52 With A View: Mount Success

Wednesday, August 23, 2023 - This is a zoomed-in map of the New Hampshire "52 With A View" - I have climbed 24 of them so far. I'll be doing Mount Success today:

Because Wendy will be away tonight at a play up in Maine (meaning I don't have to get home for dinner at 6:30), I will be doing the "farthest away" peak.

For today's drive, I picked-up Ellie in Ipswich and dropped her off at an appointment in Burlington. Then 4 hours north (the last 5.4 miles on a dirt road) to the Mount Success Trailhead:

Beautiful Day in New Hampshire:

At one point, they were paving the road near Jefferson, New Hampshire, which gave me the chance to stop and take a picture of an iconic New England Church:

At 2:30, I was one of five cars parked at the trailhead:

After 10 minutes you are into the woods:

And at 1.25 miles you are GOING UP:

To give you an overview of the whole hike, it should have been 6 miles, but I took a side-trail looking for plane wreckage (did not find it):

At about 1.5 miles you get to the side-trail for the "Outlook Loop":

Pretty impressive views from the "Outlook Loop":

Back on the Success Trail, things can get a little boggy:

So, I'm an-hour-and-twenty-minutes (2.4 miles) into this hike, and I'm feeling pretty good. The description I read said something about "plane wreckage" off on a side-trail. I'm not a "plane wreckage" groupie (I know they are out there - you may be one), but I thought "Well, a little side-trip might be cool." So up into the woods I went:

It was a Very Hard hike. At 1/4 mile, I caught up with a guy and his son, who asked if I was "Looking for the plane crash?" (that means we hadn't passed it). Saying Yes, I continued (faster than them) for another 1/4 mile and gave up. There were these weird signs on the trees:

This trail sure is nowhere near the US/Canada Border, and it also certainly is not part of the Appalachain Trail!

Well, that was certainly a waste of 45 minutes/a mile!

Back on Success Trail, heading for the Summit:

Cool USGS Marker to add to my collection:

South of the Main Peak is a sub-peak. To quote the 52-With-A-View book: "Just below this ledge to the south is an expansive sub-alpine meadow traversed by bog bridges where cotton grass blooms in late summer.":

I would call it a "bog" instead of a "sub-alpine meadow", but then you might not get as many hikers:

Nice views on the sub-peak:

Back on the main peak, that is my way back down:

To quote the 52-With-A-View book: "The trail drops off a small chimney-like section, which can be tricky if wet. Hikers with long legs have an advantage here.":

I wound up doing 6.9 miles in 3 hours 49 minutes - great hike, except for the silly little side-trip. Thank You God for this great "52 With A View" day!

For my listening pleasure today:

Patty Larkin - Tango, 1991

Lyle Lovett - I Love Everybody, 1994

Actually, I don't need to keep this album.

Madonna - The Immaculate Collection, 1990 greatest-hits album

Taj Mahal - Giant Step/De Ole Folks at Home, 1969 double album (electric and acoustic)

The first album (Giant Step) is a really good electric album; the second (De Ole Folks at Home) is banjo-traditional-blues. Not my cup of tea.

Dave Mason - Alone Together, 1970 solo debut album

Dave Mason's 1st album after he quit Traffic. I like it.

John Cougar Mellencamp - Big Daddy, 1989

Bruce Springsteen - The Wild, The Innocent & The E Street Shuffle, 1973 second album

I think this is my favorite album by Bruce and the gang. Wendy and I are going to see him at Gillette Stadium tomorrow night (note from the future: He played "Kitty's Back", "The E Street Shuffle", and "Rosalita" - all from this album - excellent!)

The Rolling Stones - Flashpoint, 1991 live album

Bruce Springsteen - Western Stars, 2019 album

Shameless Plug: if you enjoy this blog, you may like my other one about visiting Art Museums and National Parks (and hiking in the Rockies)
hyperlink: dixonheadingwest
http://dixonheadingwest.blogspot.com/

52 With A View: Mount Wolf (delisted)

Thursday, August 17, 2023 - This is a zoomed-in map of the New Hampshire "52 With A View" - I have climbed 23 of them so far. I'll be doing Mount Wolf (delisted) today:

The "52-With-A-View" list was started in 1990. Since then. primarily because of forest growth (those darn trees just keep growing UP), 2 peaks have been "delisted" - Mount Wolf and Carr Mountain. But, as they say in The Book: "... both peaks are described here in detail for both historical purposes as former list peaks and for 52WAV completists." I guess I'm a "completist".

I started at my Breakfast-in-Boston and then went "a little over 2 hours" north:

Clouds/Mist in New Hampshire:

I was actually FINE with the clouds/mist. Mount Wolf is actually "Delisted" because the forest has grown-up, but it will be a Great Hike through the woods (and up a Mountain!). Parked a little after 11:

I will be hiking on Kinsman Ridge Trail, which is part of the Appalachian Trail:

It is REALLY WET up here. I really like this moss-covered boulder:

On the other hand, I really DO NOT LIKE the mud, and the non-draining trails, and I feel that I (as a citizen of New England) have to apologize to all the AT thru-hikers for the lousy quality of this particular trail:

In one spot, these log-walkways are a couple of inches under water:

I prefer to think of these woods as "lush":

After about 4 miles I reached the side-trail up to the "Outlook":

Not much "outlook" up at the "Outlook":

I went back down to the main trail, and back-tracked 0.2 miles to the "herd path" which goes up to the Summit:

Up at the Summit, I can see why the mountain was delisted:

4 miles back on the A.T.

I wound up doing 8.42 miles in 5 hours 26 minutes - excellent workout:

Wendy was out at a play, so I got a pizza from Ellie's Pizza and a green pepper from Crosby's, and settled in for a wonderful evening. Thank You God for this great "52 With A View" day!

For my listening pleasure today - all from a cds I burned 20 years ago, in wma format:

Wendy and I did a day-trip to Block Island this week. As we were coming home, we listened to the triple-album Woodstock - the music still SOUNDS GREAT! So today I'm starting with "the next album from Woodstock":

various artists - Woodstock Two, 1971 live double-album

Some good music (Crosby, Stills and Nash, Jefferson Airplane), but a lot of garbage (Melanie, Mountain), and I'm not a fan of the Hendrix material on the album.

Broadway - A Chorus Line, 1975 Broadway cast album

So, last night Wendy and I saw a new episode of "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds" called "Subspace Rhapsody". They encounter a subspace anomaly which randomly forces members of the crew to burst into song (and dance), and they can only break out of it by EVERYONE (Klingons included) SINGING (and dancing)! Well, with that under my belt, this Broadway album is the perfect thing for today.

The Allman Brothers Band - An Evening with the Allman Brothers Band: 2nd Set, 1995 live album

Excellent music, played loud (because I'm on the highway), but I can still hear the music. A 10-minute acoustic version of "In Memory of Elizabeth Reed"; 12:32 of "Back Where It All Begins", and ending with 16 minutes of "Jessica"!!!

The Beach Boys - Endless Summer, 1974 compilation album

21 songs, going from "Surfin' Safari" (1962) up to "Good Vibrations" (1967) - A GREAT COLLECTION!

The Bo Deans - Joe Dirt Car, 1995 double live-album

I only listened to a half-dozen "best songs" on this album. That was enough.

Shameless Plug: if you enjoy this blog, you may like my other one about visiting Art Museums and National Parks (and hiking in the Rockies)
hyperlink: dixonheadingwest
http://dixonheadingwest.blogspot.com/