Hale Brook Trail, 4.4 miles roundtrip.
This is getting fun. Hiking has always been enjoyable, mind you, but now it feels much more rewarding. I love both my daughters and I enjoy the company of each. Having both of them on the trail at the same time...there's a feeling of completion, of fulfillment. Seeing them interact with each other, watching one of them point something out, hearing their chatter and laughter, even putting up with the occasional squabble....it just feels right. More right than when I have one of them alone.
Sage is showing more and more interest in completing the NH48. Since she's just as strong as her sister was at that age, and since she and Alex make great trail partners, I expect she'll choose to accompany us more often than not from this point onward.
We tackled Mt. Hale today and, contrary to what the title suggests, we had an excellent time.
Hale Brook Trail was dry for the first mile...
The snow began immediately after the second water crossing.
Once past the switchbacks and very close to the summit, bare ground reappeared.
Once at the top, we lounged.
Saw some moose prints in the mud...
Views from the top of the giant cairn...
Super Sage!
The hike down was easier than the hike up, in spite of the increasing softness of the spring snow. Nevertheless, we were all happy to see the trailhead.
This makes #12 for Sage and #4 for Max the border terrier.
This might be the last entry before my I revamp my blog(s). In eleven months, my book, UP: A Mother and Daughter's Peakbagging Adventure will be published by Broadway Books, an imprint of Crown Publishing Group. It's time to change this blog from something personal and strictly hiking-related to something more public with multiple child- and nature-related topics. The core of this blog will always be hiking and highpointing, so nothing will be lost; I'll just incorporate what's here into a larger framework.
Happy hiking,
Trish
2 comments:
Nice report and a beautiful day! Looking forward to your book.
Owen
Thank you, Owen. I've enjoyed reading about your own adventures on the trails of the NH48. It was very nice meeting you out there.
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