Here at Hangman Hill

Our second big hike in Colorado was an overnight backpacking trip on the west side of the RMNP.

We started at the East Inlet trailhead and hiked up the valley to a campsite just past the first lake on the trail (Lone Pine Lake). After setting up our camp we continued our hike up the valley to Lake Verma, Spirit Lake, Fourth Lake, and finally to Fifth Lake.

We saw a lot of wildlife along the path, including several moose, pika and marmots. The moose were very large and close to the trail, and we navigated around them very carefully to avoid being trampled. Between Fourth and Fifth Lakes we saw a large number of wildflowers including many columbines (the state flower of Colorado),

We retraced our steps to the campsite at the end of the first day and enjoyed dinner sitting on a big flat rock in the middle of a stream. We were also able to dip our heads and faces in the stream to freshen up before eating. After dinner we retired to bed under a beautiful star-filled sky.

The next day we woke up to sunshine and clear skies, so we were able to have a leisurely breakfast and enjoy packing up camp in the dry. We were on the trail back to the car by 10am and looking forward to exploring the town of Grand Junction in the afternoon.

Our return journey was delayed a little by a large bull-moose on the trail, and also by a random hail storm when we were just a few miles from home. At least we got to use our rain-jackets after carrying them all that way!

Our summer vacation for 2019 has been a 2-week trip to the mountains of Colorado to do some high-elevation hiking and explore the Rocky Mountain Natioanl Park (RMNP). Between hikes we have been staying with Sheri’s sister Kerry and her husband Brandon in Estes Park.

Our first significant trip was an overnight backpacking trip to Pear Lake in the Wild Basin area. We hiked the 6 miles to Pear Lake via Finch Lake and established camp at about lunchtime on the first day. In the afternoon we hiked further up the valley to the Hutchinson Lakes at about 11,500-feet of elevation. We saw marmot and elk along the way, and returned to camp by about 6pm. The next day we hiked back to the trailhead via the Calypso Cascades and enjoyed eating our lunch by the waterfalls.

We were very lucky with the weather and enjoyed sunshine for both days, although it was a little bit windy. It felt good to be camping out in the wilderness and to be getting back in touch with nature.

After enjoying our final night under canvas our group packed up the campsite and headed out to hike Mount Tremont. This is a peak on the “52-with-a-view” list and one that we (Sheri and Bruno) had previously hiked in the snow. The trail was completely different in the summertime and the group made quick work of the steep trail to reach the delightful summit view point. We enjoyed a leisurely picnic lunch and admired the views of the Pemi wilderness before heading back down to the valley. Here we had a refreshing swim in the Saco river before the long drive back to Connecticut.

In late August we joined a small group (7 people and 2 dogs) for a camping, hiking and swimming weekend in New Hampshire. We camped at the Dry River Campground and on Saturday we hiked from Zealand Road trailhead over to Ethan Pond and then back down to the campground.

The clouds were low, so it was a perfect day for this low-level hike. We stopped at Zealand Hut where we saw snakes basking in the sun, had elevenses by the Zealand Falls and we swam in Ethan Pond to cool off. It was a delightful day and gave us all a good appetite for a hearty dinner around the campfire in the evening.

As part of our weekend of more challenging hikes in early August we decided to combine three trails on the Terrifying-25 list. We elected to climb the Caps Ridge trail (which we had done previously), descend the Sphinx Trail into the bottom of the Great Gulf, climb back up the Six Husbands Trail, and then retrace our steps along the Caps Ridge Trail back to the car. This slightly convoluted route had the benefit of being shorter than any other approach to the Great Gulf (only 10 miles total) and started at one of the highest trailheads in the White Mountains (at 3000′).

The weather turned out to be perfect and we arrived at the trailhead in plenty of time to secure a parking space. The ascent of Caps Ridge was very enjoyable and we found ourselves at the top of the Sphinx trail quite quickly.

The descent followed beside a beautiful stream and we were happy hopping from rock to rock on the way down to the bottom of the Great Gulf. There were lots of waterfalls and pools, and a cool breeze on a hot day. This would not be a fun route in the wet because many of the rocks had moss on them, but otherwise it was a great path down.

At the bottom of the Great Gulf we walked alongside the stream for about a mile to reach the bottom of the Six Husbands Trail. This famous route has several wooden ladders to help with ascending the steeper sections. We were glad that we had left Zealand back in Connecticut!

Eventually we emerged back near the summit of Mount Jefferson, and we rejoined the rest of the hiking community. From there it was a short hike back down Caps Ridge to the car, and some cold drinks in a cooler that we had prepared earlier in the day. All-in-all a great day out in the mountains!

A few weekends ago we left Zealand with our friends (Mike & Denise) and we headed up to New Hampshire to tackle some more challenging hikes.

On Sunday we climbed the infamous Huntington Ravine Trail which ascends Mount Washington from the east and involves a scramble up a rocky buttress. Certainly not a dog-friendly route, but lots of fun for humans.

The path was easy to find and well marked with yellow blazes. After scrambling up a big boulder field we came to the start of the scramble. The trail was quite steep in a few places and there were some big drop-offs too. This made for a fun ascent with lots of exposure.

Bruno managed to pull off (“trundle”) a massive boulder near the start which only just missed a couple of people just below us. This is a common hazard when exploring this type of terrain, but it was a little unnerving for everyone on the route. Thankfully the rest of the route was dry and covered in solid hand/foot holds.

We arrived at the top of the route at lunch time, so we stopped for a picnic with a view. After lunch we walked along the Alpine Garden trail to the Lion Head path. We then descended the popular Lion Head path and joined the Tuckerman Ravine trail to take us back to the car at Pinkham Notch visitor’s center.

A great hike/scramble on another “Terrifying-25” trail!

On Saturday night we saw a new musical at the Goodspeed Opera House in nearby Haddam CT. Our friends Mike and Denise recommended it to us, and we thoroughly enjoyed the show.

The story centers around a stray dog who is adopted by the lead character. The dog gets the name Winn Dixie from the grocery store where he was found.

If you get a chance to see the show, we’d highly recommend it too.

Yesterday we enjoyed a shorter hike/scramble around the Mt Morgan-Mt Percival Loop in the southern part of the White Mountains .

This hike is on the Terrifying-25 list and involves scaling wooden ladders, scrambling over ledges and crawling through caves. Lots of fun on a hot and humid day! And it also has some fantastic views of nearby Squam Lake and its surroundings.

We were joined by our friends Mike and Denise, and they were great sports for joining in the fun. Mesa and Zealand didn’t do the scrambling or the ladders; instead they stayed with Mike who sensibly kept his feet firmly planted on the ground.

On a recent hot and humid day we decided it was time to visit the Ice Gulch in Randolph NH. This hike is on the Terrifying-25 list and it did not disappoint.

After a fairly level 2-mile hike to the base of the gulch (a steep sided ravine filled with refrigerator-sized boulders) we set off.

This natural wonder is called the Ice Gulch because snow and ice remain in the very bottom of the valley even in the height of summer. This means that it is a nice place to hike on a hot and humid day. We saw some extraordinary sites along the trail including waterfalls, natural springs, mushrooms, big ferns, and plenty of ice patches. The terrain was rough and required a lot of climbing, crawling and wriggling to negotiate.

It took us 1.5 hours to navigate the 0.6 miles through the gulch (including a short lunch break). Then we exited by climbing up beside a steep waterfall and emerged on the Cook path. We followed this through the woods back to our car in Randolph.

Overall it was a very enjoyable hike and definitely a different experience from the usual hiking in New Hampshire.

We celebrated the July full moon with the Full Moon Club in Noank, CT at the home of our friends Mike and Mary, who have a beautiful spot on a cove just off Long Island Sound between Groton and Mystic. Mike and Mary are lovely hosts and we enjoyed Mike’s homebrew on their dock while catching up with friends before a fun taco bar dinner.

After dinner we paddled from their home towards the sound just as the sun began to set. The sky transformed to a brilliant red, orange and pink palette as the sun slipped into the sea. We continued to paddle as the moon rose in the east and then made our way back to Mike and Mary’s dock by headlamp. Zealand enjoyed his first paddle in the canoe and managed to keep his feet dry!

Thank you Mike and Mary for great evening!