A slow but steady climb up and down Mt. Moosilauke via the Beaver Brook Trail on 28 Sept 2013
One truth that I try to live out is
that discovering and pursuing your passions is an important aspect to making
your life meaningful. I have found two passions in life, one that I created a
living out of: teaching adolescents and the other keeps me healthy, both
physically and mentally: hiking. Friends
and family often point out the importance of my faith as well but I can’t
really call that a passion, it is more of a necessary component to living just
as oxygen is. The title, “Be Still and
Hike” definitely applies to this post as I was feeling very overwhelmed with
work, not the teaching part but rather all the other additions to our jobs as
teachers as of late, and having a hard time enjoying life, rather was just
going through the motions. I knew a hike
would ease some of the tension and was overjoyed finding I had a Saturday free
and clear along with a perfect forecast! My goal was to attempt one of the many
4,000 foot mountains in north/central New Hampshire. A year ago I stumbled upon an old hiking
guide from 1972 put out by the Dartmouth (college) Outing Club (DOC) about Mt.
Moosilauke. It drew me in and at my
latest book store touring found an updated map book of the area. By Thursday night I was researching the
trails and planning the day. Due to the
drive, I knew this would take all day.
My husband was willing to join me but offered to let me enjoy it alone
knowing I treasure solo hikes. I was a
little presumptuous in opting for the “shortest but most beautiful route.” The fact that the trail was also part of the
Appalachian Trail (AT) was another incentive to try it out. Friday went by quickly and my mind was pretty
much on the next day’s hike throughout work.
My husband and I went out Friday night for a “cheap date” to see Nashoba
play Wachusett in football (congrats Nashoba!).
I am glad I did because reality hit me that I should plan for a chilly
hike. When we got home I packed and
tried my best to fall asleep; always hard to do when you’re excited about the
next day’s hike.
As suspected, I didn’t get up as
early as I’d like due to a late night but was out of the house by 8 after
eating a huge bowl of oatmeal, my go to meal for any lengthy excursion. Traffic was delayed three times, twice for
construction, once for an accident but I made the trail head parking lot by 10:45
and paid the daily fee of $3. Normally,
I brag about how hiking is great because it’s free but you have to pay for most
NH hikes. I was amazed that the colors
were already turning this far north and the blue sky made for a picture perfect
day. It was a little chilly so I kept on
my long sleeve shirt and long pants and packed a hat and gloves. Knowing I had to battle with daylight, I
hurried but made sure I had my headlamp and poles. I have hiked in the night a few times,
sometimes on purpose, sometimes not.
Either way have found the headlamp and poles work pretty well to get me
back safely. The trail head was clearly marked with signs and a map. I had the
map in my bag and headed right on the trail to get going. I walked quickly so I could summit in plenty
of time to enjoy my time on top for a bit as well as leave plenty of daylight
for the return trek. The first sign I
came upon listed distances to key aspects of the trail as well as a
warning. Anyone who knows me knows that
these warning signs are more of an invitation to me rather than a deterrent. I was ready for a challenge! Here is the
sign:
The most striking component to this
trail was the long beautiful cascades coming from Beaver Brook-the trail
name. After crossing a few brooks
(another place where poles come in handy) and two bridges it wasn’t long before
the trail started to climb and the cascades began. It was beautiful and I was intrigued by the
built in steps nearby. Here is a picture
I took at the start of the climb:
.JPG)
This feeling of intrigue faded
quickly, however, as the trail grew steeper, slippery, and steps were
accompanied by hand rails due to their precarious locations. The cascades were beautiful but I didn’t stop
long to admire them because so much focus was spent on careful ascension of the
wet slippery leave covered rocks. I kept
telling myself this couldn’t last for long and it was better than ice. Three fourths of the way up I was amazed by
the views behind me and focused on the beauty to come at the summit.
.JPG)
The summit: after a final trail
juncture at mile 4, I was only 4/10 of a mile from the summit. As I often do when fatigued I started
counting steps. 250 steps works out to 1/10 of a mile at my stride so I counted
down a tenth and then as I started counting again I broke the tree line and my
fatigue was all but forgotten by the beauty.
There were very tall rock cairns marking the rest of the trail, lots of
hikers mingling about, and magnificent 360 degree views of God’s creation all
around. It was too much to take in. I did find the summit post, took a picture
and then was asked to take a picture of a young man and he gladly took mine as
well at the sign. I took a few other
pictures, tried to eat something but typically have no appetite in the midst of
hiking. It was cool at the top and I
slipped on my hat and gloves, regretting that I left my coat behind in the
car. I spotted one late north bounder
(nobo on the AT) at the summit, reorganizing his gear. I have learned how to spot a thru hiker by
their heavy dirty backpacks and graceful ease of flying on the trail as if they
had no weight on their back at all. Later
on I met some newer backpackers, brand new backpacks, short hair, no facial hair,
and not so quick on their feet. I have
no excuse but travel quite slow, well at least on steep parts. Wanting to have as much time as possible to
descend I took only a few pictures and then headed back down the way I
came.
The descent: The movement quickly
rewarmed me and I made for a quick pace until I hit the boulders. I took my time on them and could feel my legs
lose strength in them. During this time the AT hiker I had spotted on the
summit was returning on the trail towards me and asked for the name of the
trail. He seemed worried he had taken a
wrong turn. I assured him he was indeed
on the AT North, would hit the shelter soon and road crossing 2 miles
later. I offered him my map and some
fruit but he declined and thanked me. I
dream of being a long distance hiker but if I can’t be that then being a trail
angel would be my next consideration. I
began to take breaks frequently to hydrate and let my knees rest. My knees have begun showing signs of
arthritis and the moist climate doesn't help the matter in addition to having
not had a big hike since mid-summer. I
had promised myself, pride aside, I would take the steep cascades part of the
trail very slowly. Going slowly gave me
a lot of time to think. I also let many
hikers pass by, many of whom checked on me to make sure I was ok. I assured them I was just going slowly. During some of this thinking time I realized
I would struggle as a long distance hiker, especially on steep parts like this
with a 30-40 lb backpack on. At the same
time I was having my conversations with God, not out loud unless I just missed
a bad slip or fall. I was grateful to
Him for my health to have this hike, his creation to enjoy the beauty, and my
husband who encourages me to follow my passions. I am also learning to be grateful for my job,
even on the toughest days and take to heart a lesson learned recently from a
friend’s facebook post-that I need to look at others as God sees them. It’s easy for me to see a student as a good
person covered in a lot of tough layers, some of them filled with hurt and
frustration. Naively I assume that
adults should be as I expect them to be and I realize all of them have things
going on as well. We are all fighting
battles and some don’t have hope, trust, or supportive friends and family to
keep them going. I am grateful to have
all of those, in abundance! I did pray aloud at one point as I walked out onto
a ledge on the cascades and couldn't see the trail. I walked back up seeing if
I missed a turn and watching the sun drop in the horizon panic grew in that I
was on a side trail. I went back out to
the ledge and this time looked down, and there they were: the steps and
handrails that look so differently when you are descending. I prayed for strength to get down this steep
ledge and thanked God I didn't get lost!
In the last part of this hike, as I pulled
myself over each slippery rock, and even slid on my bottom several times to
safety, I never gave up. I felt a huge
triumph as I reach the flat ground and squishy mud under my boots-a sweet
sensation after traversing so many rocks.
I happily splashed through the brooks not caring if I got wet as I was
already covered in mud. My car was one
of the last in the parking lot but a site I always treasure after a long
hike. I was happy to take my boots off
and change my socks and shoes and head on back home feeling so very
accomplished. The hike took 3 hours 20 minutes to summit and another 4 hours to descend with about 20 minutes spent at the summit.
Some stats including the very slow pace heading back down the cascades at mile 8:
