons. Boulderdash, you were missed, kid, but you know I understand.
In fact that bit of mystery about companions added to the excitement I felt as Mtnpa and I drove to the trailhead Sunday morning. It was really gratifying to see quite a few vehicles there--along with their occupants, of course! Soon our mini-army of 11 was heading up the hill, with our 4802 foot objective in mind. I was in no position to know who was in the lead (is anyone surprised?), but the team included Abster, Brewster, Double Bow, Drewski, Early Bird, Marchowes, Marty, Mtnpa, Ridgewalker, Rocksnrolls, and me. An intrepid group, some of whom I had shared various adventures with before and some of whom I was joining for the first time. Thanks to all of you for doing this with me!
It was a beautiful day to be in the woods, as Ridgewalker's photos show so beautifully. (Thanks!) Every once in a while we'd see the sun dappling the snow in the woods along the trail, a welcome omen of a good day. I kept in mind Mohamed Ellozy's advice: "[A]ll trails have somewhere between ¼ and ½ mile above treeline. It should only be attempted under good conditions."
This mountain impressed me, even after I'd climbed 47 (or should I say 65) of its brothers and sisters. I could only think of a French expression that describes it perfectly, but can't really be translated: "Ça monte!" ("it goes up"--see, I told you it doesn't translate well. ) It was steeper than I expected, though I should have guessed that from the fact that we were going to gain 3300 feet of elevation in 3.9 miles. I took my usual "sweeper" hiking position--there certainly were no amateurs or slowpokes in this group!
Before long we reached the trail junction. There was a bit of breeze, and it was a bit cool, so we geared up some while a couple folks took a run up to the South Summit. Then we set out through that beautiful words-can't-describe alley of conifers toward the summit. Before long we came up onto a rise, and there was the summit ahead of us. I was hit with the biggest smiling attack I've suffered in a long time! It was so bad I was worried about freezing my teeth.
Along with the view came the wind. And what a wind! As we headed up the summit cone gusts from our left would buffet us, to the point where we had to stop and brace with our poles to keep from being knocked over. I was still smiling, though now my smile was hidden behind a neoprene disguise. You couldn't tell who was who unless you had memorized clothing. Oh, did I mention the sleet? The wind was carrying these nice little ice pellets that gave any exposed skin a nice sanding job. I've no idea what the temperature was, but let's just say we weren't suffering from heat stroke.
We got to the old foundation at the top, then I struggled to the actual summit. It was all I, and everyone else, could to to stand without being blown clear back to Maine, but I managed to get one foot on the top of the rock. I had developed a bit of frost nip on my upper cheeks (which I referred to as "Skimom's revenge," payback for my luck on a certain Madison hike), so I got my goggles out to cover up a little better. After the obligatory summit photos (Thanks, Abster, once again) we figured it wasn't a great idea to stand around chatting, so we headed down. As soon as we got off the summit cone the wind was much less severe, and we stopped to regroup. It was at that moment that Rocksnrolls presented me with a 4000 footer patch. Thanks!
As nice a spot as this was, it was still a little, uh, exposed, so we headed back to the trail junction for the real celebration. Double Bow handed me an Engine 5 red ale (Thanks!) which was passed around for a toast to a tough mountain well climbed by all, and Early Bird and Rocksnrolls shared some sweet treasures. Thanks! I tried to limit myself to just a few thousand words of thanks and honor to some special folks, ten of whom were right there with me. We headed on down the trail, and it was apparent that the day had not warmed up as originally expected, even at the lower elevations. In no time we were at the parking lot. We said goodbyes to those who had to head out, and six of us headed (after a short detour to find a shortcut that wasn't there) to Woodstock Station for calorie replacement therapy.
I could easily get all emotional here, looking back on all the NH 4Ks I've hiked since 1976, all the great people who have hiked them with me and all the adventure involved in some of them. But I won't. I'll just say that undertaking the 4K lists to see new places was one of the best choices I've ever made. I've had a great time hiking with great VFTT companions, and I'm looking forward to much more of the same.
And the last time I checked, Redington was still there.
(Photos here.)
After the Redington "disappointment" of the previous weekend, I was fired up to complete #48, Moosilauke, on March 17th. Quite a few folks said they'd be there, which made it that much sweeter to contemplate. Thanks to Mtnmama and Mtnpa I had the world's best base camp, not too far from the mountain. What wonderful hospitality! I drove up late Friday afternoon, just ahead of the storm.
As we watched the Weather Channel Friday evening while the storm raged outside, it quickly became apparent that Saturday was NOT going to be a good day for this hike. Forgetting it for the day was a wise choice. Since I was out of Internet contact, Abster graciously posted a note telling people we were moving the hike to Sunday, the 18th. I assuaged my sadness on Saturday by playing a few tunes with Gris and SherpaK and Mike H. Tough to take.
Because I couldn't read Trips & Events, I had no idea who'd be joining me on Sunday. I did know that some very special people wouldn't be able to join in because of the change in schedule, and in some cases for other reasons. Boulderdash, you were missed, kid, but you know I understand.In fact that bit of mystery about companions added to the excitement I felt as Mtnpa and I drove to the trailhead Sunday morning. It was really gratifying to see quite a few vehicles there--along with their occupants, of course!
Soon our mini-army of 11 was heading up the hill, with our 4802 foot objective in mind. I was in no position to know who was in the lead (is anyone surprised?), but the team included Abster, Brewster, Double Bow, Drewski, Early Bird, Marchowes, Marty, Mtnpa, Ridgewalker, Rocksnrolls, and me. An intrepid group, some of whom I had shared various adventures with before and some of whom I was joining for the first time. Thanks to all of you for doing this with me!It was a beautiful day to be in the woods, as Ridgewalker's photos show so beautifully. (Thanks!) Every once in a while we'd see the sun dappling the snow in the woods along the trail, a welcome omen of a good day. I kept in mind Mohamed Ellozy's advice: "[A]ll trails have somewhere between ¼ and ½ mile above treeline. It should only be attempted under good conditions."
This mountain impressed me, even after I'd climbed 47 (or should I say 65) of its brothers and sisters. I could only think of a French expression that describes it perfectly, but can't really be translated: "Ça monte!" ("it goes up"--see, I told you it doesn't translate well.
) It was steeper than I expected, though I should have guessed that from the fact that we were going to gain 3300 feet of elevation in 3.9 miles. I took my usual "sweeper" hiking position--there certainly were no amateurs or slowpokes in this group!Before long we reached the trail junction. There was a bit of breeze, and it was a bit cool, so we geared up some while a couple folks took a run up to the South Summit. Then we set out through that beautiful words-can't-describe alley of conifers toward the summit. Before long we came up onto a rise, and there was the summit ahead of us. I was hit with the biggest smiling attack I've suffered in a long time! It was so bad I was worried about freezing my teeth.
Along with the view came the wind. And what a wind! As we headed up the summit cone gusts from our left would buffet us, to the point where we had to stop and brace with our poles to keep from being knocked over.
I was still smiling, though now my smile was hidden behind a neoprene disguise. You couldn't tell who was who unless you had memorized clothing. Oh, did I mention the sleet? The wind was carrying these nice little ice pellets that gave any exposed skin a nice sanding job. I've no idea what the temperature was, but let's just say we weren't suffering from heat stroke.We got to the old foundation at the top, then I struggled to the actual summit. It was all I, and everyone else, could to to stand without being blown clear back to Maine, but I managed to get one foot on the top of the rock. I had developed a bit of frost nip on my upper cheeks (which I referred to as "Skimom's revenge," payback for my luck on a certain Madison hike), so I got my goggles out to cover up a little better. After the obligatory summit photos (Thanks, Abster, once again) we figured it wasn't a great idea to stand around chatting, so we headed down. As soon as we got off the summit cone the wind was much less severe, and we stopped to regroup. It was at that moment that Rocksnrolls presented me with a 4000 footer patch. Thanks!
As nice a spot as this was, it was still a little, uh, exposed, so we headed back to the trail junction for the real celebration. Double Bow handed me an Engine 5 red ale (Thanks!) which was passed around for a toast to a tough mountain well climbed by all, and Early Bird and Rocksnrolls shared some sweet treasures. Thanks! I tried to limit myself to just a few thousand words
of thanks and honor to some special folks, ten of whom were right there with me. We headed on down the trail, and it was apparent that the day had not warmed up as originally expected, even at the lower elevations. In no time we were at the parking lot. We said goodbyes to those who had to head out, and six of us headed (after a short detour to find a shortcut that wasn't there) to Woodstock Station for calorie replacement therapy.I could easily get all emotional here, looking back on all the NH 4Ks I've hiked since 1976, all the great people who have hiked them with me and all the adventure involved in some of them. But I won't. I'll just say that undertaking the 4K lists to see new places was one of the best choices I've ever made. I've had a great time hiking with great VFTT companions, and I'm looking forward to much more of the same.
And the last time I checked, Redington was still there.
(Photos here.)
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