Bobby
Active member
The Kinsmans - Half plus one; a little blood, lots of sweat.
I left Boston Beer night about 8:30 PM, went home, helped out with the baby, then went to bed. I overslept and didn't get on the road until after 6. I had some trouble finding the the Mt. Kinsman Trail trail head, but by 8:45 I was gearing up.
As I took my pack from the backseat, it seemed a little light, and very wet. Investigation showed that the hose came loose from my CamelBack water bladder and leaked three liters of water in the pack and my car
. Lucky for me, I decided not to take my filter with me . As I pondered my situation, I noticed there was a stream a few yards away and decided to take my chances and just fill up there, after re-attaching the hose. A break came my way when two other hikers arrived at the trailhead, Ken and Gary. They were staying just a few yards up the road, and offered to let me refill there .
By 9 we were on our way. Ken and Gary were a little ahead of me, I caught up with them as they were adjusting some gear and we stayed together for the day. They were great to hike with, lots of laughs, it really was a great day. We went to Bald Peak and the views were pretty good, just a little hazy. And hot. And buggy if we stayed still for too long. The Mount Kinsman Trail to that point had a few blowdowns, easily negotiated. There was also some mud, moose tracks and other evidence of moose. After leaving Bald Peak, there were more blowdowns, some easy to get by, others not so easy. We went over, under, around and through them. I wound up with a few scratches on my legs, with a little bleeding, but it looks like I'll make it. About 3000', there was some snow and ice, but nothing that wasn't easy to get around or through. I had snowshoes and stabilicers with me, but they weren't even close to being needed. I guess they just needed to get out of the basement.
Shortly after Bald Peak the trail steepens, just like the guidebook says. The heat didn't help, there aren't enough leaves on the trees to block the sun. As we got to the Kinsman Ridge Trail, and endless number of students on a field trip went by, having come up from the Fishing' Jimmy Trail. We took a long lunch of the cliffs of North Kinsman, #24 for me. I should say that Ken and Gary had lunch, I left mine on the kitchen table . I had cereal bars and peanut butter crackers After lunch we were off to South Kinsman.
The Kinsman Ridge Trail between the peaks was nice, some snow and nice, but nothing serious. It took about 40 minutes to get to South Kinsman, #25. Then back to North and the Mt. Kinsman Trail again.
Uh-Oh....not that easy. Gary and I ran out of water at South Kinsman, Ken had about a 1/2 liter left. I drank three liters of water, I think Gary was close to that. It was hot! Sweat was pouring off of me, and my cap was soaked through several times over. We managed to make it to the Mt. Kinsman Trail and used Gary's pump to refill. It was an uneventful trip down to the cars.
I heard the Kinsmans were a tough hike, and it is. I got some leg cramps and was really hot. I used the streams to wet my hat and have the very cold water hit my head and neck. This one really kicked the stuffing out of me.
All in all, it was a great day. I enjoyed hiking with Gary and Ken, and appreciate them solving my water dilemma at the start of the day.
Pictures here
I left Boston Beer night about 8:30 PM, went home, helped out with the baby, then went to bed. I overslept and didn't get on the road until after 6. I had some trouble finding the the Mt. Kinsman Trail trail head, but by 8:45 I was gearing up.
As I took my pack from the backseat, it seemed a little light, and very wet. Investigation showed that the hose came loose from my CamelBack water bladder and leaked three liters of water in the pack and my car
. Lucky for me, I decided not to take my filter with me . As I pondered my situation, I noticed there was a stream a few yards away and decided to take my chances and just fill up there, after re-attaching the hose. A break came my way when two other hikers arrived at the trailhead, Ken and Gary. They were staying just a few yards up the road, and offered to let me refill there .By 9 we were on our way. Ken and Gary were a little ahead of me, I caught up with them as they were adjusting some gear and we stayed together for the day. They were great to hike with, lots of laughs, it really was a great day. We went to Bald Peak and the views were pretty good, just a little hazy. And hot. And buggy if we stayed still for too long. The Mount Kinsman Trail to that point had a few blowdowns, easily negotiated. There was also some mud, moose tracks and other evidence of moose. After leaving Bald Peak, there were more blowdowns, some easy to get by, others not so easy. We went over, under, around and through them. I wound up with a few scratches on my legs, with a little bleeding, but it looks like I'll make it. About 3000', there was some snow and ice, but nothing that wasn't easy to get around or through. I had snowshoes and stabilicers with me, but they weren't even close to being needed. I guess they just needed to get out of the basement.
Shortly after Bald Peak the trail steepens, just like the guidebook says. The heat didn't help, there aren't enough leaves on the trees to block the sun. As we got to the Kinsman Ridge Trail, and endless number of students on a field trip went by, having come up from the Fishing' Jimmy Trail. We took a long lunch of the cliffs of North Kinsman, #24 for me. I should say that Ken and Gary had lunch, I left mine on the kitchen table
. I had cereal bars and peanut butter crackers After lunch we were off to South Kinsman.The Kinsman Ridge Trail between the peaks was nice, some snow and nice, but nothing serious. It took about 40 minutes to get to South Kinsman, #25. Then back to North and the Mt. Kinsman Trail again.
Uh-Oh....not that easy. Gary and I ran out of water at South Kinsman, Ken had about a 1/2 liter left. I drank three liters of water, I think Gary was close to that. It was hot! Sweat was pouring off of me, and my cap was soaked through several times over. We managed to make it to the Mt. Kinsman Trail and used Gary's pump to refill. It was an uneventful trip down to the cars.
I heard the Kinsmans were a tough hike, and it is. I got some leg cramps and was really hot. I used the streams to wet my hat and have the very cold water hit my head and neck. This one really kicked the stuffing out of me.
All in all, it was a great day. I enjoyed hiking with Gary and Ken, and appreciate them solving my water dilemma at the start of the day.
Pictures here
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