~*~ 
“We bagged
Date:
Mileage: Not 4.1
– 8.2 miles
We
left the campground around
It
was about
After
some hemming and hawing, I left the decision up to 
anyway…so I guess there are a lot of
vigorous hikers in the area. Though, to be fair, most of them had on backpacks
which probably meant they were headed to
The
first couple of miles on Tuckerman’s Trail are like a giant stream bed. There
are lots of rocks and a very gradual, yet continual climb. It’s enough to tire
you out but not enough to feel like you are really straining yourself, which
was a good thing. We…or I, rather, set a good pace since we were concerned
about having enough time. There was one point where it felt like neither of us
would get into a good groove and I think maybe turning back sounded like a good
option for awhile. But…we were on the trail and there is no way in hell I would
turn around. There is something to be said for being stubborn.
Once
we reached the junction of Lion’s Head, the trail changed from gradual to
steep. This is what the Whites are all about. There’s no more messing around
and easy walking…now is the time to push. About halfway up Lion’s Head, we
decided to stop and have a snack and some water. It was the best decision we
made because both of us were almost instantly rejuvenated by it. A Clif Bar, a
banana and some water does enough to give you back your legs and strength. We
also started seeing a lot more people the further up the mountain we went. One
family we passed was kind of funny. They were headed to
At the last trail junction before the
summit, right when you break out of tree line, there was a hoard of people all
over the place. We had just passed a group of what we assumed were scouts, but
slightly older. They were in no hurry and were not moving quickly at all. I
think the whole group would have been happy to just stop and camp and never
leave that spot ever again.
Tuckerman’s
Ravine was to our left and still had quite a bit of snow in it. Certainly not
enough to ski, but enough to make you stop and look. We continued up and out of
treeline to face our final mile to the summit. The last mile is by far the
hardest because it is essentially nothing but a giant boulder field. You are
constantly jumping from rock to rock because they are too big to just step over
but too small to scramble. There are no easy options in getting around or up
it. You just have to go. It felt like it went on forever! I swear for awhile I
thought we would never reach the summit until
motorcycles and people in ass-less chaps.
Sweet. The last .1 mile to the summit is on a paved road and wooden staircase.
You can’t miss it really because it looks like an ant hill of people jockeying
for position and a picture. Funny to me… “look at me! I drove up here!” I will
never have a “this car climbed
Before
we went to the summit, we stopped at the Visitor’s Center to use the restroom
and grab a bite to eat. We got a couple slices of the nastiest
After
our snack, we went to the summit and got some token shots up there. I was
rocking the Summit Hair. It was a little bit windy up there but otherwise, a
fabulous day. Very few clouds and no threat of any precipitation. A group of 4
bikers offered to take our picture together which was much appreciated. See,
We
did briefly contemplate getting a hitch down the mountain and back to the Notch, but the giant “No Hitchhiking” sign
deterred us slightly from that. Though we did have a guy offer to bring us back
down on his bike. That would have been pretty sweet actually. Backpacks on bikes. We also considered the
shuttle until we saw the price. Same thing with the Cog. It would be a blast to
take the Cog up and down the mountain but geez… $42 per person? I’d rather walk
anyway! Some of the folks that got off the Cog were amusing dressed head to toe
in hiker gear, looking like they wanted to look like a hiker without actually
hiking. It’s easy to look like a hiker buddy, but it takes effort to smell like
one…and you don’t smell like one. Hell, you barely look like one. Have
a nice day. Don’t forget to fill your
Nalgene in the
We
signed the register in the Center at
It
didn’t. We were down that thing so fast I don’t know how we did it. Round trip
with a break on the summit, it took us about 6 hours which, according to our
friend in
The drive was nice but longer than I
remember. I got excited as we got closer because I was back in my own stomping
ground and was able to show
When
we arrived at my mom’s, I parked in the driveway and before we could get out of
the car she came running out of the house like a madwoman. What the hell? She
ran for a wheelbarrow and the next thing I know, a water balloon is being
launched in my direction. Oh no she didn’t. Welcome to my life,
We
had pizza for dinner, a beer, relaxed, and just hung out with my mom. It’s nice
to be home and it’s nice to know that we have a day off tomorrow to just chill
out. Going to play tourist and have dinner with my mom and all that good stuff.
Should be a nice lazy day.
Click here to see all
of our pictures from New Hampshire.
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