We took Carter ledge over to Middle Sister trail and over to the summit of Middle Sister. It was about a 10 mile hike round trip with lovely views and a great hike over all. Congratulations to Mary and Andrea for completing their 52 WAV. We love a reason to celebrate with cookies and cake! Well done!
Several of us OTHH enjoyed the last of a stretch of unseasonably mild temperatures, with a great day to be above tree line for so long, bagging Mt Monroe and the "big rock pile" - Mt Washington. We took the Ammonoosuc Ravine Trail up to the Lakes of the Clouds AMC hut. From there, it's a short 22 minute hike up to nearby Mt Monroe. Below, at the top of Monroe, are Patsy and Jonathan. In the background, the lower end of that 1.5 mile, 1300 ft ascent from the hut to Washington is quite visible above the lakes (one of which is barely visible, with little water in it).
From the summit, we followed the path alongside the train track a short way, then took the Gulfside Trail down toward Mt Clay, then picked up the Jewell trail for the rest of the way down. Below is the view from where the Gulfside Trail comes right to the edge of the Great Gulf, with Spaulding Lake way down there. Surrounding the north side of that huge ravine are the northern presidentials: Clay, Jefferson, Adams, and Madison. What a view! We beat the rain expected late day, arriving at the car just as we felt the first sprinkles. [both pics by Dick]
On a nice, dry, cool but sunny late September day, a hardy group of us OTHH took a long walk "through some woods," to bag three of the NH 4K peaks, the Carters, none of which give any "view" from the top. But we did take a nice little detour from the direct route up to Carter Dome to take in the 360-degree views from Mt Hight, a bump on the shoulder of Carter Dome. The view across Pinkham Notch is of Mt Washington and the northern presidentials. After retreating to Zeta pass for another refueling stop, we kept going northward through the trees along the Carter-Moriah trail. That took us over South Carter, again with no view, and eventually to Middle Carter, still with no view. But then, just a "few" yards past that peak (which is easily missed), we emerged from the trees to a sudden, wonderful view across the notch and eastward into Maine. That was a great place to stop, snack some more, and to celebrate Jane's milestone - her completion of the NH 48 four thousand footers! Our congratulations to her on this accomplishment! Below, with the presidential range in view to the west are Dick, Patsy, Andy, Deb, and Jane.
The very dry stretch of weather continued, although it made for great September hiking and dry trails. Several of the OTHH took the ski trail up from the Wildcat ski area to the top of the summit lift. The view from there across Pinkham Notch to Mt Washington and much of the northern presidential range is always impressive. Then it was up steeply the short remainder of the climb to the Wildcat "D" peak, where the observation tower provides a boost above the treetops for more westward view. Below are Andy and Pat, posing for the blog picture (of course! - pic by Dick).
Then it was onward and northward, alternating downs and ups, over the "C" and "B" bumps along the Wildcat Ridge trail for almost two miles, taking us to the "A" peak. The view there provides a great look downward (steeply) at the Carter Notch AMC hut and across at Carter Dome, with the Carters beyond that. Following lunch, we retraced back to the top of the ski area, then down the Polecat Trail and the car.
