Mount Tecumseh

 Of course, we woke up late this Saturday! We did get to the trailhead at 11:30 though, arriving to  a drizzling rain. The trailhead can be found at the Waterville Valley Ski Resort. The lot was filled with about 50 cars and actually we saw quite of few hikers on their way down already as we headed up. 

The summit trail is very steep and easy to manage due to the stairs created by the stones....

The stairs were a nice touch, but the rainy, wet leaves on the steep steps were definitely tiring. We finally get to a fork in the steep mountain trail....

The last half mile was challenging , involving some scrambling. We reached the peak ; soggy and tired to cold cloudy views! We quickly ate a small snack and rehydrated. We decided to try an alternate route to descend the mountain. It was a great decision. From the peak we followed the blue blazed trail led us to the ski slope. It was amazing! The views from the ski slope were breathtaking! We hiked right out of the clouds and the beautiful white mountains appeared! 

This took us about fours hours and we were tired and sore. I did use hiking poles this mountain and I think they helped me a lot!  I felt much more sure-footed and the poles took some pressure off my knees on the descent. 

After the mountain, we venture to Bedford, NH. We found a yummy restaurant called T Bones, I ordered a turkey dinner that hit the spot! It was the perfect comfort food 😋😋. 

Training hikes

 This week we hiked two training hikes to prepare for our climb of Mount Tecumseh, a 4000 footer in NH. We hiked in Old Furnace State Park in Killingly on Tuesday, a nice easy hike with a pretty vista that is wicked close to The Ice Box, an amazing ice cream shop that specializes in small batches. I ordered and devoured apple pie ice cream with caramel and nuts - HEAVEN!!!! 

Then Thursday we explored the Blue Blazed trails and started at the beginning of the Shenipsit trail in East Hampton. It went straight UP! The vista is worth the climb, you can see the Connecticut River and on a clear day, I hear you can see Long Island! 

Then we went to Loco Perro, a fun Mexican restaurant and enjoyed some margs and chips! Definitely a fun hike and dinner! 

Mount Moosilauke

 This weekend a group of us trekked to New Hampshire to tackle Mount Moosilauke. We had planned to leave early Saturday morning but living through a pandemic , one of us received a contact tracing email and had to get a rapid COVID test before we left. We practiced flexible thinking and adjusted our schedule. We decided to keep the hotel room and have fun the night BEFORE the hike. 

We arrived at our hotel in Londonderry at about 4:30pm. We changed up and went out looking for trouble in Manchester, where apparently there isn’t any COVID because very few people wore masks. We kept our masks on and went to Tio Juan Margaritas for fish tacos and a flight of margaritas that were delicious. Then we journeyed over to a cowboy bar called Bonfire for some very weak drinks and terrible chips and dip, fun atmosphere, terrible drinks and food. We were home by 10 to get rest before the big climb.

We drove about a hour north to Loon the next morning to the entrance at the Moosilauke Ravine Lodge. Unfortunately, the parking lot is closed so that added about a mile to the trip. We chose an out and back route on Gorge Brook Trail which you access near the lodge by crossing over a bridge. You cross over two other bridges while hiking that are always fun for a yoga pose! 

The trail consists of 3.6 miles of slippery rocks and leaves. The assent was challenging on the lungs but easy on the body while the opposite was true for dissent. Hiking poles are a must for the hike down. 

The views are the summit are breathtaking and there are plenty of fellow hikers but also plenty of room to share. The total mileage of this trip was 11 difficult miles, well worth the journey and views. 

I really enjoyed the interesting appeal of the frost on the evergreens at the summit. The trees had a magical quality that felt special and unique to this incredible mountain top habitat . 

Mount Moosilauke was a great first 4000’ footer to cut my mountain climbing teeth on! I was sore for about two days and enjoyed a relaxing yoga class upon returning home to give my old bones a break. 

Can’t wait for number two!!! 

It's been too long - Update

 Hello Blogger World!

It is almost ten years since I posted here! I have been very busy raising teenagers and taking care of my health. I had my labrum repaired on my right hip and was told I would be back in two years if I kept long distance running sooooo I needed to adjust. I ran but not as long distance and went for increasing my speed. THEN, I was diagnosed with a heart arrhythmia that many doctors blamed on long distance running as well! My body was definitely sending me a message. 

SOOOOO I still LOVE chocolate and need to exercise to inhale the copious amounts that I love. I enjoy yoga, hiking and weight-lifting now coupled with low impact cardio exercises. I plan to use the blog to highlight my hiking and mountain climbing expeditions. I plan to climb all 48 White Mountain 4000 footers and take my time doing it.