Journal Entries

With @hammerhead - hiking a familiar trail - 18K circumambulating the yellow and blue loops of Wilderness Bluff, Nova Scotia -our weekend training-for-Vermont trek. For more info and invitation to join us there, check out @toesalad here https://outsideways.com/articles/outsideways-long-trail/

@brienne and @mypictograph were no slouches today. The got up at 7am so we could get an early start - both giving up an opportunity to sleep-in on a Sunday morning.

The last time we hiked this section of trail (Franconia ridge) it was cold, windy, and foggy - we were thru-hiking the AT heading north. This time we decided to do it on a beautiful day, and the views were fantastic. We decided to take the ridge southbound this time in the hopes of meeting some thru-hikers along the way. We did meet some, and spent some time talking to Slacker and TAB (Take A Break). Apparently today was the best weather day that they have had on the trail so far.

Yes, my thoughts exactly!

The whole crew! In this photo: @johnsifferman @reneetougas @celine @brienne @mypictograph and friends.

Day one - hiking Mt Pemigewasset with our friend John Sifferman and family. John always hikes barefoot so @mypictograph and @celine had to follow suit for the hike back down. I love those crazy kids! And the influence @johnsifferman has to inspire them.

At the summit of Mount Pemigewasset.

The younger members of our crew today included some seasoned teenage trail veterans and some younger budding enthusiasts eager to show us their stuff by leading us at a good pace.

This week we are staying in New Hampshire. We arrived late last night, had a good sleep-in, then met up with a good friend for a short afternoon hike. It is SO good to be back in these New England woods, just a stones throw from the Appalachian Trail - it feels like home.

Well, we hitched to Big Sky and got back on the trail. The Spanish Peaks were beautiful. Not on par with the Winds, but right up there with Colorado (without being right up there in elevation, hah). Another hiker told us the trail was maintained by the local back country horsemen group, and they have done an amazing job. It was great trail, beautiful views, and the miles just rolled on by. There were a few frustrating segments (not many campsite options as a lot of it was quite steep, a fair few mosquitoes in a couple spots, and one section where I think new trail had been built but not mapped so it took us a little while to find it). Generally though, it would be a great spot to go hiking, and it was much quieter than the rest of the mountains in Montana. Definitely worth a visit.