• Weather was great, the views at the top where even greater.  There was a lot of wind at the top, as expected, but otherwise a clear day.  No rain, snow or hail (like other times — we guess it is because Lina was not with us).
• Our first 4k this year.  We haven’t been hiking too much.
• Adriana’s feet has healed — at least enough to hike one of these.
• We found an official campsite that was not documented in our maps.  And was conveniently located at the time we got tired, with an unexpected water source.

Photos on the usual place.

Map:

Profile:

Other Links on Mt Isolation:

• Hike The Whites
• 4000 footers home
• AMC
• Wikipedia

White Mountain Hikes:

Mt. Madison(photos) – September 9th, 2007

We climbed through the Air Line trail. This is marginally more difficult than the Valley Way, but has dramatically better views. It is a bit more exposed, however, and not the easiest one on inclement weather. It brings you to the Madison Spring Hut first, half a mile before the summit, but a great place to catch your breath, buy some snacks or warm up with the soup they make at noon.

The day was very cloudy, and by the time we reached the summit it had already started raining. Visibility was around 50 feet at best, and from there until the time we where able to get below the tree line (about two hours and a half later) it was a slippery, cold, wet way down through Watson Path (RMC). Once under tree cover it was a good day. On a sunny day, it is probably a great view of the northern part of the forest from the mostly exposed Watson Path.  Few more than 7mi.

Photos / Maps.

Hale and Zealand Falls – September 16, 2007

Great loop that ends in a very short road walk (less than a mile and very worth).  We did Mt. Hale, which does not have any views at all and the fire tower is long gone.  To reward ourselves in some other way than the traditional view, we went to the Zealand Falls Hut where we got the bottomless $2 soup (I love it), and enjoyed the Falls — which are a lot prettier than the view less Hale.

Photos / Maps.

Hancock – Sept 02, 2007

Fairly easy, in/out hike with a nice loop at the end where most of the elevation and interest remains.  A campsite close to the start of the road that could be great for people starting to hike but who want to get away from the car-camping campsites.

Photos / Maps.

The Wildcats – Sept 23. 2007

Out of the Pinkham Notch area, and walking almost all the way to Carter Notch… but we turned back to our car the same way we went in – about 7 hours of a very, very steep climb, and ten a steady ride.  Could have been combined into a great backpacking trip, but we where short on time that weekend.  Interesting Ski area on the top – we have never tried it for downhill skiing.  Photos/Maps.

Mt. Jackson – Sept 29, 2007

End of season hike (for us).  Terrain is interesting but nothing out of the ordinary – strong hikers don’t have any issue.  A little over 6 miles day hike.  Mt. Webster views tend to be a lot prettier than Jackson’s, and we did it even if Webster was not on my peak bagging list.  Very windy day.  We couldn’t stay too long at Jackson’s summit.  The hike is close enough to Pinkham notch that if you stay in that area you may want to combine the trip with other day hikes.  Photos / Maps.

Other Hikes of Interest:

Catskills:

• Sugarloaf – May 27, 2007
• Windham – May 28, 2007

Nancy Pond – October 21, 2007

End of season hike to see the fall foliage.

Photos / Maps.

On the table in this posting you will find the 48 goal Mountains and the date on which they where accomplished as well as who was with us (keeping track of the climbs for them).  Click on the date for more information about that day’s adventure.  Related to my Adirondacks 46s Scorecard.

Vermont 4,000 Footers

Other interesting links:

• Peak bagging the 4,000 Footers of New England.
• Appalachian Mountain Club.

On Monday July 3rd, 2006 we climbed Mount Washington in the New Hampshire’s White Mountains as an expression and celebration of Freedom (it was the day preceeding the 4th of July – Independence Day).

We started the hike at the base of the Mount Washington Cog Railway ($5 parking fee) and climbed the Amoonoosuc Trail which crisscrosses the ravine with the same name. Along the 2.1 mile way up to the Lake of the Clouds we get to enjoy the beautiful falls of this ravine, worth the trip on their own. The trail is excellently maintained, and the carefully relocated rocks make for great steps for a good portion of the way. It was a lot easier than we expected, yet not for beginners.

At the Hut we had a hearty lunch consisting of split pea soup ($2), bottomless lemonade ($1), all you can eat baked goods ($1), and decaffeinated coffee/tea ($1). A great deal at 5,000 feet for $5 – considering we didn’t had to carry it up. We enjoyed the hut for about two hours before continuing our ascent of Mt. Washington via the Crawford Path. The Lake of The Clouds itself is a pretty sight, although we didn’t shared the joy of the Scandinavian people who where bathing on it.

The Crawford Path gets you to Mount Washington in about an hour through a very good and defined trail that has been softened for more than a century of adventurers and adventurers-wanna-be like us.

The summit of Mount Washington has the usual pile of rocks with the sign – great for taking the picture. Try to ignore the road, the weather station, the antennae, and the visitor’s center with two gift shops, one museum and two eateries. You may use the post office to send yourself a note from there. We quickly entered it and exited it before climbing down through the same Crawford’s Path to the Hut and deciding that it was such a nice day that it would be a pity not to do another high peak.

From the Hut we climbed up the nearby Mount Monroe to add another New Hampshire Peak tour list, since the hike only added about half an hour (roundtrip) to our adventure. We descended via the same trail we climbed it, through the Hut, and down the same Amoonoosuc Trail trail that we used for our ascent.

By the time we descended it was already getting dark, and on our way back we noticed the locals setting themselves up with their pickups on the sides of the road to enjoy the Mount Washington Hotel firework celebration. We ate in a local eatery that almost rushed us out of it to go and see the fireworks before heading back to the hotel for a solid night of sleep.

Photos are in the usual place. (send e-mail if you need to get the link)