OldMan
New member
This is a bit belated of a trip report of my adventure to summit all 48 of NH 4000 footers in 2008. This all started last summer when I turned 50 and realized I’d spent the first half of my life focused on my family and career and very little time on health and fitness. I was no couch potato by any standards but a couple of days a week at the gym just wasn’t doing it for me. If I was going to live to be an old man, in my next 50 years I needed to focus more on eating right and getting in shape. So, last year I traded in my gym membership for a pair of hiking boots and started on a mission.
To get in shape I started hiking up Pack Monadnock in the mornings. At first, once or twice a week and slowly working my way up to where I was hiking up 4 or 5 times a week with very little effort. I kept this up through the winter, wearing stablicers or snowshoes as needed, and come spring, I was ready to attack some 4000 footers.
I started on the May long weekend with a traverse of Mt Eisenhower, Mt Pierce, and Mt Jackson, starting on Edmands Path and finishing on the Jackson-Webster Trail. That Sunday was a warm crystal clear spring day. There was still some snow on the trail in some of the sheltered areas but the near 70 degrees temperature made the snow soft and very easy to traverse. From Mt Eisenhower and Mt Pierce the views of Mt Washington still white with some snow cover were spectacular. On Mt Jackson I was joined by a Gray Jay looking to share my lunch. Quite a bold bird! After hiking down I rested at Crawford Depot while waiting for my wife, Kim to pick me up. My hiking up Pack Monadnock had paid off, this hike seemed easy and it was then I decided I would climb all 48 summits this year.
Over the next several weekends I started to collect summits. the Kinsmans were next, then the Osceolas. Come the July long weekend I hiked the Hancocks and Mt Tecumseh where Kim joined me for her first 4000 footer. I ended the long weekend with the Tripyramids finishing of my first 12 peaks.
Kim and I planned a stay at Zealand Hut for a couple of nights. We hiked in on the Zealand Trail and checked in at the hut, dropping some gear before heading off to Mt Zealand. We stopped at Zeacliff for a bit to enjoy the incredible views. On Mt Zealand we took some photos at the summit sign before heading back to the hut to cool off in the falls, enjoy a great meal, and a good nights sleep. The next day we headed down the A-Z Trail to Mt Tom and Mt Field. On Mt Field, Kim enjoyed feeding the Gray Jay who really liked our trail mix. Back at the hut that evening we enjoyed another great meal before retiring for the night. The next morning I rose early to catch a wonderful sunrise. Today, Kim and I hiked out over Mt Hale and back to our car. On the way up Mt Hale, Kim tripped and fell forward onto a log where one of its branches hit her square in the sternum. She developed a large lump where the branch hit her. I grabbed her pack and strapped it to mine while we headed up and over Mt Hale. After brief stop at the summit, we continued down the Hale Brook Trail back to our car. We decided to drive the Littleton Hospital so we could have Kim’s injury checked out. She was worried that she may have cracked her sternum. After some x-rays of her chest determined she was badly bruised but nothing was cracked and there was no internal bleeding. From the hospital we headed home for a good nights rest.
I had the next 2 nights booked at the Galehead Hut so I could collect its surrounding peaks. Kim was sore but feeling a bit better this morning so I left her at home to heal while I continued my peak bagging adventure. I arrived at the North Twin Trailhead and headed out to bag North and South Twin on my way to the Galehead Hut. It was a clear day so the views were fantastic. After some lunch at the hut, I checked in and dropped some gear so I could continue on to Mt Garfield. The final assault up Mt Garfield is very steep but the view from the top of Mt Garfield was certainly worth the climb. Today was a tough day, according to my GPS a total of 6107 vertical feet in 11 miles. The next day I had the pleasure of climbing South Twin again on my way to the Bonds. I really liked the view from Mt Bond of the ridge line trail to Bondcliff. I stopped for a while on Bondcliff, enjoying the views. On my return trip to the hut I picked up West Bond. After arriving back at the hut I did the quick hike up Galehead. That evening there was a beautiful sunset over Mt Garfield. The next morning I prepared for my hike out to Owls Head. The Lincoln Brook Trail was overgrown and I lost the trail along the way. My trusty GPS helped me orient myself and find my way back to the trail. The path up the slide is steep so part way up I dropped my pack an continued without it. Mother Nature decided it was time to teach me a lesson and after I reached the summit it started to pour buckets followed by thunder and lightning. I got soaked on the way down. Lesson learned. My pack and I never part company any more. The rest of the hike out to Lincoln Woods was mosquito infested. When it finally started to rain again I was actually glad as the mosquitoes left me alone. So that was it. I had reached the half way point on my hiking adventure. 24 summits down, 24 to go, at it was only the middle of July!
I had hoped to finish all 48 by sometime in early September. This meant I would be hiking 2, 3, or 4 summits every weekend, rain or shine. So it began, the following weekend I hiked the Wildcats, Carter Dome, and Mt Moriah. The next weekend found Kim and I on Mt Willey where we got caught in a downpour, making it a slow, slippery hike out. We were rewarded however on our drive back with a visit from Bullwinkle in his native habitat, RT302. We stopped and took some great pictures. The following weekend I hiked Mt Jefferson, Mt Adams, and Mt Madison, starting at the Caps Ridge Trail. Unfortunately the summits were cloud covered so there were no good views to be had. Next I hiked Carters, Mt Whiteface, and Mt Passaconaway. The August 22 weekend was forecasted to be fantastic weather so I head up and hiked Mt Flume, Mt Liberty, Mt Lincoln and Mt Lafayette on the Saturday and Cannon on the Sunday. I was not disappointed, the skies were blue and views were great. I was getting down to the last few summits, which included Mt Isolation. I was hoping to get this one in on a nice day because of the length of the hike. The Labor Day weekend turned out to be perfect. I hiked Mt Cabot and Mt Waumbek on the Saturday, and hit Mt Isolation on the Sunday. Mt Isolation turned out to be a much easier hike than I expected. The distance is long but the elevation gain was well spread out. It was incredible windy on the summit that day but the sky were mostly clear. On the Monday the weather was even better and I climbed Mt Carrigain, thoroughly enjoying the views. The following weekend I picked up Mt Moosilauke.
With only 2 summits left, I would finish up the list with a hike up Mt Monroe and Mt Washington. My nephew, Tyler was returning from his 3 month adventure in Europe on September 8 and he wanted to join me on my final hike so the plan was to hike on the first forecasted clear day. Thursday, September 11 looked like it would be a perfect day on the summits with a clear sky forecasted. We headed out at 6:00 AM for the drive up and arrived at the trailhead for 8:00. I was a bit disappointed that the weatherman got it wrong and the sky had quite a few clouds. Overall it was still going to be a great weather day to hike. We hiked up the Ammonoosuc Ravine Trail which was dry and in great shape. We stopped at the Gem Pool for a few picture and to admire the water falls before heading off to the Lake of the Clouds Hut. The views of Mt Monroe and Mt Washington from the hut were fantastic. We headed off the short 0.3 mile climb up Mt Monroe to claim the summit. After a few pictures we were off again back down to the hut and then up to Mt Washington. We arrived at the Mt Washington summit for 12:00 where Kim, who drove up the auto road, met us with our lunch. We enjoyed some cold drinks and a sandwich in the summit building. After lunch we took some pictures at the summit sign before I headed back down the mountain while Tyler decided to ride down in the car with Kim. The hike down went by quickly and I arrived at the Cog Railway station at 3:15 where Kim and Tyler were waiting to pick me up.
Mission accomplished, all 48 bagged in 2008!
To get in shape I started hiking up Pack Monadnock in the mornings. At first, once or twice a week and slowly working my way up to where I was hiking up 4 or 5 times a week with very little effort. I kept this up through the winter, wearing stablicers or snowshoes as needed, and come spring, I was ready to attack some 4000 footers.
I started on the May long weekend with a traverse of Mt Eisenhower, Mt Pierce, and Mt Jackson, starting on Edmands Path and finishing on the Jackson-Webster Trail. That Sunday was a warm crystal clear spring day. There was still some snow on the trail in some of the sheltered areas but the near 70 degrees temperature made the snow soft and very easy to traverse. From Mt Eisenhower and Mt Pierce the views of Mt Washington still white with some snow cover were spectacular. On Mt Jackson I was joined by a Gray Jay looking to share my lunch. Quite a bold bird! After hiking down I rested at Crawford Depot while waiting for my wife, Kim to pick me up. My hiking up Pack Monadnock had paid off, this hike seemed easy and it was then I decided I would climb all 48 summits this year.
Over the next several weekends I started to collect summits. the Kinsmans were next, then the Osceolas. Come the July long weekend I hiked the Hancocks and Mt Tecumseh where Kim joined me for her first 4000 footer. I ended the long weekend with the Tripyramids finishing of my first 12 peaks.
Kim and I planned a stay at Zealand Hut for a couple of nights. We hiked in on the Zealand Trail and checked in at the hut, dropping some gear before heading off to Mt Zealand. We stopped at Zeacliff for a bit to enjoy the incredible views. On Mt Zealand we took some photos at the summit sign before heading back to the hut to cool off in the falls, enjoy a great meal, and a good nights sleep. The next day we headed down the A-Z Trail to Mt Tom and Mt Field. On Mt Field, Kim enjoyed feeding the Gray Jay who really liked our trail mix. Back at the hut that evening we enjoyed another great meal before retiring for the night. The next morning I rose early to catch a wonderful sunrise. Today, Kim and I hiked out over Mt Hale and back to our car. On the way up Mt Hale, Kim tripped and fell forward onto a log where one of its branches hit her square in the sternum. She developed a large lump where the branch hit her. I grabbed her pack and strapped it to mine while we headed up and over Mt Hale. After brief stop at the summit, we continued down the Hale Brook Trail back to our car. We decided to drive the Littleton Hospital so we could have Kim’s injury checked out. She was worried that she may have cracked her sternum. After some x-rays of her chest determined she was badly bruised but nothing was cracked and there was no internal bleeding. From the hospital we headed home for a good nights rest.
I had the next 2 nights booked at the Galehead Hut so I could collect its surrounding peaks. Kim was sore but feeling a bit better this morning so I left her at home to heal while I continued my peak bagging adventure. I arrived at the North Twin Trailhead and headed out to bag North and South Twin on my way to the Galehead Hut. It was a clear day so the views were fantastic. After some lunch at the hut, I checked in and dropped some gear so I could continue on to Mt Garfield. The final assault up Mt Garfield is very steep but the view from the top of Mt Garfield was certainly worth the climb. Today was a tough day, according to my GPS a total of 6107 vertical feet in 11 miles. The next day I had the pleasure of climbing South Twin again on my way to the Bonds. I really liked the view from Mt Bond of the ridge line trail to Bondcliff. I stopped for a while on Bondcliff, enjoying the views. On my return trip to the hut I picked up West Bond. After arriving back at the hut I did the quick hike up Galehead. That evening there was a beautiful sunset over Mt Garfield. The next morning I prepared for my hike out to Owls Head. The Lincoln Brook Trail was overgrown and I lost the trail along the way. My trusty GPS helped me orient myself and find my way back to the trail. The path up the slide is steep so part way up I dropped my pack an continued without it. Mother Nature decided it was time to teach me a lesson and after I reached the summit it started to pour buckets followed by thunder and lightning. I got soaked on the way down. Lesson learned. My pack and I never part company any more. The rest of the hike out to Lincoln Woods was mosquito infested. When it finally started to rain again I was actually glad as the mosquitoes left me alone. So that was it. I had reached the half way point on my hiking adventure. 24 summits down, 24 to go, at it was only the middle of July!
I had hoped to finish all 48 by sometime in early September. This meant I would be hiking 2, 3, or 4 summits every weekend, rain or shine. So it began, the following weekend I hiked the Wildcats, Carter Dome, and Mt Moriah. The next weekend found Kim and I on Mt Willey where we got caught in a downpour, making it a slow, slippery hike out. We were rewarded however on our drive back with a visit from Bullwinkle in his native habitat, RT302. We stopped and took some great pictures. The following weekend I hiked Mt Jefferson, Mt Adams, and Mt Madison, starting at the Caps Ridge Trail. Unfortunately the summits were cloud covered so there were no good views to be had. Next I hiked Carters, Mt Whiteface, and Mt Passaconaway. The August 22 weekend was forecasted to be fantastic weather so I head up and hiked Mt Flume, Mt Liberty, Mt Lincoln and Mt Lafayette on the Saturday and Cannon on the Sunday. I was not disappointed, the skies were blue and views were great. I was getting down to the last few summits, which included Mt Isolation. I was hoping to get this one in on a nice day because of the length of the hike. The Labor Day weekend turned out to be perfect. I hiked Mt Cabot and Mt Waumbek on the Saturday, and hit Mt Isolation on the Sunday. Mt Isolation turned out to be a much easier hike than I expected. The distance is long but the elevation gain was well spread out. It was incredible windy on the summit that day but the sky were mostly clear. On the Monday the weather was even better and I climbed Mt Carrigain, thoroughly enjoying the views. The following weekend I picked up Mt Moosilauke.
With only 2 summits left, I would finish up the list with a hike up Mt Monroe and Mt Washington. My nephew, Tyler was returning from his 3 month adventure in Europe on September 8 and he wanted to join me on my final hike so the plan was to hike on the first forecasted clear day. Thursday, September 11 looked like it would be a perfect day on the summits with a clear sky forecasted. We headed out at 6:00 AM for the drive up and arrived at the trailhead for 8:00. I was a bit disappointed that the weatherman got it wrong and the sky had quite a few clouds. Overall it was still going to be a great weather day to hike. We hiked up the Ammonoosuc Ravine Trail which was dry and in great shape. We stopped at the Gem Pool for a few picture and to admire the water falls before heading off to the Lake of the Clouds Hut. The views of Mt Monroe and Mt Washington from the hut were fantastic. We headed off the short 0.3 mile climb up Mt Monroe to claim the summit. After a few pictures we were off again back down to the hut and then up to Mt Washington. We arrived at the Mt Washington summit for 12:00 where Kim, who drove up the auto road, met us with our lunch. We enjoyed some cold drinks and a sandwich in the summit building. After lunch we took some pictures at the summit sign before I headed back down the mountain while Tyler decided to ride down in the car with Kim. The hike down went by quickly and I arrived at the Cog Railway station at 3:15 where Kim and Tyler were waiting to pick me up.
Mission accomplished, all 48 bagged in 2008!
