One down 48 to go - Aaron gets his first 48 - September 2, 2008

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sapblatt

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One down 47 to go - Aaron gets his first 48 - September 2, 2008

My oldest son, Aaron is now five and has been hiking a bit since he was 2 - his first up climb was North Sugarloaf and his first round trip was Black Cap followed by Pemigewasset and then the Welch Dickey route. Last summer we attempted Mount Eisenhower via Edmand's Path, but while some of us love J. Rayner Edmand's smooth rides, Aaron quickly bored in the forest (giggy junior? :D ) and we called it a day. I have since been informed that Aaron is an expert scrambler and that he really prefers to be above tree line (who doesn't?)

My initial plan was to skip over the 4ks entirely and give him a shot at Jefferson, or at least a chance to play on Caps Ridge - but the prior days forecast was for high winds out of the N-NW and I decided that was a bad idea. Second thought was to hit Pierce (which was my first) - he may get bored in the forest, but the hut and Webster Cliff Trail would be fun. A way too late start from our new camp (in Twin Mountain) got us out the door around 9 AM and I opted for Osceola, which also had the bonus of being 30-40 minutes closer to home at the end of the day.

After playing with a pair of Bernese Mountain dogs in the parking lot (well, I played) we were on the trail at 9:45 and I quickly got to witness the expert rock scrambler in action. I was begging him to conserve his energy for later, but Aaron opted for the toughest route over every rock! We made good time going up the hill and we were eventually passed by a group of adults and two labs - I later found out that fellow VFTTer DrewKnight was amongst that group - sorry I did not recognize and speak up - next time.

We took about 5, five minute breaks on the way up and Aaron continued to scramble and make his way up. I did not feel that the complaining was too severe except for one time near the summit when I should have been smarter and stopped for food instead of pushing on for the last two minutes - lesson learned for the next time is that it is best to give your child breaks before they need them!

We made the summit in 3 1/2 hours which I think for a five year old was amazing. We were treated to great views all the way to Mount Washington and we got some nice summit shots. We had a nice lunch, rested up and Aaron geared up for the descent with his new Leki Kid's Trekking poles (which are great - but shop around - Highland Center and Campmor both had them for list - $45.95 - I got them for $13.95 on Amazon!! I insisted on a good brand because I knew I would be carrying them a lot and I wanted them to be lighter than the ones I had seen for short money at Wal Mart.

The descent on Osceola, due to all of the rock always seems to take about the same time as the climb - no time saving descent on this one...Aaron had a couple of minor spills on the way down and just wanted it to end - but he was up and down and I did a better job of managing breaks - he was pretty excited at the summit and at the conclusion. He wants to hike again, but probably not another 4k for awhile - which I think is A-OK. I have heard of four year olds completing the list, and I find it hard to believe that they did this because they wanted to, but rather because they were compelled to by over zealous parents - maybe there are some uber-kid-hikers out there, but I am not so sure. I want to keep it fun and I want to help him develop a lifelong love of hiking.

One last note - the prior day we did Willard with the entire family. If anyone wants a really good workout prior to a long backpack I may suggest hiking with my younger son, Zachary. Zach in a loaded kid carrier is over 40 pounds. He was kind enough to his dad to sleep through most of the hike and list to the left - that may be the hardest load I have ever carried.

PICTURESshare.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=8CauGbVozaKJ_Y
 
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Aaron,
Congratulations on your first of many 4ks! I am very proud of you. That is the nice shot of you and your Dad on the summit with the Tripyramids in the backgrounds. There is no doubt in my mind you will someday climb its slides one of these days and love every minute of it. :cool:

Best regards and hope to see you soon.

Your friend,
Marty
 
Congratulations to Aaron! Great start.

I recall meeting one of those "monster" parents that you're talking about on Tecumseh one day. It sure seems to me like you're doing it the right way, Mike. Keep it up.

Well done to both of you.

Earl
 
Whoo Hoo Aaron! Way to go Kiddo!

And a big Whoo Hoo to you too Mike, nice job listenening and learning about your hiking partners needs.

With any luck you may have a wonderful hiking partner or two for life!

:)
 
First off, congratulations!
sapblatt said:
... I quickly got to witness the expert rock scrambler in action. I was begging him to conserve his energy for later, but Aaron opted for the toughest route over every rock!
I often have to reign in the extra efforts myself. I forget, however, that the kids enjoy that part of it as much as the VFTT or any other part. Mine loved Jackson "Because the cascade was so cool", and later "because I got to feed a gray jay" and then it was the "really cool scramble at the top" (which they both took pride in accomplishing unassisted) and finally the "views between the clouds". It's always about the journey!

Tim
 
Way to go, nice report! :)

Sounds like there are a lot more mountains for Aaron to climb too. :)

Jay
 
Awesome - congrats to you both! It's great to see soooo many folk getting their kids out into the mountains. We need to make sure there are strong hikers on the rescue teams for us in 20 years!

Don'tcha mean "47 to go" though? ;)
 
yes on the 47 - I corrected it where I could...
you have hit on part of the plan - having the boys be on the rescue team would be great, but first and foremost they will be carrying my pack! :D
 
Listen Mike- I don't mind another Sapblatt on the trails with us but now thats just another person leaving me in their dust!

All joking aside, glad you guys got out and enjoyed a great day together as a family and continue to do so...
 
Tuco said:
Listen Mike- I don't mind another Sapblatt on the trails with us but now thats just another person leaving me in their dust!

All joking aside, glad you guys got out and enjoyed a great day together as a family and continue to do so...
We have probably hiked over 25 times (you were one of the first I met thru here) and I have left you in the dust maybe once - and that was only by about 2 minutes on a 12 hour hike - you have nothing to worry about!
 
CONGRATS !!!!

It's a great feeling to get a peak with your kid.
I know.
It gets better after you see the develpoment of the young hiker in progress.
Like the day I realized that my boy Arlo was actually "hiking". It was a very subtle change and very significant.

I was and am so proud of him.

He did his first 4k - Cascade in the Daks when he turned 4.
Roughly 5 miles round trip and 2100 feet of elevation gain. 9 HOURS!

It was great. It was better than completing any list.

He now has three 4000 footers completed and only has 30 of 35 to go before he completes the Catskill 3500 foot peaks. Not to mention hikes to about 5 Fire Towers. He is 5 years and 3 months.

What I'm saying is ...It gets easier and Better with each hike...you have a lot of great times to look forward to.

What I found that helps the little guy out a lot is many treats along the way.
I bring a small bag of each of the following : Raisnettes, Malt Balls, Gummy Bears, Snowcaps and some healthier Granola bars in additon to sandwiches and juice. He doesn't eat sweets at home hardly ever so they are real special on the trail.

So it's like, Hey Arlo - see that tree up there? If you can get to that tree this Gummy Bear is yours! Off he goes.

It was the day he stopped asking for treats and just hiked that I realized he was becoming a real Hiker.

Anyway - Congrats again.
 
My goodness... I think it takes me longer than 3.5 hours to hike up Osceola! :eek:

Awesome to hear that Aaron has moved from future peakbagger to full-fledged peakbagger! I wish hiking was something my family was into when I was little... it would have been great to get such a head start!

Congrats to you both!

- Ivy
 
poison ivy said:
I wish hiking was something my family was into when I was little... it would have been great to get such a head start!

Congrats to you both!

- Ivy

peakn said:
Way to go Aaron!
Wish I had known about hiking when my kids were young. Heck, when I was young.

I so hear both of you - I remember looking at books and maps when I was a kid and wanting to explore etc - no sour grapes here, but I really wished I was exposed to hiking a lot sooner in life than I was - I may have been able to avoid my 20s!
 
Pretty awesome!

How about Chocorua? Champney Falls Trail. That's an easy walk through the woods -- you can practically drive your motorcycle on that one. Then, if Aaron likes rocks, Chocorua summit has plenty of fun climbing.

-Dr. Wu
 
Congratulations, Mike and Aaron... and sorry I didn't go for the ID either... I am resolved to mumble "alligator eggs?" to all likely suspects in the future.

Our two kids did their first 4ker (5ker, actually) over Labor Day, with a successful hike of Lafayette. My eight-year-old, Ellie, in particular kept looking back down the ridge as we got close to the summit and marveling how far she had come, and all under her own power. I really think these life lessons will stay with them forever: the wonders of nature, and the reserves of inner strength they just didn't know they had.

Godspeed on the next 47, Aaron...
 
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