Dennis Dixon is heading North!: My 22nd (Mount Hancock) and 23rd (South Hancock) 4,000 footers!

The end-of-July hike (Mount Willey, Mount Field, and Mount Tom) are grouped together in Crawford Notch State Park in the "middle group" (in the far-right green circle).
Previous hikes have been:
North Kinsman and South Kinsman are the far-far-left green circle
Cannon Mountain is the far-left green circle
just east of Cannon are Mount Lincoln and Mount Lafayette
south of them are Mount Flume and Mount Liberty (in the lower green circle)
Mount Hale is the middle-upper green circle
the pair to the west of Mount Hale are North Twin and South Twin
while today's hike (Mount Hancock and South Hancock) are in the red square:

Go up 93 from Boston, take exit 32 for the Kancamagus Highway for about 11 miles - park right after the hairpin turn

Using Map My Walk, I went up Hancock Notch Trail (1.8 miles), left onto Cedar Brook Trail (0.7 miles), then right onto Hancock Loop Trail (1.1 miles to the split, 0.7 miles to Mount Hancock, 1.4 miles on the ridge trail, then 0.5 miles down from South Hancock), then backtracked down to the parking area (3.6 miles). With twists and turns and overlooks, I covered 10.2 miles in 4 1/2 hours. I covered about 5,200 feet in climbing elevation (2300 up, 400 down, 300 up, and then finally 2200 down):

It is a BEAUTIFUL day at the Hancock Overlook parking area:

The first section is a nice 1.8-mile walk up the Hancock Notch Trail

which gets right next to the North Fork (of the Hancock Branch of the Pemigewasset River)

The second section is a left onto Cedar Brook Trail, which crosses over North Fork 3 times (Cedar Brook begins 2 miles along this trail, and flows north). This trail is also a relatively easy walk. This area of North Fork is wonderful, on this sunny day!

after 0.7 miles, you take a right onto Hancock Loop Trail. After crossing North Fork again, the trail becomes "moderate" for 1.1 miles (not "flat", but also not "difficult"). After 1.1 miles, I took the "difficult" left path to the north (Mount Hancock) first, and this is looking back down a section of that trail (with South Hancock in the distance)

my selfie on top of Mount Hancock (4420 feet)

the view from the outcrop just off the north summit - I think that silver ribbon in the far-away right is Pine Brook running down the north side of Mount Osceola, with Scar Ridge running off to the right (LOVE that name!)

The moss-laden forest along the ridge to South Hancock

my selfie on top of South Hancock (4319 feet)

the view off the backside (east) of South Hancock

the view from going down the South trail, looking at Mount Hancock:

a final view of a clearing by the North Fork:

and then home to my wonderful wife and divine daughter Caroline!

Thank you God for a Great Day!

Thursday, October 2, 2014
145 miles -- Boston up 93 North to exit 32 - Kancamagus Highway to trailhead parking lot (2 1/2 hours)
10.2 miles -- hiking (4 1/2 hours)
3 hours -- to get home

I'm in the mood today to listen to complete albums - I remember when I knew what song followed each other, and even which album followed the one before on my reel-to-reel tapes from St. Paul's:

Steely Dan - Aja (1977)