I wasn't sure what to expect from Mt. Chocorua. I'd only hiked it once two years ago, in a very ambitious hiking year with lots of challenging peaks & trails. We combined it with Middle Sister when Hawk & I did it then, so I only had stats from that bigger hike. Obviously I survived it, and doing Choc alone would be at least slightly easier. And I remember enjoying it all and wanting to return, but also recall my hip went out on the summit, which was not as fun. (I don't know if it was related to the difficulty of the hike, or if it was coincidental. Probably some combination, as that does happen to me at times.) What I didn't remember was how I felt physically (other than my hip issues) after that hike. And this year has most definitely not been as ambitious. I've been mostly focused on smaller trails, and do not feel in as quite good shape as I did in 2020. On top of that, I happened to be having somewhat higher pain levels in general this past week. So I really didn't know how I would handle Choc this time around.
One saving grace was this time I would not be wearing my big pack. I loaded my more manageable sling bag with food & water, as well as my poles, which hang nicely from the top loop, and Hawk carried my jackets in his pack. (Ironic in a way, since the jackets weigh less than my other supplies. LOL) Hummingbird was also generous enough to take my extra water when I realized how heavy my bag was with two bottles. I greatly appreciate both of them splitting up my gear so I could have a more comfortable hike! (As does my f'ed up back!)
Joining us today were my sister and brother-in-law (who kindly offered to carry some of my gear as well.) Yay, epic family hike! I keep telling them they need to move back to NH so we can do this more, and more easily. Currently they live in CT, and started driving before 5am to meet us at the trailhead. They literally left at the exact time I was just waking up! I seriously cannot imagine setting an alarm for 3 or 4 am, and personally don't think any hike is worth getting up that early for. Or driving that many hours for, for that matter. … Now I feel like saying that, I'm going to end up putting my foot in my mouth and being proven wrong some day when I do something similar. 😂 (Actually, I did get up at a comparably ridiculous time once in Acadia to watch the early summer sunrise with Hawk, but we did not hike quite that early or steadily stay out the whole day. We did have a full day of hiking, but returned to the cabin for food and breaks once or twice, so that was manageable. Unlike my apparent need to go off on tangents…) In any case, I was happy to have my family together once again for a hike this weekend.
My brother-in-law Parched (so named because he drinks an insane amount of water on trail), has recently taken a deep dive into hiking. Much like Hawk, when he goes for something, he often goes all out. Both he and my sister Sondra, who is still in search of a trail name, have gotten involved with the AMC, taken classes & hiker trainings, and gone on several group hikes and backpacking trips. Parched apparently even started hike leader training! And he and Hawk recently began hiking together on occasion, which is a feat in itself, as Hawk has trouble finding compatible hiking partners, and luckily (for many reasons) they seem to work well together. Meanwhile, I think it was Sondra who got them started, when I inspired her to take the 52 Hike Challenge last year. She's kicking butt at those, and finding different local challenges to add in. CT does not have a lot of elevation, but they have found a multitude of lovely trails near their home. However, due to that terrain, Sondra is not as used to bigger mountain hikes, so she was concerned about her speed on Choc. She handled it just find though, and we made it out well before dark (which seemed to be her biggest worry.)
The hike began with far more water crossings than any of us (who've previously hiked Chocorua) remembered. The trails were also pretty muddy most of the way, so that part was unpleasant. I realized that many of our recent rain storms were centered up north, so that probably explained the muckiness. Oh my poor, pretty, purple shoes! (I swear I am not a diva in the least, but I really prefer keeping my feet dry and clean - esp. when I'm wearing a beautiful new pair of Brooks. Oh well. They're certainly "broken in" now!) On the plus side, the wet conditions did contribute to more water flow on the various falls in the area. Still, it was unexpected just how strongly they were flowing on Champney Brook trail, as those typically go dry in the summer. But this weekend they were more impressive than any of us had ever seen them, including Hummingbird, who’s hiked here many times before. The amazing falls made it extra special for us. I also enjoyed listening to the banter between Parched and Hawk about which was better; waterfalls or grand summit views. Hawk insisted it's the views that top the list for him, and Parched agreed that they absolutely were the second best part of any hike, next to waterfalls. LMAO Fun times.
The rest of the hike up was relatively uneventful. I'd consider the hike as a whole to be in the upper moderate difficulty range. Conditions were mainly rocky, with continued mud, and very little actual smooth trail. This did slow us down a bit, and got a little tiring, and we did not look forward to the descent, but it wasn’t horrible overall. Having good company and conversation surely helped pass the time, and made the ascent more fun.
The weather was perfect. Temperatures started out low, but we delayered even faster than expected. It got a little cool by the waterfalls, but we warmed right back up as soon as we started climbing again. I suspected jackets would go back on once we hit the open summit, as the wind chill typically warrants some protection. And the forecast was only in the mid-40’s. I believe it got warmer than that. The sun was intense in the bright blue sky, and felt wonderfully warm when we emerged from the shaded trail. I also must remember that it stays low in the sky this time of year, and is blinding without a hat, no matter the time of day. This definitely added another layer of challenge on the rocky summit, where it’s kind of helpful to be able to see, since it’s fairly serious climbing and scrambles.
About a half mile from the top, shortly after the terrain became more smooth rock slabs, we came to a lovely open area protectively surrounded by trees. There was room to spread out, and the sun felt nice. I decided it was a good place to pause for lunch, since I figured lingering that long on the usually windy summit would be more difficult. It’s also typically crowded up there, so that was another reason to enjoy this uncongested spot. I also just like rocks, in case you weren’t aware. 😉 I basically threw myself onto the slab when we approached it, partly because it was just that appealing, and partly just for the sake of being silly. Hummingbird later snapped an epic pic of me that looks completely and unintentionally inappropriate. We find it hilarious. I’m not sure what I was doing; probably struggling to get back up off the ground. But the angle of the camera, and the position of my body, and the location of it relative to a nearby sign post, make it look like maybe some kind of weird pole dance gone wrong. 🤣 And honestly, that’s a cleaner version of our first impression. As tempted as I am to share this photo, because it really is a riot, I think I’ll forego the urge to make it public. LOL I'm sure Hawk will be thankful for it not being publicly associated with him. He's stuck with the real me; that's hard enough.
After a snack, we continued to the summit. We were surprised and happy to find that there was practically no wind even up there, and what little breeze we occasionally felt was a welcome refresh in the warm sun. We were also happy to see a very large group of people starting their descent, so that meant that much less of a crowd at the top. There were still plenty of hikers, although it was not crawling with them like during the "on season." Several people were in costume for an early Halloween hike. My favorite was a couple dressed as cookies and milk. The cookie lady had her poles crossed and strapped to her back, on a giant disc designed like a chocolate chip cookie, which looked like a shield. I told her she looked like a cookie ninja. Awesome. Her milk carton boyfriend was waiting at the top for her, where she seemed nervous to climb to, but she eventually made her way up after us. Hooray! I was also amused when I overheard someone commenting about their own attire, which apparently was not "proper" performance gear. There is solid advice to not wear cotton when hiking, because it can actually be dangerous in certain conditions. This person exclaimed loudly, "cotton didn't kill today, baby!" Well, no, not in this weather, for sure. But I often make the same joke when I hike in jeans or a regular tee shirt, so I definitely laughed. (However, for a hike of this caliber, I do stick with performance fabrics, because it's just more comfortable and functional. Yeah, Hawk trained me well. Even if I don't always listen to him.) Another big crowd, who I suspect some of these individuals were a part of, was doing some sort of hiking challenge that involved drinking at a certain number of summits. Not my style, although they said it didn't have to be alcohol; just anything but water or some other beverage I'm forgetting now. (Hmm, smoothie hike? Tea time hike?) I'm willing to bet, though, that most of the people who take that challenge choose booze. PSA: we strongly recommend against consumption of alcohol during any hike, and especially not on the summit of a technical mountain such as Chocorua! Save it for after the hike, and when you're done driving. The end.
But not the end of our hike! The summit of Choc is a bit of a free for all. There is an official trail, but once you hit the big rocks, you kind of just choose your battle. We scattered somewhat in places, finding our own way to climb upward. It's a lot of fun, and other than the sun in my eyes, I enjoyed it more this time than last, since I didn't feel like the wind was literally going to blow me off the mountain if I unplastered my body from the ledges. Sondra & Parched took the easier route for her sake, and of course Hawk took the hardest way he could manage. I followed some of his route, and at other times, made my own more reasonable one. Hummingbird challenged herself to some extra climbing than completely necessary, working on overcoming her acrophobia. Go, girl!
Eventually we all regrouped on the summit, where the last large crowd soon cleared off, leaving a decent amount of elbow room for us and the remaining hikers. Someone graciously offered to take some group photos for us, which we were grateful for. I also got Hummingbird to take some pics of just me & Hawk together, after I snapped some shots of Sondra & Parched posing. I was on a roll of making stupid faces today, or otherwise looking terrible in nearly every photo (even more than usual!), and there was major purging of the camera roll, but thankfully a few came out at least ok. I particularly loved the string of romantic pics of me & Hawk smooching, though they fell apart at the end when I started laughing at Hummingbird telling us to knock it off. 😂 I mean, it was a completely appropriate PDA, but understandable that she'd get sick of us. Honestly, I did not expect Hawk to kiss me that long either. But I appreciated the little heart flutter. 🥰
Of course, humans were not the primary subject of photography up there. The summit offers an incredible 360 view. It doesn't even matter than there were very few remaining autumnal hues in the valleys below; the panorama is amazing. The number of peaks in the surrounding mountain ranges is crazy; it looks like a giant rock slide, or huge piles of jagged boulders in a heavenly quarry. I snapped my camera in every direction probably two or three times. Partly because I couldn't see what I was photographing due to the sun. I was left with an overwhelming number of photos, nearly all of which were beautiful and hard to narrow down to a select few favorites. But I can't post them all, so here are a handful.
Ok, that was a couple handfuls. Still only a fraction of what I took for pictures!
So how did I handle Mt. Chocorua in the end? Well, besides a touch of sunburn (note to self: listen to that voice that says put sunscreen on my face, just in case)… At first, on the ride home, I was encouraged that I didn't feel dead. Well worn, yes, but not overly strained. I figured a dose of arnica and some Deep Blue, along with rest, and my usual yoga stretches, would have me back to normal in 24 hours or so. Unfortunately, despite all of that, the strain set in after I settled at home, and I was feeling it for nearly two days after, esp. in my calves. Ugh. I'm definitely not in "big mountain" shape this year. That said, I still want to hike Choc again, next time hopefully exploring a different trail. Until then, I'll continue chasing my other hiking goals, and chasing new trails and adventures.
Blessed Samhain. 🍁
Hike 49. 10/29 Mt. Chocorua, 8.2 mi, 5:36 hrs, 2267 ft.
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