A couple of fellows asked to hike with us for a few days. They were requesting one full day hike (that’s what this blog post is about), one overnight using one of the AMC’s huts (this is what they are doing as this is being written), and one final hike, a cooling-down half-day. This first day was led by Redline Guide Tim Jones — see his summary and photos in this post, below — and the objective of the day was a 52-With-A-View peak Kearsarge North with the option to go out and back to Bartlett Mountain.
A returning guest from New Jersey and his friend, both retired, and both seasoned triathletes, wanted a warmup hike before tackling a longer two-day adventure including an overnight in an AMC Hut. Kearsarge North seemed like the right balance of distance (6.2 miles out-and-back), elevation gain (2600 feet) and difficulty (lots of rocks and roots with some steeps) to get their legs and lungs working at optimal levels.
On a perfect summer morning with clear skies and cool temperature, we headed up. Since this wasn’t a race and we had all day, they set a deliberate, steady pace stopping only to hydrate, re-tie boots, re-set packs, and, when we reached the open slabs just below the ridgeline, admire the developing views. Turns out that the aerobic capacity and muscle strength needed to run/swim/bike a successful triathlon are a huge advantage when tackling our hills.
Hiking over uneven terrain, however, presents different challenges and uses a lot of collateral muscles that don’t get the same workout on pavement or in a lake. Here’s where the mental fortitude needed to complete grueling races kicked in, and our guests cheerfully adjusted to this different regimen. The payoff, of course, was reaching the top and the spectacular views from the fire tower. We took our time there and savored the clear skies and cool breeze before heading back down.
With no race to win and a couple of days of long hikes ahead, the guests again set a deliberate, steady, and, above all, safe, pace downhill on the uneven surfaces. Sharing a celebratory ice cream afterward, all talk was focused on the great day we’d just had and the anticipation of even more fun in the coming days. —Tim
