Gridding out November

It’s been a while since we did an overambitious hike, so I suppose it was overdue.  Me and my big ideas!

And that’s October for the Grid!

It’s nearly November, but it felt like early September.  I dutifully packed layers, but of course I never needed any of them.  I was actually surprised I didn’t need to strip down to the crop top.  I was tempted at a few points on the ascent!

Whiteface Mountain

 

It was only half the plan.  But it was not nearly as bad as I was expecting.

Well, call me a gridiot.

I guess I just need to face the truth.  
I keep saying I’m not seriously doing it.  But I think it’s pretty obvious I’m going to.  Even if it takes a while (which it will).  
It actually makes sense in many ways.  It is an attainable goal for me, physically.  It’s local, so easily accessible.  And I’m out on most of these trails anyway, so already have 30% of the list done, by chance.  (Besides, the patch is super pretty, too!)
So that settles it.  I’m guess I’m officially going for the Belknap Grid.

Redline Wrap-up, Belknap Mt. & The Crash

And that's a wrap!  Hummingbird and I have officially hiked every trail in the Belknap Range, and qualified for the Redlining patch! 🏅 It was a relatively short finish hike, however it was definitely not quick…

Round Pond redlining loop

We are now one hike away from the Belknap redlining patch!  We’re super excited to finish.  This has been a long time coming.

10 Things I Hate About Camping

The summer season is wrapping up, and Hawk wanted to get in a camping trip this year.  Not backpacking, which I literally cannot do, but loading up the car and tenting at a campground.  It's been a while, between the pandemic and our busy schedules.  Which was entirely fine by me!  But I agreed to go.  The trip did not improve my opinion of camping.

Local Hiking Challenge - 7 Trails in 1 Day!

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…

Family Hike: Indian Head and Flume Gorge

Parched, Sondra (who still needs a trail name), Hummingbird, Hawk, and Dragonfly

The last time we hiked Mt. Pemigewasset, aka Indian Head, it was completely socked in.  And rainy.  The only view we saw was the edge of the cliff and a thick wall of cloud.  Which was still kind of cool, but not what we hoped for.  I knew the reputation of the panorama on that peak (there’s a reason it’s on the 52 With a View list), so I wanted to return some day in fairer conditions.

Conditions in Oct. 2020.

Belknap Redlining - final stretch

We're so close!  Only two hikes to go!  
It was another hot and humid day, but it finally stopped raining, so we hit the trails for a big productive hike.