This past week I did not have time to go on a big hike, but we did get out for short walks in the woods each day. Reba and Buck spent some time with their other four legged friends Cooper and Benson the Bassett Hound. We went to Goose Pond for a short hike and the dogs had a marvelous time playing together!
Since I don’t have much to report for hikes this week I thought I would share a few of my favorite hikes so far that Reba and I have done.
Lincoln (5,089 ft) & Lafayette (5,260 ft)
Our second 4000 footers where Lincoln and Lafayette in Franconia Notch. The hike along Franconia Ridge is amazing, but the only downfall is the popularity of the hike. I have never had to wait in line to go up and trail and this is what we encountered on this hike. This hike I was joined my Beth, her daughter and another lady from work named Claire. We started on Falling Waters Trail which is a nice trail that has many waterfalls as the name would suggest. I tried to enjoy the beauty of the trail but having so many other people on the trail and Reba was not easy. She is shy and uncertain about some people so she had to be on the leash which is not her favorite thing. Falling Waters Trail leads you to Little Haystack Mt which is not on the 4000 footers list due to it being less than 200 feet above the col on the ridge from Lincoln. From there we followed the Franconia Ridge Trail, which is also part of the Appalachian Trail, to the summit of Lincoln then over to Lafayette. The ridge between theses two mountains is amazing, you feel like you are in another world. Descending from Lafayette we followed the Greenleaf Trail that brings you to the AMC Greenleaf Hut, then down the Old Bridle Path which also has amazing views. The whole hike is about 9 miles.
Mt Jefferson ( 5,712 ft)
We did Jefferson with my friend Kathie and her dog Bodhi. Kathie and Bodhi have completed the 48 4000 footers already. Kathie has actually done it twice. We did this hike in July and the weather that day was ok, it rained on us a tiny bit going up Caps Ridge Trail and it was rather cool. Caps Ridge Trail is only 2.1 miles long but it is a very hard, steep rocky climb. It took us longer since we had the dogs and had to go at a pace that they where comfortable at. Reba enjoys rock scrambles but these rock scrambles where more challenging and she had to get a lift every once in a while. When we reached the trail intersection with The Cornice Trail the wind had really picked up. We decided to go around to the back side of Jefferson to make our ascent to the summit. So we slowly made our way on the The Cornice to Gulfside to Six Husbands Trail. The wind was much better once we reached Six Husbands Trail and we could actually feel like we would not be blown over. The wind was strong at the summit of Jefferson as you can see from Reba’s ears in the picture. The wind died down some so we descended Caps Ridge Trail and followed that all the way out. This was our first mountain in the Presidential Range that we climbed and it was breathtaking. Caps Ridge Trail also happens to be on the Terrifying 25 hiking trail list that I plan on completing someday, that is a list that Reba will not be joining me on, only Gumby! I repeated Jefferson again last summer with Lindsey, Beth and Cooper (Linsdey’s dog) and loved every moment of the hike!
