Yesterday was a unique adventure a year in waiting.
Last year I signed up for a special group hike on the one day I was available, but unfortunately it was canceled due to weather, so I missed out. This year I signed up again with Hummingbird (one benefit to the wait), and after a few forecast scares, the weather cooperated and the group hike thankfully proceeded.
The tricky part — and the reason for our long wait — is that you can only get to this hiking trail via boat.
I was supposed to make a video about Quannippi Trail, which follows the Merrymeeting River from Rt. 140 to Alton Bay. I really intended to finally do that on this hike… and I tried! Unfortunately (sparing the boring/stressful details I alluded to in my socials post) it did not work out.
But you won’t be surprised that I did take plenty of photos. So for now everyone will have to continue settling for those and written descriptions. I do have other blog entries about Quannippi Trail, so if you’re looking for more details as you pursue the Alton Trail Chaser patch, I encourage you to check those out as well.
Alton Trail Chaser is back in the papers!
Of course, I believe a local hiking challenge and conservation fundraising is a totally newsworthy public interest story!
This was a nice boost of publicity for the new year. 😊
Front page article in The Baysider.
Also published in the Laconia Daily Sun.
Original article below.
p.s. Two new finishers in 2026 so far! 🥾
Quannippi Trail has been giving some people a bit of trouble. While it’s one of the easiest “hikes” in the Alton Trail Chaser challenge, there is a significant lack of easily accessed information about it. I actually started second guessing whether I should take it off the list. However, the point is to include ALL of the official foot trails in town. Each one has a purpose or intention. So it shall remain for now.
In the past weeks, I have been digging up all the data I can about Quannippi Trail. I certainly had to dig deep! Most of what I finally uncovered came from published town meeting minutes. Alton Parks & Rec was kind enough to send me their brochure and map (see below) for the trail, which further confirms that it IS an official, active town trail. Although the town does not proactively maintain the footpath, they provide trail information and will replace signage as needed.
Back in July, I sent out press releases about the ATC challenge. Soon our local newspaper The Baysider published my article. A month or so later, I got an email from the Laconia Daily Sun requesting an interview. The timing was perfect for another round of publicity, so I was grateful for the "late" opportunity. Also, much as I like having my own writing published, in a way it feels extra special to have a publication make the effort to cover the story themselves.
The Sun article was published on Sept. 2. You can read the full digital copy of it on their website.
I do need to make a couple small corrections, however...
First, my original inspiration for earning hiking patches came from the Belknap Range peaks patch, not the LRCT challenges (which quickly followed). But in fairness, I did ramble (as promised/warned to the reporter) during the interview, so I can forgive that tiny mix up. LOL
The first mention of Trask Swamp had a typo that I immediately caught - "Track" - which just proves that spellcheck/AI can't completely replace human proofreading & editing!
There is also the inconsistency of "red liner" vs. "redliner" - the latter typically being correct, although the Belknap redlining patch itself actually does seem have it embroidered as two words. Weird. But in this context, technically the single, compound word "redline" is grammatically correct.
Most importantly, I must address an omission near the end. The article stated "those with a Hike Safe card are not responsible for repaying costs if they need rescuing." While this is partially true, it should have clarified that if you are negligent (like hiking up the Presidentials gearless or attempting rock scrambles in flip flops), you are held responsible whether you have a Hike Safe card or not, which I made very clear in the interview. The statement without this detail could be misleading to readers, so it should not have been edited out. (Incidentally, that was the first mistake Hummingbird jumped on when she read the story, so it's definitely prominent.)
Personally, I also would have worded a few other things in the article differently, but everyone has their own writing style. Regardless of any of these mistakes or editing choices, I am ever so grateful for the publicity and support by my local newspapers! Anything that helps spread the word about the Alton Trail Chaser patch is awesome. 💖 So please share this blog with your hiking friends!
Note to publishers: I am available for proofreading or writing services! 😉
I've been so grateful for the support that so many have shown for my ATC patch! Hikers express interest in the program, applications roll in faster than I expected, and organizations publish information about it. 💗 LRCT recently gave me a shout out in their newsletter. And last week our local newspaper, The Baysider, published an article regarding the new hiking challenge. It's not my first time in the papers (I made the news repeatedly many years ago when active in grooming competitions & dog shows), but it's still a little thrill to be mentioned. 😉
You can read the whole paper online here or go to salmonpress.com, click on archives, and open issue 2025-07-17. There is some interesting news in there! But here is a copy of the section about Alton Trail Chaser for easier navigating (I threw together a quick layout in Adobe Illustrator). 😊
Thus ends my latest brag. LOL As always, keeping following me on social media for the most hiking updates. I will post any blog-worthy news here... which, in a couple weeks, I probably will have something new & exciting to share! 🍀
Three or four years ago, I had an idea to create a local hiking challenge and patch for hiking all of the various trails in Alton, NH. Within this single, "small" town's borders, we have over 14 hiking trails, from gentle footpaths to mountain climbs and everything in between. Certainly Alton deserves its own hiking patch! Add in my creative propensity and hiking patch addiction, and it only seemed fitting that I produce this permanent, year-round hiking challenge. 😊
It was a long journey that hit several speed bumps, but I am excited to finally announce the launch of Alton Trail Chaser, aka the ATC Challenge! Hike all 14 official trails/destinations in town and earn a patch. Get all the details here on my blog.
20% of any net profits from patch or ATC merch sales will be donated to conservation funds, probably starting with LRCT. If you have another favorite charity for me to consider in the future, please drop me a note!
Thank you to everyone who offered advice and encouragement along the way! I was thrilled to already hear from several people who are interested in my patch program. I hope everyone enjoys adding it to their collection while exploring my hometown trails! 
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| Mack overlook |
Long overdue blog… but it's hard to find the time to write (between business, college, life, and of course hiking). Plus not every hike is worthy of a full story, so a few pics and #hashtags is all it takes. 😉 I do keep up on instagram/facebook, which honestly is enough of a time suck too. 😂 But it is comparatively quick & easy. You can always stay up to date on my hiking adventures there. Meanwhile I keep the blog for bigger stories.
Hummingbird and I have continued to go hard at the Belknap Grid. We currently have 5 months completed (not all consecutive), with several more half done, and are intending to grid out June! If things go as planned (take notice weatherman!) we should be able to finish this month very efficiently AND include a girls' hike with my sister! 😊
Well, this certainly would have been an epic hike #52 if I was officially doing the 52 Hike Challenge this year! I've been keeping track, but not with the intention of getting another patch I already have. At least just yet. Maybe if I hit 104 hikes (52x2) before the calendar turns, I'll commemorate it… Not sure I'll make it, but we'll see. The real goal this year is just hiking when we can.
If you follow my blog, you also know that Hummingbird and I are very close to finishing the Belknap Redlining patch, so that's a definite 2023 goal. We had every intention of doing our second to last trail loop this weekend, which I slated for a big productive day hike some time ago, when I learned Hawk was going to be away. Funny how plans change…
A while back, Hummingbird and I somehow came up with the idea of doing a night hike with glow jewelry. Because, yes, this is what normal women in their 40's do for fun. (I'll bet you that's actually true, and if someone thinks it's dumb, they're probably just jealous of our awesomeness. ;-)
Technically this was a moderate loop hike, and certainly not excessive mileage, but this was still our first time hitting over 1000 ft of elevation gain this year. We even got a couple miles more than any of our other hikes this past month and a half. So not a bad start to getting back in shape, working up to climbing more mountains.
It's been an extra busy week, and an equally slammed weekend. I had plans to ski with Hawk, but ended up stuck at home with an unexpected load of homework. (Yes, I'm now trying to balance work, life AND college. Yikes.) Meanwhile, Hummingbird was drowning in tax preparations (because she is an accountant who does more accounting on weekends just for fun. Right.) Understandably, we knew we'd both be in need of a computer break at some point in the day. So we planned a local quickie hike, and hoped to time it before all the snow melted off the trees. But even if it did, it'd still be exercise. That's our current motto. Good or bad conditions, it all counts. We both need to get back in shape. (I suppose those brownies I made tonight negate any benefit I got. But, well, rule #1* is in play. And I earned them, dammit!)
This afternoon, Hummingbird and I finally explored the trail that continues past where we usually hike Avery Hill. Gene from the conservation commission recommended it earlier in the year, and we've held it as a "unique" hike option for when we want something quick, easy, and local. We didn't have super high expectations, but we were told it was pretty. We kind of wish we'd gone sooner now. We definitely will go again!
This morning I dropped Hawk off in Pinkham Notch for a short backpacking trip. It's a long drive, so I planned to take advantage of being in the area and do some of my own hiking. Square Ledge topped my list of possibilities. It's one of those "big bang for your buck" hikes; short, fun, and sweeping views. Unfortunately, conditions weren't terrific. They were fine, but just very gray. Every now and then, the sun would break through and shine on the mountaintops, and it'd be gorgeous, but then the next minute everything would be in the clouds again. I wavered a lot, but between that and the idea of doing rock scrambles alone, I eventually decided that the effort wasn't worth the potential of not getting those views, so I just continued south. I figured I'd regret it in short order, which I did a tiny bit, but it's ok. I'll do it another time, hopefully in clearer weather. Meanwhile I had other plans awaiting.
The benefit of hiking further south is that I got to keep my trail runners on. No boots, no spikes, just comfy shoes. So that had added appeal as well. After a stop at REI, another "since I'm in the area" thing to take advantage of, I made my way to Madison Boulder. I'm sort of working on the NH Rocks That Rock list - I say "sort of" because it's not a serious pursuit (compared to my other hiking goals), but I'll try to get a checkmark if I'm in the area of one. That's precisely what I did today. The access road that you hike in on was not as ridiculously short as I expected, but that was actually a positive. At the end, you'll find the largest known glacial erratic in North America. Yup, it's a big rock. And that's about it!
From there, I headed homeward, meeting Hummingbird at Cotton-Hurd, one of our local trails. We had talked about doing some Squam redlining, but for various reasons, switched to something closer to home at the last minute. While Cotton-Hurd blue trail (which we did a couple weeks ago) is an easy, flat to gently rolling woodland walk, yellow trail is surprisingly more "hikey." It's no mountain, of course, but it's a decent workout! We always seem to forget this fact. It's also extra sketchy right now with so many slippery leaves on the steeper sections of trail. I must remember to only do this hike in winter with spikes, or mid-summer when the trail is clearer. What doesn't differ between each trail is that neither side is particularly photogenic. There are some fairly pretty spots along the brook, and the trails themselves are nice enough, and certainly some times of the year are prettier than others, but it's not comparable to a peak with grand views, obviously. Today, however, was perfect timing for a forest trail like this, with the increasingly dreary weather, when viewpoints would be relatively drab anyway. And we got Hummingbird another unique hike, as she closes in on the finish line for her 52.
So it wasn't the ambitious day of hiking I had originally envisioned, but it turned out alright. It was productive. And I certainly have plenty of energy left to do more hiking over the holiday! (If I can find the time, between cooking and other prep.) We shall see what transpires…
11/23 Madison Boulder, .8 mi, 20 min, 20 ft.
& Cotton-Hurd yellow trail, 2.2 mi, 54 min, 305 ft.
There was an incident somewhat recently where a hiker fell off a cliff along Precipice Path and was airlifted out with serious head trauma. My best guess is that it was around this spot. It's a good example of how not take these "little" mountains for granted; they can be just as dangerous as some of the Whites.
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| Me being silly, imagine that. |
On the drive over, glancing up at the suddenly hazy sky, I wasn't sure if we'd get much for a pretty sunset. But as I passed the viewpoint along Alton Mt. Rd. I was reminded that the sight of the lake and mountains would be worth the hike either way.
It was a late morning start at one of the state's most popular hiking destinations… Thank God it's still the off-season!
