Kinsman Pond Overnight - August 23-24, 2021

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Rhody Seth

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Location
Charlestown, RI
I was looking forward to heading back to the Whites but I wasn't sure it was going to happen with Tropical Storm Henri making landfall 10 miles from our house. Luckily the storm veered off to the west after making land and the wind, while very blustery for a while, tapered off after a few hours. No damage to speak of, just some fallen branches.

With the storm in the rearview, I resumed my plans and drove up on Monday the 23rd. I decided to do an overnight at the Kinsman Pond campsite, going in via the Mt. Kinsman Trail, over the Kinsman Ridge Trail and down the Reel Brook Trail. Then a few miles of road back to the car. It was in the 80s and very humid when I started and I was soon pretty gross. There was quite the large variety of mushrooms in the woods. The views from Bald Peak were the best that I would have on this hike. The Mt. Kinsman Trail was only four miles with moderate grades but the heat and humidity wore me out and I was tired by the time I reached the campsite.

I was the only one there. Not even a caretaker (the weather sign had been updated the previous day so I guess the caretakers switch off/take breaks early in the week?) There were no bugs to speak of which seems normal for August. But the mosquitoes are so bad at home I always assume the worst. I heard a couple guys arrive around 8 PM and later learned they were AT hikers. I tried out the new 30 degree underquilt I recently purchased for my hammock. Temps only got down to 58 and even then I was a little cool in the morning which likely speaks more to the fact that I'm usually cold than my insulation setup.

I hiked over the Kinsmans in the morning which were in the fog. I was surprised and embarrassed when I discovered that I had never actually reached the summit of South Kinsman before. Apparently I had failed to make it all the way there on my previous two trips. Whoops! If nothing else it made for a funny (if profane) scene in the video below.

So I essentially completed my first round of the NH48 on this hike. :D

After that I made my way down the Kinsman Ridge Trail which was tough going at times. Some very slick rocks. Met an older woman hiking the AT who had stayed at the Eliza Brook campsite. She was impressive with her huge pack. I really enjoyed the running water alongside much of this trail. Some top notch swimming holes. I found the powerline section interesting as that's not something you see often up in the Whites. I wonder if people follow it or if it's all overgrown?

My feet were achy as I made my way down the Reel Brook Trail and was annoying with myself for misjudging the distance somewhat. The road walk went on longer that I'd like but I did encounter a cool little cemetery with some markers for the Kinsmans. After reaching the car I considered what to do as it was a little later than I had planned. I opted to stick to my original plan - hiking past Nancy Pond and camping on the Carrigain summit. But that's a tale for another day.

 
Awesome Video as usual. You just keep getting better. Have no shame and lots of humility. Being able to make fun of oneself is one of life’s greatest lessons. Your videos inspire hope. Be good and looking forward to the next one!
 
I really enjoy your videos Seth and I had a big chuckle at your realization that you were summiting South Kinsman for the first time. Kudos to you for owning up to your mistake with self-deprecating humor. While I did manage to get to the actual summit of South K on my first try, that hike was ironically the scene of my worst (and only) navigational error in nearly 40 years of hiking in the Whites. We came up Fishin' Jimmy and went out to SK before turning around. The plan was to continue over the Cannon Balls and descend via Lonesome Lake Trail but at the junction someone was standing in front of the sign and without stopping or checking the map, I veered left when I saw "Kinsman" on the sign. Of course this was Mt Kinsman Trail and NOT Kinsman Ridge Trail. We knew we had erred after a short while and opted to continue the descent knowing where we would exit on Rt 116. It's the only time I've ever climbed up one side of a Mt and descended the other unitentionally. Amazingly, we made it back to the other side hitch-hiking with just 2 rides so we did not pay a huge price for my carelessness.

I was in NH last week and got in 3 hikes and the heat was oppressive, mid 80s and humid every day. Couldn't drink enough fluids and was wringing sweat from my bandana while the brim of my hat was dripping sweat. Might have to switch my annual visit to mid Sept in the future to get that cool respite I recall from years past. In the last few years, I have baked on the Baldfaces, melted on Moosilauke, and this year sizzled on Smarts. Hot!
 
Thanks guys, the blunder was more funny than anything. Just means a couple extra trips up the Kinsmans if I ever want to finish the Grid (eta 20 years or so :p )
 
I'm pretty sure the throne is on the lower of the 2 knobs, the northern one being the higher of the 2. Anyone know what the lidar says?
 
Oh boy…Summer is not over yet. Don’t put away your lawn chairs yet boys and girls.
 
I'm pretty sure the throne is on the lower of the 2 knobs, the northern one being the higher of the 2. Anyone know what the lidar says?

Alright so I've heard this from several people now so perhaps my freakout was premature. Either way it made for a good video.
 
I'm pretty sure the throne is on the lower of the 2 knobs, the northern one being the higher of the 2. Anyone know what the lidar says?

Yup. I looked into this when the data first came out. The winner is, by a 29 cm margin(!)....

The eastern bump (labeled north in my attachments - was using the trail direction in the file names).

skinsman_n.jpg
skinsman_s.jpg

Mind you, this represents the highest datapoint that was taken. Were I more clever (and had time), interpolation between the various data points could yield another answer. Regardless, the difference is relatively miniscule, unlike Owl's Head where the new summit is about 4 feet higher than the old one. :)
 
Yup. I looked into this when the data first came out. The winner is, by a 29 cm margin(!)....

The eastern bump (labeled north in my attachments - was using the trail direction in the file names).

View attachment 6697
View attachment 6698

Mind you, this represents the highest datapoint that was taken. Were I more clever (and had time), interpolation between the various data points could yield another answer. Regardless, the difference is relatively miniscule, unlike Owl's Head where the new summit is about 4 feet higher than the old one. :)
Time to bring up a long hose and a barrel of water.
 
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