A fellow from Mass, an older gentleman — a still fresh octogenarian, if fact — reached out to us looking for a companion to accompany him on an alpine adventure/nature tour on Mt Washington. As is sometimes the case, his spouse told him that he should consider hiring a guide. He took her request to heart and made some calls. After the AMC gave us a shoutout, he made contact. He explained he didn’t want to hike up the mountain, but he did want to hike on it. In other words, drive up, then hike around (looking at you, Alpine Garden). We could go on, but his companion, Redline Guide Tim Jones, penned a detailed report, as follows:
It was the kind of day you’ve learned not to expect on Mount Washington: blue skies above, clouds on the eastern horizon, light breeze, warm but not too warm. In other words, a perfect hiking day. A gift.
The guest was flexible. He wanted to see the views from the top of Mount Washington, and, if possible, set foot on the storied Huntington Ravine Trail (often called the toughest trail on the ‘Rockpile.’
But he was also a realist: just a few days shy of his 81st birthday and not really conditioned for rough trails and rock hopping, he was willing to see what could be accomplished safely on this perfect fall day.
We drove up the Auto Road, parked at the Cow Pasture and headed down the Huntington Ravine Trail .3 miles toward the top of the Ravine. Our guest, whose toughest hike prior to this had been a 4-hour round trip up and down Mount Monadnock, was, by his own admission, a little stunned by how steep and uneven this relatively easy section of the HR trail really is. Still, he tackled it like a champ, carefully placing his trekking poles and each footstep. Nary a slip, or stumble.
By the time we reached the junction with Alpine Garden, he was tired enough that a break was welcome. The stunning views down into the Ravine no doubt aided his recovery.
After a snack and some water, we decided it was worth seeing how he could do on the flatter Alpine Garden Trail, so we headed south. After a few hundred yards it became apparent that getting to Lion Head Trail and from there to the summit would probably be more than the guest would enjoy. So we backtracked to the junction with the Huntington Ravine Trail Looking up at the slope we had come down, the guest decided that was too much for him, so we headed toward Nelson Crag Trail. That, too, looked daunting so we took our time, savored the views, and made our way slowly back to the Auto Road, where I jogged up and retrieved the car, picked up the guest, and we drove up to the summit to do the “tourist thing.”
The guest was ecstatic with his day. As he put it, ‘I thought it would be possible to just hike something easy around on top of Mount Washington — I never imagined how steep and rough these “moderate” and “easy” trails really are. The views on our hike were better than I dreamed of; every step brought a new vista. We kept a pace I could manage, turned around before the day became a trial, and completed what was by far, the toughest hike of my life.’
Great attitude! Great day on the mountain —Tim
