Mt Isolation 4003'

Glen Boulder Trail, Davis Path, Isolation Trl and Rocky Branch 

Hiked about 14 total miles; spent the night near the summit

Forty Seven. Finally another mountain on the list. I will finish this year. 

Glen Boulder trail is steep but worth it, epic views all day. Most of the hike closer to Isolation is under treeline, so doing a traverse in this manner gave us a great variety. Boot Spur is a popular mountain, we were just ahead of a huge AMC crowd coming in behind us. I'm sure the views of Washington are great I'll have to return and hike Washington that way.

Weird weather! Individual air currents were creating wisp threads independent of other clouds. It was rad, pure mountain magic. 

Awesome views Sunday morning from the Isolation peak. Wonderful cup of Joe (french press) and a view of Washington, another family of Grey Jays lurking around for handouts, can't ask for more then that. Great overnight with a growing group of adventurers.

Carter Dome is next! This amazing journey is going to end in that boulder field next to the hut!

Carter Dayhike

Middle Carter 4600' and South Carter 4419'
12.5 miles via Imp Trail

I have reluctantly said goodbye to my wizard staff of power.

I sat for a snack at the Imp Face outlook, distracted by the views, then I dropped my hickory down next to a precipice at 3165'. I could maybe retrieve it with rope and patience, thought about turning around right there and abandoning the hike. Then I realized I just gave my staff the best resting place it ever, on a cliffside overlooking the presidentials.

So I cleaned up. Cranked out 12.5 miles 830 to 330. I could see Carter Dome in the distance but I knew she'd have to wait till next time. And I wasnt sure which mountain was S Carter till I found the rockpile, former hut worker confirmed it for me.

Great Monday considering my loss. Farewell my friend.

Return of the King

Mt Adams 5794' via King Ravine

There and back again. On a whim 3 friends were thinking mountains so I of course tagged along for another epic dayhike adventure.

The northern slopes of Mt Adams cradle the godforsaken rock pile known as King Ravine. On July 4th we had hiked thru this boulder/cave crazy cirque during a hurricane, trudged over Madison and ended up near Dolly Copp, sad and wet in the dark.

This time me and a little daybag cranked out the Subway, the Ice Caves and the Gateway by noontime. Summited Mt Adams for my 2nd time and strolled past some waterfalls after a quiet lunch at the hut. Clear day in the Northern Presidentials and I didn't even have to drive. Erick +1

(PS Madison Spring Hut has an excellent bowl of vegetable soup going right now $2)

Zealand Traverse

Crawford Depot to Zealand Rd; up and over Mt Tom 4051'
Maybe 9 miles total we camped near Zealand Pond

Four adventurers conquered Mt Tom this past weekend, easy overnight hike with a few new friends.

Planned an easy overnight trek to accommodate two rookies, Zealand Falls has a way of making a great first impression. No problems from this crowd, well maintained trails and good weather.

Feeding Gray Jays atop Mt Tom was probably the highlight of the weekend. I know there's a nest on Field and I've fed them before but never like this, they were dive bombing our hands as we raised them into the air. White mountain magic...

Franconia Ridge

Classic 9 mile loop; Up Falling Waters down Old Bridle path

Amusement Park. Where is my tshirt cannon when I really need one. Felt like 3 or 4 international field trips combined into a swarm of slow rookies on trail, India and French Canadia need to get their own mountains. I passed maybe 30 people (beast) but ended up waiting in line to summit Haystack.

Someone let there dog take a dump right on the trail. Then some poor soul stepped in it and tracked little turd remnants for another 1/4 mile. So awesome grabbing a handhold and realizing thats not mud.

I passed right through the Lafayette summit and the hut. Greenleaf is nice but I didnt bring cash and with about a liter of water left I just cruised past. Just way more people then I was used too, struggled to find alone time on a solo hike.

Ended up with perfect hiking weather no rain all day. Quest complete! Another great weekend.
I've been stalling on my 48 completion, the Carters and Isolation deserve hours I dont have right now.  Big things coming in the fall.

King Ravine July 4th

Airline to King Ravine; Down Howker Ridge & Pine Link

8.5 miles with about 2 hours in the dark; Mt Madison 5367'

Certainly a memorable July 4th weekend. Stayed at a friends house in Glen, NH Thursday night, nice ski lodge overlooking Atittash. Quick drive to Gorham and 7 adventurers hit the Airline trail headed for Mt Adams.

I had planned a leisurely climb up the Airline trail, but a friend had a detailed Presi map and wanted to see what the Ice Caves and the Subway were all about. Sooooo, a quick detour puts us in the middle of King Ravine, a massive glacial cirque north of Mt Adams.

Awesome views when it wasn't raining. The Adams headwall and the climb were well worth the strenuous grade and perilous rocks. I really don't have the vocabulary to describe the steepness on this trail. I have hiked the North Slide on Tripyramid, Beaver Brook on Moosilauke, and the Wildcats; none compare to King Ravine. Makes me excited to finally hike Huntington or Tuckermans.

Madison Spring Hut is still there, it was fun to go inside this time. When my brother and I completed our traverse last October we cruised through the area on our last day, it was nice to grab a cup of tea and listen to the conversations in the main room. Probably should've tried to get work/stay rooms

The original plan was to camp somewhere down on Howker Ridge and watch the fireworks in Gorham. Once we were up and over Madison it started to pour hard, cats and dogs and buckets. A consensus was made to try and get down and back to our friends in Glen, call it quits early. Easier said then done. I looked at the map and decided the 2 miles on Pine Link down to the road was easier then 4 on Howker Ridge. By the time we were serious about things it was dark and the trail was like the Penobscot. Slow, cold, wet marching out to the road with headlamps and sniffles. Soon as we got to the road we were seen and shuttled back to our cars, super awesome kids from Shelburne were life savers.

Probably the toughest 8.5 mile dayhike I've ever even dreamed of. Awesome experience with great friends

Garfield Zealand Traverse

4501' Mt Garfield
4024' Mt Galehead
4902' South Twin
4580' Mt Guyot
4265' Mt Zealand

20 mile overnight, Garfield, S Twin, Zealand Falls, the Cliffs, Sunset on Guyot, etc. Good weather in the Pemi never disappoints. 

Again I bag a peak off my list I should've grabbed two years ago, and again, I'm glad I made a return trip. On this quest I hiked Garfield for a 2nd time and S Twin for a 3rd. Galehead is supposedly .5 from the hut and should not ever be skipped by anyone, easy breezy summit climb.

We camped legally off the Twinway. A ton of illegal spots right on the trail, no campers that we could see. The few people we spoke with talked about overflows at Guyot, horror stories really. Thats when I call them rookie ground-dwellers and start talking about Hammock Culture.

Guyot felt underwhelming this time out. You need to walk the boulder field out towards the Bonds and your nostalgia kicks in. Without that walk out there its just a left turn into the forest. Its redeeming quality is Bear Pond, a bushwhack I'm trying to plan for after my 48 finish. Great sunset view on the western slope.

Zealand. Zeacliff. The Falls. Lentil Soup. We've seen this episode before. Familiar journey with familiar heroes. Great weekend