November 26, 2011 - Cascade & Porter Mountains

We had some fairly lengthy conversations this year about where we should take our annual Thanksgiving family hike. Kate wanted to try either Whiteface or Prospect Mountain so that she could drive to the top, Rob wanted something with running water so he could try his new purifier pump that would have saved him from dehydration earlier in the year, and Caleb was pushing to redeem himself on Algonquin from the previous year's turn-back. Ultimately we decided that fresh snow, warm temperatures, and clear skies made the short walk to Cascade's clear summit the perfect choice.

Rich, Craig, Kate, Rob, Jack, Noah, and Caleb set out with micro-spikes and snowshoes from our family rental in Elizabethtown; the rest of the clan hung back nursing the colds they got from being forced to jump into Mirror Lake the previous day by Kate (Child Services case pending).

Our trip almost got derailed before it started when Kate drove the van into a tree and got it stuck in the snow, but Rich and Craig rescued her and we were at the trail head by 9:15 with no speeding tickets this year. The walking was pretty slick, but the temperatures were heating up fast and the snow was melting quickly. Within 20 minutes everyone had shed their coats and hats, and thankfully Craig was there to carry the excess gear. Clouds were obscuring most of the sun, but they didn't diminish any of the view. By the time we got to the open rock faces, the snow and ice were non-existent and we had an easy scamper to the summit. We spent a little while on the summit admiring the views, counting off how many of the peaks we could name, and generally celebrating the first time that our entire family party made it to the top during a Thanksgiving High Peaks adventure.

Once the winds started to cool us down a little, we decided to keep our momentum going and walk the col over to Porter and have our lunch picnic on that summit. Other then the melting snow creating a slushy mess on the trail, the hike to Porter was quick and easy. We stopped a couple times to enjoy the views from the bare rocks en route, and every 45 seconds explained to Noah that we weren't quite on top yet. The peak was just emptying out when we got there, and we had a delicious peanut butter and jelly lunch prepared by Craig. The sandwiches were a little mushed from all the excess gear that Craig was carrying, but we decided to let him make it up to us by cooking dinner (again).

When we got back to the fork in the trail, we were delighted to see that someone had built a snowman. After a brief rest, we departed back down towards the car. The whole trail was a sloppy mess once we got within sound of the cars on Route 73, and we were stunned to meet a group wearing sneakers and just starting their ascent a little after 2:00 PM. Based on the way they gawked at our spikes, I doubt they were carrying the headlamps they would need if they actually made it to the top. It felt good to get the gear off and loaded into the car, but we were very happy with the successful day. Craig created a minor traffic disturbance on Route 73 so that Kate could back out of the trail head safely, but given her incident in the morning with the tree, it was probably a prudent move.

Back at the house, Caleb was seen reading a book about the 46ers, and examining a map with all the High Peaks. He said, "At this rate, I'll finish them when I'm in my 50s." The hike was about 6.2 miles and we finished in 5:15 (a land speed record for Rob).

November 6, 2011 - Phelps & Table Top Mountains

Unseasonably warm weather, and a surprisingly free family weekend calender, opened the door for another hike before our traditional family hiking event on Thanksgiving. Jack (one day removed from his first SAT attempt) and Rich took off early for the ADK Loj with the goal of visiting Marcy Dam to inspect the Hurricane Irene storm damage and climb Phelps and Table Top. We knew we would be pressed for time, as this marked the date to roll the clocks back to standard time.

When we turned in the ADK Loj road, the visibility of the high peaks were as clear as we have ever experienced. However, the parking area was sparsely populated with cars, and we encountered few people on the trail to Marcy Dam. From the dam, we walked around for a bit to survey the damage in that area, as well as the new slides visible on Colden and Wright. By this point, we were heating up pretty good and shedding layers of clothes. The path to Phelps was in decent shape, although the last half mile was heavily iced over and pretty slick. We brought our spikes in case we needed them, but none of the icy sections were long enough to justify the time it would take to put them on. We made it to the summit of Phelps by 10:15, and enjoyed a spectacular view with a small group.

Once the wind picked up and started cooling us down, we packed up our stuff and set out for Table Top. On the way between the peaks, most of the conversation was centered on which peak we would try to climb on Thanksgiving when the whole family is together. The previous year we bit off a little more than we could chew and had to turn back from Algonquin, and we don't want that to happen again. Once we reached the cairn marking the fork to the Table Top herd path, we took a break to eat our lunch. The path up Table Top was easy to follow, but incredibly slippery with ice. Jack said, "Kate would never make it over this ice; cross this one off the list for Thanksgiving." On the summit we bumped into a couple, but they cleared out and gave us the peak for a 15 minute rest. We had a great view of Marcy, and with our binoculars could see a number of people walking around the snowy, icy summit.

On the return trip, we diverted across to Indian Falls to see how much ice they had, and inspect the view from that vantage point. After spending a little while soaking up some sun at the falls, it was a quick and easy trip back past Marcy Dam and ultimately to the car. On the last leg of the trip, we encountered what we were fairly sure was a bobcat, which was thoroughly fascinating. However, we were a little disappointed to see that the beaver pond near the Loj seems to have drained.

The total hike was about 13 miles in a brisk 7:52. Thirty (30) High Peaks down; 16 to go.

October 23, 2011 - Mount Marshall

Despite the forecast for clear skies and reasonably warm temperatures, Rich was unable to find a hiking partner for the day. Not wanting to waste the chance for what could be the final Fall hike, coupled with a desire to see what damage Hurricane Irene had done to the High Peaks, I headed out solo. Leaving the house around 5:30 AM, I still hadn't decided on a destination, and wasn't even sure I would try a summit. Eventually I parked at the Upper Works trail head and set off along the Calamity Brook towards Lake Colden and the Flowed Lands.

The path got diverted to some new trails at a couple of points because of damage from the recent storms, but it was still a reasonable hike. The sun never really appeared for very long, but visibility was pretty good most of the time. Arriving at the cairn for Mount Marshall, I decided to at least investigate the herd path and see if I had the energy for a climb. There was significant blow down for much of the early going, and I lost the trail on two separate occasions. Just when I was about to give up and head back towards Lake Colden, I bumped into the first human I had seen all day (after about 4.5 hours) who was coming down from the summit. He showed me the path, and I was able to quickly complete the trek to the top. Surprisingly, my cell phone worked on the summit and I was able to call home and let everyone know that I was probably going to be a little later than planned.

Near the summit, there was a fresh dusting of ice and snow on all the trees and branches. Now that I was able to recognize all the trail markings and milestones, the descent was more relaxing and I could take in all the sights of the Herbert Brook. I had no issues making it back to the (now deserted) trail head, and I didn't bump into any more people for the rest of the day. The total hike was about 14 miles in about 8:15.

August 19, 2011 - Dial & Nippletop

Afternoon rain was possible in the forecast when Rich, Jack, and Rob arrived at the St. Huberts parking lot for a late Summer climb, but we were optimistic that we could reach the peaks before any trouble started. The Ausable Club was busy with golfers as we cut through, but only a couple of groups had registered at the trail head before we went through the Lake Road gate. The initial section of the trail up Noonmark's shoulder is pretty rigorous, and this being our first hike in quite a while, we were all breathing hard by the time we reached the first look-out. A spectacular view of the Great Range motivated us to continue.

By the time we were nearing Bear Den, Rob was instructing us on funeral arrangements for himself, and Jack was looking for suitable locations for a funeral pyre. Luckily, we still had water at that point (but we were running low). Jack offered to carry Rob back to the car, but he said, "No. I'm not Kate; I will make it to the top."

After deciding to leave Rob to his defenses in the brush, Jack and Rich made it to the top of Dial a little before Noon. The summit was busy; we met a family from Keene, and a pair of guys from New Jersey who were begging for water and describing how they investigated unknown plants by eating them. After 15 minutes of relaxation on the summit, Rob arrived (without any gear) and declared, "I am done; this is as far as I'm going." Jack only had to chide him for 10 minutes to change his mind, but he also had to back-track a half mile to retrieve his gear.

The climb to Nippletop wasn't as challenging as we had feared, and the pair from New Jersey suffered the inglorious point of getting passed by Rob on the trail (eating those strange blue berries must have had something to do with it). The views from Nippletop were spectacular, and even though we heard a little thunder, the skies were very cooperative. We spent almost 30 minutes enjoying the views, before heading down towards Elk Pass and our trail home. The descent was a little rugged, and we were slowed by pain and dehydration. We did take the opportunity to soak our feet in the brook before we got to the road, and our stroll back to the golf course.

The total hike was just under 14 miles in 10:45; if we keep taking Rob with us, we'll have to start packing lunch AND dinner. Twenty-eight (28) High Peaks down; 18 to go.

January 17, 2011 - Avalanche Pass

The thermometer in the car registered -21 degrees F when Rich and Rob got out of the car at the ADK Loj for a snowshoe hike up through Avalanche Pass. It was a cloudless, windless day, but at least 15 degrees colder than the forecast. Regardless, we felt like we had the right gear, and it was too perfect a day to pass up a hike. Within the first couple miles, we encountered a group of teens that were trucking out of the woods after spending the night. They seemed to be in good spirits, but they were all mumbling things like "Can't feel my fingers", "Too cold to make breakfast", and "Never doing this again".

We made really good time past Marcy Dam and up though the hills towards the pass, arriving at the northern end of the lake by a little after 10:00 AM. At one point it started to get a little slippery, and Rob said, "This is about where Kate would turn around and go back". Hiking down through the center of Avalanche Lake, when no one else was present in the pass, and the sun was just starting to peek up over the top of Mount Colden, was incredibly impressive.

After taking a few photos, we continued south towards Lake Colden, and cleared a path through the snow out onto the ice to have some lunch in the bright sunlight. The views of Algonquin, Iroquois, and Colden were also spectacular. Unfortunately, our lunch and drinks were frozen solid, but we did our best to break them apart and get some food in our stomachs.

During the hike back through Avalanche Pass, the sun had come around to light up the entire lake, which by now had several groups congregating on the ice. We made decent time hiking back to the Loj, allowing us to cover the approximately 11 miles in about 5:30. The temperature at that point was over 30 degrees warmer than when we started (which would have been great if that didn't mean it was still only 12 degrees).