sli74
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The plan was to solo hike to Gray Knob Saturday and meet Mad River and his friend John for a possible trip up Adams. A few hours before I was to leave, I got online to check my email and the boards and just happened to email Donna my plans for the Gray Knob hike and as luck would have it, convinced (not too much arm twisting) her to join me so my solo trip didn’t have to be solo after all !!!! We decided to meet at 6:30am at Lowe’s store. She said she only had a sleeping bag and a backpack so she might not stay the night at Gray Knob but I told her not to worry since I had enough gear to cover the both of us and also promised her that I would make dinner Saturday night.
I threw all my stuff into the trunk of the car and left Mass at about 7:45pm. On the way up I realized I had forgotten a block of cheese which is essential for my rice and beans dinner so I called Donna and had her bring the cheese. When I called her, she said she was trying to pack but couldn’t get all her stuff into her small pack so she might have to rethink the overnight part. Well, luckily, for the both of us my LARGE winter pack was in my car and I was carrying my EMS 5500 (my mid-size pack), so I told her to bring her stuff including her pack and we’d figure something out. I got to NH from my parent’s 10:30pm on Friday night. Slept till 4 am Saturday morning and then got my backpack packed up and left for the trailhead. I had never been to Lowe’s store but knew that if I saw the Appalachia Trailhead then I had driven by it.
Well, I arrived at the Appalachia Trailhead at just past 6:00am and a VERY large snow plow was clearing the parking lot. I pulled in there because I saw a vehicle with people in it and figured I would check to see how many miles back the store was so I wouldn’t overshoot it again. I stupidly left my car without a jacket and went quickly over to the car with the others in it. The nice man rolled the window down and since it was still dark I could just barely see into the car. I asked about the Lowe’s store and the man in the front seat and the woman in the passenger seat were both wonderful enough to give me directions to the store and also info on where to park. As I am standing there freezing my butt off because I was too stupid to throw my jacket on first, I hear a voice from the backseat say “Seema?” and look back there to find LittleBear, gave her a quick hug and was introduced to Frodo and StinkyFeet who were the ones giving me the directions. And in my hurry to get back to the warmth of the car, I didn’t get to tell StinkyFeet that she is truly one of my heroes, I am in such awe of this woman and I didn’t say anything but “Hi! So nice to meet you” . . . I am SO lame. Anyway, they told me they were rethinking their plans to hike the Northern Presis because the weather report was calling for 80 mph gusts up there above treeline. I asked them if they thought the trip to Gray Knob would still be okay and they said that shouldn’t be a problem but to be aware of the windy conditions if I summated Adams. After a few hasty and cold goodbyes, I took leave of them and headed to Lowe’s store . . . ( It was truly AMAZING to meet you both and very nice to see you again Little Bear, maybe we can meet for a hike sometime with enough light and warmth for proper introductions)
Anyway, I got to Lowe’s store, and parked where they had told me to and waited for Donna. At about 6:30 I noticed someone parked in another area of the lot and realized Donna had been sitting there, so I went over and she pulled her car around, and packed her gear into my large winter pack, a bit big for her, but it would suffice for this trip. We got ourselves ready and started out hike at just past 7am. We postholed right near the trailhead but then the trail seemed packed out. Well we followed the packed trail to a crossing with a large road with some signs for Lowe’s store and took a right on that road, chatting away about life and such. After walking about 10 minutes I realize that we are leaving the mountains behind us, so I stop and tell Donna that I think we are headed the wrong way, and with a glance at the map and the book we turn around and head back to the signs. We didn’t see a broken trail but did catch a glimpse of a yellow sign off into the woods to we posthole our way to the yellow sign with Donna in the lead, and once again pick up the broken and packed Lowe’s trail. Glad to leave our snowshoes strapped to the pack we hiked on under our heavy pack weight. It was a BEAUTIFUL clear morning and aura of the woods and white snow just made our hearts sing. Donna is a faster hiker (who isn’t really) than I so she was ahead of me by about 10-15 minutes and would stop occasionally at stream crossing and trail signs to wait a bit. Two sets of day hikers breezed by us and were followed by 3 members of the Alpine YMCA group that cantdog had told me about and finally MadRiver and John caught up to me at the Randolph Trail above the Log Cabin. That last 0.5 miles from there to Gray Knob was the longest ½ mile of my life . . .
I finally got to Gray Knob about 12:30pm, dropped off some of my gear, paid Adam the caretaker and took just the essentials for a summit attempt of Adams, the day was clear but COLD. We started up at about 1 pm, it was tough going and slow going up above treeline, which is pretty immediately after GK. The winds were strong and steady and Donna and I were glad we had our crampons already on our feet. MadRiver and John had headed out minutes after us but were already pretty far ahead of us. At 2:30, an hour and a half after we left GK, we ran into them and Ryan, another hiker who was headed back from the summit. Donna and I were fighting the winds and getting knocked over frequently by gusts seemingly greater than 50 mph. I was exhausted and from Ryan description of the summit and the fact that we had progressed only about 0.7 mile of the 1.5 miles total distance in 1.5 hours and the daylight was the limiting factor, we turned around. I had that sinking feeling of disappointment in my stomach, that feeling of being so close yet so far away . . . that feeling that if only the body I had was stronger and more capable of this kind of adventure. An envy of Ryan, who had summated though he did say, he stayed 3 seconds, got knocked over and came crawling back down BUT still he made it and on this day the mountain would win . . . I knew we were making the right decision, it wasn’t even a question that we were turning around. I had known for almost a half hour that we weren’t making great progress against the wind even though it was at our back and my 3pm turn around time was fast approaching as was the setting sun. Mad River and John had also turned around (though a little further up from us). We all headed back down, and the gentlemen that they are, they waited a few times further down (I could catch a glimpse of them scanning the mountain for us) to make sure we were still making steady progress. The wind was stinging my eyes, and causing tears that blurred my vision but I was too cold and disappointed to stop and throw on goggles. We made it back to GK and my heart was heavy but I was glad to be safe and in the relative warmth. Even though the day was CLEAR and seemingly perfect I got a real sense of why these particular mountains are a place of fatalities. 1.5 miles to the summit, seems to little, so close, almost a “short” walk but it was brutal up there and that was on a” GOOD” day with no storms.
In any case I went up to set up my things and put on my down booties. When I got up there I told Donna to let me know when she was hungry for dinner so I can plan for the meal. Well, she said she wasn’t very hungry so I told her not to worry, that I was flexible and would work around her. I shared my hot chocolate from my thermos with her and she was complaining of a headache so I went looking for my Advil. After about 5 minutes, she said she was going to head downstairs and eat some cheese so I figured she must be hungry and so took my food stuff down there and set up my stove and started boiling water to make dinner. A few minutes later, I noticed she wasn’t feeling well and she was complaining about feeling ill and didn’t look so well. So I suggested she go lie down. Both she and I noticed the symptoms of dehydration setting in and she was trying to get some water down to make her body recover. When I suggested she go lie down, she immediately agreed and went back up to her sleeping bag. At this point I was starting to worry about her, and hoped whatever was happening could be fixed with food, water and rest. Well, downstairs, MadRiver, John and I were joking around and cooking dinner to share with each other and having a grand old time . . . They are GREAT people to be around and kept me laughing. When dinner was ready I went to see if Donna was ready to eat but she was still looking queasy and said she really wasn’t up to eating . . . well, I got her a bowl of rice and beans and told her she had to eat the entire thing and keep drinking water, which she was doing already. She slowly finished the bowl of food and passed on seconds. I left her to rest, feeling a little better myself that at least she had eaten the bowl of rice . . . I had an enjoyable meal downstairs with the guys, realizing part way through that I was the only woman downstairs in the common area (YIPPEEEE!!). I made some new friends as I handed out pieces of my Mom’s carrot cake to everyone (she made me take almost a quarter of the cake with me) . . . Adam, the caretaker got 2 pieces for being wonderful
After dinner, I checked on Donna one more time, read until me fingers froze from holding the book and went to sleep about 8pm . . .
I threw all my stuff into the trunk of the car and left Mass at about 7:45pm. On the way up I realized I had forgotten a block of cheese which is essential for my rice and beans dinner so I called Donna and had her bring the cheese. When I called her, she said she was trying to pack but couldn’t get all her stuff into her small pack so she might have to rethink the overnight part. Well, luckily, for the both of us my LARGE winter pack was in my car and I was carrying my EMS 5500 (my mid-size pack), so I told her to bring her stuff including her pack and we’d figure something out. I got to NH from my parent’s 10:30pm on Friday night. Slept till 4 am Saturday morning and then got my backpack packed up and left for the trailhead. I had never been to Lowe’s store but knew that if I saw the Appalachia Trailhead then I had driven by it.
Well, I arrived at the Appalachia Trailhead at just past 6:00am and a VERY large snow plow was clearing the parking lot. I pulled in there because I saw a vehicle with people in it and figured I would check to see how many miles back the store was so I wouldn’t overshoot it again. I stupidly left my car without a jacket and went quickly over to the car with the others in it. The nice man rolled the window down and since it was still dark I could just barely see into the car. I asked about the Lowe’s store and the man in the front seat and the woman in the passenger seat were both wonderful enough to give me directions to the store and also info on where to park. As I am standing there freezing my butt off because I was too stupid to throw my jacket on first, I hear a voice from the backseat say “Seema?” and look back there to find LittleBear, gave her a quick hug and was introduced to Frodo and StinkyFeet who were the ones giving me the directions. And in my hurry to get back to the warmth of the car, I didn’t get to tell StinkyFeet that she is truly one of my heroes, I am in such awe of this woman and I didn’t say anything but “Hi! So nice to meet you” . . . I am SO lame. Anyway, they told me they were rethinking their plans to hike the Northern Presis because the weather report was calling for 80 mph gusts up there above treeline. I asked them if they thought the trip to Gray Knob would still be okay and they said that shouldn’t be a problem but to be aware of the windy conditions if I summated Adams. After a few hasty and cold goodbyes, I took leave of them and headed to Lowe’s store . . . ( It was truly AMAZING to meet you both and very nice to see you again Little Bear, maybe we can meet for a hike sometime with enough light and warmth for proper introductions)
Anyway, I got to Lowe’s store, and parked where they had told me to and waited for Donna. At about 6:30 I noticed someone parked in another area of the lot and realized Donna had been sitting there, so I went over and she pulled her car around, and packed her gear into my large winter pack, a bit big for her, but it would suffice for this trip. We got ourselves ready and started out hike at just past 7am. We postholed right near the trailhead but then the trail seemed packed out. Well we followed the packed trail to a crossing with a large road with some signs for Lowe’s store and took a right on that road, chatting away about life and such. After walking about 10 minutes I realize that we are leaving the mountains behind us, so I stop and tell Donna that I think we are headed the wrong way, and with a glance at the map and the book we turn around and head back to the signs. We didn’t see a broken trail but did catch a glimpse of a yellow sign off into the woods to we posthole our way to the yellow sign with Donna in the lead, and once again pick up the broken and packed Lowe’s trail. Glad to leave our snowshoes strapped to the pack we hiked on under our heavy pack weight. It was a BEAUTIFUL clear morning and aura of the woods and white snow just made our hearts sing. Donna is a faster hiker (who isn’t really) than I so she was ahead of me by about 10-15 minutes and would stop occasionally at stream crossing and trail signs to wait a bit. Two sets of day hikers breezed by us and were followed by 3 members of the Alpine YMCA group that cantdog had told me about and finally MadRiver and John caught up to me at the Randolph Trail above the Log Cabin. That last 0.5 miles from there to Gray Knob was the longest ½ mile of my life . . .
I finally got to Gray Knob about 12:30pm, dropped off some of my gear, paid Adam the caretaker and took just the essentials for a summit attempt of Adams, the day was clear but COLD. We started up at about 1 pm, it was tough going and slow going up above treeline, which is pretty immediately after GK. The winds were strong and steady and Donna and I were glad we had our crampons already on our feet. MadRiver and John had headed out minutes after us but were already pretty far ahead of us. At 2:30, an hour and a half after we left GK, we ran into them and Ryan, another hiker who was headed back from the summit. Donna and I were fighting the winds and getting knocked over frequently by gusts seemingly greater than 50 mph. I was exhausted and from Ryan description of the summit and the fact that we had progressed only about 0.7 mile of the 1.5 miles total distance in 1.5 hours and the daylight was the limiting factor, we turned around. I had that sinking feeling of disappointment in my stomach, that feeling of being so close yet so far away . . . that feeling that if only the body I had was stronger and more capable of this kind of adventure. An envy of Ryan, who had summated though he did say, he stayed 3 seconds, got knocked over and came crawling back down BUT still he made it and on this day the mountain would win . . . I knew we were making the right decision, it wasn’t even a question that we were turning around. I had known for almost a half hour that we weren’t making great progress against the wind even though it was at our back and my 3pm turn around time was fast approaching as was the setting sun. Mad River and John had also turned around (though a little further up from us). We all headed back down, and the gentlemen that they are, they waited a few times further down (I could catch a glimpse of them scanning the mountain for us) to make sure we were still making steady progress. The wind was stinging my eyes, and causing tears that blurred my vision but I was too cold and disappointed to stop and throw on goggles. We made it back to GK and my heart was heavy but I was glad to be safe and in the relative warmth. Even though the day was CLEAR and seemingly perfect I got a real sense of why these particular mountains are a place of fatalities. 1.5 miles to the summit, seems to little, so close, almost a “short” walk but it was brutal up there and that was on a” GOOD” day with no storms.
In any case I went up to set up my things and put on my down booties. When I got up there I told Donna to let me know when she was hungry for dinner so I can plan for the meal. Well, she said she wasn’t very hungry so I told her not to worry, that I was flexible and would work around her. I shared my hot chocolate from my thermos with her and she was complaining of a headache so I went looking for my Advil. After about 5 minutes, she said she was going to head downstairs and eat some cheese so I figured she must be hungry and so took my food stuff down there and set up my stove and started boiling water to make dinner. A few minutes later, I noticed she wasn’t feeling well and she was complaining about feeling ill and didn’t look so well. So I suggested she go lie down. Both she and I noticed the symptoms of dehydration setting in and she was trying to get some water down to make her body recover. When I suggested she go lie down, she immediately agreed and went back up to her sleeping bag. At this point I was starting to worry about her, and hoped whatever was happening could be fixed with food, water and rest. Well, downstairs, MadRiver, John and I were joking around and cooking dinner to share with each other and having a grand old time . . . They are GREAT people to be around and kept me laughing. When dinner was ready I went to see if Donna was ready to eat but she was still looking queasy and said she really wasn’t up to eating . . . well, I got her a bowl of rice and beans and told her she had to eat the entire thing and keep drinking water, which she was doing already. She slowly finished the bowl of food and passed on seconds. I left her to rest, feeling a little better myself that at least she had eaten the bowl of rice . . . I had an enjoyable meal downstairs with the guys, realizing part way through that I was the only woman downstairs in the common area (YIPPEEEE!!). I made some new friends as I handed out pieces of my Mom’s carrot cake to everyone (she made me take almost a quarter of the cake with me) . . . Adam, the caretaker got 2 pieces for being wonderful
After dinner, I checked on Donna one more time, read until me fingers froze from holding the book and went to sleep about 8pm . . .
