Amicus
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The Thoreau 16: another new List
Our New England mountains have had no more illustrious tramper, perhaps, than Henry David Thoreau. His hike to Katahdin (not as far as Baxter Peak, however) is well-known from his The Maine Woods, and was discussed in an interesting thread here recently. That book also includes his account of a hike up Mt. Kineo, and A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers includes his first hike to "Agiocochook" (as he called Washington), with his brother in 1839 (tantalizingly just touched on), and his hike to Greylock.
The larger part of his mountain hiking reports, however,are to be found in his Journal, which he maintained assiduously throughout his short life, amassing some three million words, which have been published in 14 volumes. I have recently discovered a wonderful book which may be well-known to some of you - Walking with Thoreau - A Literary Guide ot the Mountains of New England (Beacon Press, 1982, 2001). In it, William Howarth, a prominent Thoreau scholar, has collected all of Thoreau's descriptions of his mountain hikes, adding an Introduction and commentary.
Thanks to the efforts of Prof. Howarth, I was able easily to compile the following list of mountains which Thoreau hiked and then wrote about:
Mass.
1. Wachusett
2. Greylock
Maine
3. Katahdin (which he called "Ktaadn")
4. Kineo
New Hampshire
5. Wantastiquet (in Chesterfield)
6. Fall/Kilburn (in No. Walpole)
7. Washington (f/k/a Agiocochook) (see below)
8. Pierce (f/k/a Clinton) (see below)
9. Eisenhower (f/k/a Pleasant) (see below)
10. Monroe (see below)
11. Red Hill (Moultonboro)
12. Lafayette (by Old Bridle Path)
13. Monadnock (his favorite)
14. Pack Monadnock (which he called "Gap M.")
15. Uncannunuc (his spelling - see below)
New York
16. South Mountain in the Catskills (speculative but likely)
His first hike to Washington followed the Crawford Path, and his terse account does not say whether his brother and he ventured to the summits of Pierce, Eisenhower and Monroe, which were probably a little off the Path. On his second, in 1858, he ascended by the route of the Auto Road, approximately. The "carriage road" was then being built and and had reached the half-way point. His group descended by Tuckerman Ravine, where their campfire touched off a conflagration (not the only such accident for Thoreau).
In his Introduction, Howarth includes "Uncannunuc" in a list of mountains climbed by Thoreau. I omitted it at first, however, because Thoreau does not explicitly say that, in the excerpts included in the book. In a description of the Hooksett Pinnacle, however, Thoreau makes the following statement, which implies that he had climbed U., so I have added it:
"As Uncannunuc Mountain is perhaps the best point from which to view the valley of the Merrimack, so this hill [the Pinnacle] affords the best view of the river itself."
I found an excellent little website that combines excerpts from Thoreau's account of his 1858 journey to the Whites with fine illustrations, including a speculative map.
I recommend tracking down Howarth's book, or Thoreau's Journal (the 1858 trip is in Vol. 11), through your local library or bookstore. Thoreau's perceptions are always refreshingly acute, even when he is a bit off on his facts. (He was very strong on botany, a bit weaker on geology and geography.)
Thoreau also took one camping trip in the Catskills, but left no detailed account, according to Howarth. [Note, however, Mark Schaefer's research, below, which shows that he at least got close to the South Mt. summit.]
En route to Pinkham Notch in July 1858, Thoreau climbed Red Hill, from which he admired "Ossipee Mountain" to the east. He spent a long afternoon riding along its W and NW sides, before crossing the Bearcamp River and stopping for the night in Tamworth Village. I put this on the original list, but have deleted it, since I have seen no evidence that he tried to climb it. [Aug. 09]
Our New England mountains have had no more illustrious tramper, perhaps, than Henry David Thoreau. His hike to Katahdin (not as far as Baxter Peak, however) is well-known from his The Maine Woods, and was discussed in an interesting thread here recently. That book also includes his account of a hike up Mt. Kineo, and A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers includes his first hike to "Agiocochook" (as he called Washington), with his brother in 1839 (tantalizingly just touched on), and his hike to Greylock.
The larger part of his mountain hiking reports, however,are to be found in his Journal, which he maintained assiduously throughout his short life, amassing some three million words, which have been published in 14 volumes. I have recently discovered a wonderful book which may be well-known to some of you - Walking with Thoreau - A Literary Guide ot the Mountains of New England (Beacon Press, 1982, 2001). In it, William Howarth, a prominent Thoreau scholar, has collected all of Thoreau's descriptions of his mountain hikes, adding an Introduction and commentary.
Thanks to the efforts of Prof. Howarth, I was able easily to compile the following list of mountains which Thoreau hiked and then wrote about:
Mass.
1. Wachusett
2. Greylock
Maine
3. Katahdin (which he called "Ktaadn")
4. Kineo
New Hampshire
5. Wantastiquet (in Chesterfield)
6. Fall/Kilburn (in No. Walpole)
7. Washington (f/k/a Agiocochook) (see below)
8. Pierce (f/k/a Clinton) (see below)
9. Eisenhower (f/k/a Pleasant) (see below)
10. Monroe (see below)
11. Red Hill (Moultonboro)
12. Lafayette (by Old Bridle Path)
13. Monadnock (his favorite)
14. Pack Monadnock (which he called "Gap M.")
15. Uncannunuc (his spelling - see below)
New York
16. South Mountain in the Catskills (speculative but likely)
His first hike to Washington followed the Crawford Path, and his terse account does not say whether his brother and he ventured to the summits of Pierce, Eisenhower and Monroe, which were probably a little off the Path. On his second, in 1858, he ascended by the route of the Auto Road, approximately. The "carriage road" was then being built and and had reached the half-way point. His group descended by Tuckerman Ravine, where their campfire touched off a conflagration (not the only such accident for Thoreau).
In his Introduction, Howarth includes "Uncannunuc" in a list of mountains climbed by Thoreau. I omitted it at first, however, because Thoreau does not explicitly say that, in the excerpts included in the book. In a description of the Hooksett Pinnacle, however, Thoreau makes the following statement, which implies that he had climbed U., so I have added it:
"As Uncannunuc Mountain is perhaps the best point from which to view the valley of the Merrimack, so this hill [the Pinnacle] affords the best view of the river itself."
I found an excellent little website that combines excerpts from Thoreau's account of his 1858 journey to the Whites with fine illustrations, including a speculative map.
I recommend tracking down Howarth's book, or Thoreau's Journal (the 1858 trip is in Vol. 11), through your local library or bookstore. Thoreau's perceptions are always refreshingly acute, even when he is a bit off on his facts. (He was very strong on botany, a bit weaker on geology and geography.)
Thoreau also took one camping trip in the Catskills, but left no detailed account, according to Howarth. [Note, however, Mark Schaefer's research, below, which shows that he at least got close to the South Mt. summit.]
En route to Pinkham Notch in July 1858, Thoreau climbed Red Hill, from which he admired "Ossipee Mountain" to the east. He spent a long afternoon riding along its W and NW sides, before crossing the Bearcamp River and stopping for the night in Tamworth Village. I put this on the original list, but have deleted it, since I have seen no evidence that he tried to climb it. [Aug. 09]
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