a cardigan mountain tradition...

the day: august 7, hot, hazy, and humid...thank godess it was breezy up high! in the shade and with some moving air, it was tolerable. 

the adventure: it's almost a tradition, when the philly folk are at the stone house, we try and get up cardigan. if the stars align, on the way home, we even stop and pick blueberries at the darling's. a few preparatory emails-- 

b: "hey, can you go up cardigan with us on friday?"
k: "yeah. let's do it early before it gets too oppressive"
b: "sounds good to me..."

we alternated between the west ridge trail and the ski trail. 

the memories: after a late night--celebrating quinn's 'sweet 16th', all we able to get out of bed to join bake, betsy, penn, klara, and i, was sammy. that worked out for him as he won the "guess how many cars will be in the parking lot?" contest on the drive up--"18"

two major hydration-snack stops later--plus a couple of pauses for minor adjustments, some flora & fauna observations, and maybe a spectacular view or two--and we were at the top!

after an explore the summit-dry off the sweat period, we started the descent. not too long on the downhill we split into two groups, one with brakes--led by klara, and one without--led by penn.

gertting near and again sitting at the bottom, penn's guesses as to how long the 'no-brakes / brakes' groups would be were nearly spot on. sammy was low, i was high, and betsy was working the clock. a final snack included a discussion of smooth vs. chunky along with favorite combinations to go with peanut butter, was a good finish to a grand day out!

notes:

• bake's bottomless bag of snacks was a win for all...
• the line of the day, from klara, "i need a map!"...
• i don't recall exactly, but the consensus seemed to lean toward the classic oreo vs. the double chocolate (oh, and betsy's chunky peanut butter preference rules!)...
  
• beware photo-bombers on the summit...

go outside and play!

up mt washington--an 'ode' to billy

the day: the 25th of july, yet another beautiful day in the neighborhood! and more importantly, up in the white mountains. sunny and somewhere in the 70's. not too windy save for some breeze up top. not bad at all for "the worst weather in the world."

the adventure: if you live in new england and love to go outside and play! hiking up mount washington is likely on your bucket list. iona asked me 'to do' it a while back, and her father billy's death last year, shifted it to the front burner.

there are dozens of paths up washington, but since billy and i met and had many adventures out of the amc pinkham notch complex, we planned to start there. and what better path to take than the tuck trail, directly through the bowl, over the alpine garden, ending at the summit. 

we came down lion's head back to the tuck trail. then between 2nd and 3rd bridge we cut over to the sherburne ski trail--"far from the madding crowd."

the memories: way too many memories--past and present--to record here, but all of them had me smiling. i had a little déjà vu filling iona's water bottle at the pump next to hermit lake, just below tuckerman ravine. as we climbed into 'the bowl' it struck me that i hadn't been up here in the summer, in a long time. 

without snow, it didn't look familiar until things started to get steep and i saw a person, perched on a rock playing a recorder. when we came up to them, we were greeted with a "hello. is that koby..." it was a former student, danny -- what pam calls "a koby sighting." he was there supporting sea to summit triathlon racers. it was sobering that some of the top finishers passed us on the way up.

as we got closer to the top, we started to hear people and vehicles--and a loud cheer for one of the triathletes. it was a shock for iona. lots, as in hundreds, of people up there. after a bit of a sit, we found one of them to take a summit shot standing on an overlook. you can almost see lake of the clouds hut off behind us--back in the day billy worked there some. 

going down lion's head, i got a shoe caught and took a tumble.
iona saw it and thought it somewhat elegant, until the blood started pouring out of my hat. ever up to an emergency, she cleaned & patched things up and we continued to descend. 

knees for iona and my quads significantly slowed us on the down. after we crossed over to the sherbie and we got to a steep little headwall i thought i remembered, i pronounced it the "last steep section...i think." iona was not convinced but thankfully, there were only four more after that. by the time we got to the bottom of the last one, we were about spent, but down.

notes:

• just like a long bike ride, bring electrolytes--blueberries are nice too!... 
  
• going up is always easier than coming down--and not just because you are knackered...
• hiking with iona in billy's fleece and under tracey's hat made special even more so...
• tomorrow, take iona, tracey, and pam up square ledge--if our legs still work...

go outside and play!

a birthday bike ride

the day: july 17th, another beautiful day in the neighborhood! and beyond, all the way across central new hampshire into maine... sunny but not hot, in the low 70's, a decent breeze most of the day. given it is mid- july and air quality has been crazy bad with smoke from the wildfires in minnesota and ontario, it was pretty much heaven with cool~ish, clean air--just for our ride.

the adventure: taylor and i have been thinking of riding over to maine to visit kevin & mariel and clayton, their oldest. i've been biking to kevin's for years, always trying to whittle a few miles off. so far, it seems like all my shortcuts end in the name "...hill"! 

taylor lives--and runs the 'last stop bike shop'--on province road in dorchester, a favorite shortcut. the last time i rode home, i cut over that way from the back side of plymouth, through hebron and groton. there's a sweet 'untraveled' gravel stretch, with a washed out bridge a mile or so from taylor's house. no cars = very pleasant riding! it made a fine start!!

we went around a couple of the other "...hills" but mostly stuck to my shortest version. not even sure how far we actually road, but probably in the neighborhood of 80 miles. 

the memories: we did go over the durgin covered bridge--off of "fellow's hill"--between sandwich and tamworth, as it was not washed out. later, going up a long steep "moody hill," we were passed by a police car with lights and siren on, going fast. a half mile further, going down an even longer steeper "glines hill," four police cars, lights still flashing, were parked, dealing with an suv, perched precariously down in the ditch, nearly flipped over.

tactfully avoiding "sam brown hill"--we actually missed our turn flying down another hill on the brownfield road--we ended up carrying our bikes across another river, as we headed up to kevin's. how à propos, a bridge out - river crossing on the first and last mile!

notes:

• pack light but for gosh sakes bring electrolytes and stay hydrated... 
  
• "...hills" might make the trip shorter, but they are not always your friend (ask the driver of the car in the ditch--taylor heard the cops giving him a ticket as we passed)...
• thank you pam, a last slice of the birthday cheesecake was a delicious treat...
• ride--and ski!--with taylor more often...

go outside and play!

back on moose mountain, "whoppin' and hollerin'!" with noah

the day: a week ago, the 27th, a beautiful day in the neighborhood! it was in the teens when we left the house, but the sun was out and it was bound to get warmer...

the adventure: noah--a new skier from north carolina--and i, went up wolfeboro road, to the AT and south peak on moose mountain, for his biggest backcountry experience to date. the snow was still soft enough to turn without too much of a struggle.

i have been up there a few times this year and as mentioned in the last goap! post, the coverage is great and few people ski it. i was aiming to take noah over to our stash we call the 'secret sherbie'--named for the sherburne ski trail down mt washington from tuckermans ravine. that was if the sun didn't turn the fluff into what is sometimes called 'wet cement.'

the memories: it was definitely the day to go out. only where the sun was shining on the snow, it was indeed getting softer. while it wasn't quite wet cement, it was thickening up and heavy enough to make turning in the deep real work. check out the chunky snow kicked up in a turn noah caught in a picture coming down a south facing slope from north peak. 

noah is really getting the hang of backcountry skiing. the AT trail coming down from south peak, was packed out by snowshoers. to keep our speeds safe, we often went 'off trail'. more than once, i heard a good bit of "whoopin' and hollerin'!" from his direction.

luckily, the 'secret sherbie' was shadier. with the temperature going up, the snow was getting heavy. i've always said, when you have the choice go left, that's why we took option B, avoiding a sunny option A. it went well--i heard another "whoop" when noah followed me over the "stump jump!" (scroll through this goap! post for a series of pics jumpin' the stump.)

notes:

• deep snow, even when it's getting heavy, 'unfluffy', is still heaven... 
  
• it's a joy to add noah to the history of "the best skiing ever!"
• we did share a spot of tea this time--cookies, chocolate, and some muffins too--but the picture i took with noah's fancy camera was out of focus...
• so glad noah is loving his new hampshire winter adventures. here's a picture he took of his ski up--and half way down (it's a long~ish story)--moosilauke this week...

go outside and play!

out in the backcountry, enjoying a very fine snow year!

the day: a couple of saturdays ago, the 14th, cold ~ish, maybe teens, and feeling like it could snow soon. definitely completely overcast--some wind but not in the woods ...

the adventure: simon and i had been trying to get out skiing for a while. he mostly has weekends and since i have been avoiding cardigan due to the increased activity up there, i suggested going up wolfeboro road, to the AT and south peak on moose mountain. 

i had been up there a couple weeks before and the coverage was great--since then, we had gotten another foot of powder. not too many people go up from the eastern, goose pond side. even fewer people go up another old road that branches off a ways up wolfboro. if you know where to turn left, you can cross over and hook up with what we like to call, the 'secret sherbie'--named for the sherburne ski trail down mt washington from tuckermans ravine.

all in all that gives a good bit of steep ~ish terrain. the AT is narrow, mostly less than a ski length wide-- sometimes, half that, even less. the old roads are mostly more than two ski lengths wide. even nicer than being wide, the 'secret sherbie,' totally opposite from wolfeboro road and the AT, there are practically no rocks.

the memories: deep snow, plenty of steep, and first tracks made for what simon's dad, skip, likes to call "best skiing ever!" there was plenty to smile about. even though i mentioned very few people use the trails we were on, we followed somebody hiking in my old ski tracks. no snowshoes, no skis, boot packing in the worst way. weirder still, the boot prints head off into the woods a half-mile from south peak. my comment to si, "whoa, they are on an adventure."

notes:

• deep fluffy snow is my idea of heaven... 
  
• i have a long history of "the best skiing ever" with simon--but i miss skip in the backcountry...
• first tracks on secret stashes are to be savored--that said, i don't mind sharing...
• a spot of tea is always appreciated--even when i forget the cookies...

go outside and play!

back in the saddle

the day: last tuesday, the 19th, partly sunny or partly cloudy--depending on your perspective, somewhere in the 70s with barely a breeze ...

the adventure: a couple of weeks prior to last tuesday, i got an email from a former student, lu, suggesting i ride over to vermont and meet them, camp, and then ride back to canaan the next day. i loaded up the panniers with all the essentials, hooked them onto the bike racks, and pedaled off. i made it over the connecticut river and was heading up hill out of east thetford. two loaded bikers came over the top of said hill and the one out front, crossed over the yellow line, and greeted me, "hellooo koby!"

it was lu and sophia, headed to cedar circle farm stand for a fancy espresso to go with lunch. they had been biking since friday, from white hall, new york, across vermont. we chatted over lunch and changed plans a bit to include riding through a covered bridge back over in orford new hampshire and a swim in post pond in lyme.

after a swim over to a raft, a 'cannonball' and a 'watermelon' splash, and a swim back, we returned to our changing barn--my friend dave lives across the road--and hashed over the rest of day's ride. it was an hour and a half back-west into vermont and camp up by vermontasaurous or an hour and a half ahead-east into new hampshire and camp at my house in canaan ...

the memories: though i was thinking a visit to the giant wooden dinosaur would generate some fun memories, i didn't push an agenda and let the two decide--we road east to canaan. i'm not sure, but the promise of going by the recent murder scene and a longboard session the following day may have helped them choose.

the riding was as pleasant as a loaded ride could be. though i went twice as far as planned and ate way less than half the food weight in my panniers, i was smiling the whole way. obviously, the company was the big hit and i would have ridden twice x "twice as far" to pedal next to lu. bonus, sophia is a grand biking companion--and she happily put up with my nostalgic stories of adventures with lu! (scroll through 'a pandemic summer and fall outside--plenty of playing!' for an account of the famous moose incident!) ...

notes:

• riding with folks half your age--or even less--is therapeutic... 
  
• cooking on a kitchen range is easier than a camp stove...
• a year out from hip replacement*--everything works well...
• i should post goap! more than once a year...

go outside and play!

ps--*the two snow storms--and 7-8 days of skiing--i mentioned in my last post on march 29, 2024, made me realize something had to be done with my hip. sawyer reminded me of the walking uphill at our eclipse viewing was also a good reason to go in and get it checked out and ultimately, get it replaced july 11th.

a late season blessing in a dismal snow year

the days: the last week in march. we finally got a honest to goodness snow storm, with 2 feet or more of fairly heavy, good snow-person making snow. that fell on saturday the 23. saturday into sunday, it got a bit colder and much windier drying out the snow pack for early sunday, before the sun came out and heated things up. monday and tuesday it was sunny ~ish. wednesday and thursday, there was rain off and on. ...

the adventures: shoveling saturday and sunday & skiing each day except wednesday. ...

the memories: saturday was epic for several reasons: the deep, heavy stuff was a blessing after a rather dissmal winter. but with nobody to help break trail, going up through the glades at the shaker wma, would prove to be brutal on the hip. i suppose plowing turns through the same stuff on the way down didn't help either. then it could have been the ski that submarined a blow down that did me in. or maybe dropping the saw on the ascent, and finally finding it on the descent, once i took the skis off and kicked through my trail. anyway, by the time i got home, i was hobbling around.

sunday, early morning was a totally different story, skiing 2 feet of dry fluff up on town hill, was comparitively effortless!  the trade off was after shoveling the rest of the day, it was my upper body that was spent. 

monday was a recovery day while i went to work, but i got another town hill run in as the sun was sinking. even though it had been in the 40s the whole afternoon, the snow was still deep and fluffy ~ish, enough to prompt several attempts to find that best line through the trees.

tuesday after work, with my hip coming back into shape, i went up town hill again. the snow was still fairly deep and covering most everything, but also, definitely getting heavier. wednesday was a total washout, though my body seemed to like the rest.

by thursday after work, the rain had stopped, so i geared up for a soggy attempt to get in one more run out the kitchen door. coverage was getting pretty sketchy, especially where it was more open to the sun and rain. still, on the north facing spots i found plenty of snow with only an occassional rock to avoid.

notes:

• the older i get, the more i appreciate vitamin I...
• playing out in two feet of snow will make you smile...
• i'm seeing one more large ~ish snow fall forecasted for later this week...
• even if that doesn't pan out, this last dump was a great 'end' to the local season...

go outside and play!

tubing with the kiddos

the day: jan 14th. blustery and squally, as in windy as all get out with snow coming down to beat the band! we got more than an inch--light and fluffy--in less than an hour. after the first squall blew over, the sun peeked out, until the next one blew in...

the adventure: tubing around with ethan and sadie...

the memories: sadie brought ethan over for lunch and more importantly, a bit of winter fun. he had his snow suit, boots, hat, and mittens, i had a tube, and we had fresh powder on top of a good crust, ie, perfect tubing...

when the snow wasn't blowing in his face, ethan was all smiles. only you couldn't quite see that as he was also chewing on his snow suit collar...

notes:

• snow is wonderful...
• playing in the snow with a daughter and grandkid is even better...
• thank you pam for your photo journalism...

go outside and play!

finding holiday fun sans snow...

the day: dec 25th. warm~ish for december--in the north country maybe, but probably avg on the cape--somewhere in the 40s°F. no sun or wind, and no ice on the pond...

the adventure: a not so 'polar', but definitely cold dip in jenkins pond, falmouth mass.

the memories: years ago when pam and i lived in chapel hill north carolina, i mowed our lawn during the last week of december--more to say i did it than an actual need. last friday, driving down to the cape for christmas, i started thinking that jumping into a body of water over the holidays would be a great addition to that odd legacy. 

when i suggested a dip to sawyer, he was all about it. he even had a reference for motivational support, "cold water dipping can be exhilarating and life changing."

i'm not sure about life changing but exhilarating is spot on! and you gotta love sawyer's classic line that the inches of muck on the bottom "keeps your feet warm!"

notes:

• the ocean may have been warmer...
• a cold dip with sawyer, "in team [boxers] no less," makes a great christmas present...
• maybe little ethe will join us someday--when he is not sleeping...

go outside and play!

skunked on moosilauke

the day: apr 9th. warm, headed toward 50°, brilliant sun in a clear blue sky with no wind. we saw plenty of snow, in spring condition, soft and easy to turn on, but none where we could actually ski it.

the adventure: moosilauke, the western face, dropping down toward tunnel brook. we were trying to get to the slide under the ridge leading up to the summit. 

the memories: according to the dictionary, "slog" can be a noun, "a spell of difficult, tiring work or travelling" or a verb, "to work hard over a period of time... exert oneself, keep at it, grind" i can attest to both. after taking our skis off for the 'hundredth time', shouldering them, and starting another march down the snowless trail, adam casually mentioned, "this is getting to be a real slog." or, after finally strapping the skis onto our packs and setting off once again, adam suggested, "let's slog on a bit more and try and get eyes on the slide."

add to that, "bushwhacking" a verb, meaning to travel by foot through uncleared terrain. once we left the trail angling up the ravine toward the slide, there was more than enough bush to whack our way through. not only were we on foot, going through uncleared terrain, the skis sticking up off our packs were whacking away as well.

the clearest path up the ravine toward the slide, followed the stream and included multiple crossings.  ski boots are fairly waterproof, but can be slippery, especially on "black ice" a noun, "a nearly transparent film of ice on a dark surface that is difficult to see" i only semi-slipped once and ended up stepping in above my boot tongue. it didn't soak my foot, but i could feel the wet.

at some point it all got to be too much, even dangerous, as we were starting to "posthole" a verb "to sink deeply into the snow with each step" often around "tree wells" a noun, "deep pockets of loose snow around evergreen or downed trees" so we turned back. having not even put on our skis, we were bummed--"skunked" slang verb, "being shut out or to be overwhelmingly defeated"

notwithstanding all of the above, "overwhelmingly defeated" is probably an overstatement. true we didn't get to ski, and rigid plastic boots are not made for walking--even less so with wet socks--but, it was a beautiful day to be out adventuring. 





notes:

• it was indeed a slog...
• bushwhacking got worse as we got higher...
• trying to avoid black ice takes attention...
• postholing into tree wells can be exhausting... 
• getting skunked is a bummer...
• even a poopy day outside playing is a good day!

go outside and play! 

backcountry with sawyer

the day: mar 31st. warm~ish, somewhere around 40°F, no sun or wind, but still plenty of snow in spring condition, soft and easy to turn on but fast.

the adventure: 'secret sherbie' over on moose mtn with my most favorite son, sawyer. 

the memories: i have been talking moose mtn up to soy for a while and despite his lack of skiing, he was game. the last time we skied backcountry--and his first and maybe only--was at least a half dozen years ago. but i was thinking, it's not too tight, snow is good, and a 'hockey stop' is always an option. after a practice run in the field at the bottom, we headed up. 

sawyer was impressed with the terrain, and the coverage. with the helmet he borrowed from pam, he was willing to go downhill. at some point i went past him and got to the flats where i slowed and stopped to wait. when he finally came down he showed me his thumb...

him: i hit a tree...

me: ouch! you really whacked it...

him: if i can move it like this, i probably didn't break it, did i...?

me: probably not. it's wicked hard to break your thumb...

notes:

• fathers can be wrong, you can move a broken thumb "like that", and still smile. thank you diane for the diagnosis!
• continued good coverage on the last day of march is something to smile about!
• skiing backcountry with sawyer, in team jackets no less, makes us both smile!

go outside and play!

spring conditions are here--and very enjoyable!

 the day: mar 21st and 26th. both days were warm~ish, right around 40°F, ~4.5°C for my canadian buddies tim and jane. tuesday, the first full day of spring--and sadie's birthday--was more sunny and less windy. the wicked soft snow was days old with the skis sinking three or four inches deep. sunday, was mostly cloudy and pretty windy, although in the woods that didn't matter. yesterday's three or four inches of snow was also wicked soft and at least going uphill, got a little clumpy underfoot. again, both days, there was ample slippage when pointed downhill.

the adventure: up town hill on tuesday and the 'secret sherbie' over on moose mtn on sunday. 

the memories: both days i tried to coax pam out on her new altai-hok skis and then on sunday, i called skip to see how his knee was feeling. nada: i skied solo both times. as i mentioned above, there was plenty of "slippage" going downhill. it was never furious but fast enough that you had to pay attention. turning ability both days was excellent though every once in a while, your edge would catch a solid bit of snow and throw you sideways.

sunday, i took several runs and a few pictures of playing the edges, scooting around trees and hucking some side rocks--with surprisingly good coverage considering the melt off last week. the stump jump was a good launch--much more speed than i had last week (you can see the old track) gave me much more air.

notes:

• good coverage in the end of march is something to smile about!
• 'corn' or 'sugar' snow makes me smile!
• skiing out in the woods at sunset will put a smile on your face.

go outside and play!

tromping through the woods on a frozen blanket--enjoying the sun, avoiding the wind

 the day: mar 19th. what a difference a day makes. i'm including last night in there. it's currently in the upper 20's but with a good stiff wind, it feels much cooler. the sun is out and melting last night's dusting of snow. yesterday's spring, 'sugar snow' is frozen solid.

the adventure: up and around the town hill loop, with an extension to check out to 'porcupine rock' at the top of the cliffs--from whence the 'porcupine trail' comes & goes.

the memories: wherever the wind managed to get through the trees to ground level, it felt chilly. much cooler than expected on a sunny day, in this warm~ish winter. the porcupine had been out at some point between tuesday (see pictures i put in the previous post) and now, leaving its tracks in the trail it keeps to. we also saw a number of trees with chewed bark in some of its upper branches.

notes:

• i took my jacket, hat and gloves off after heating up on the climb--pam left all her warmies on.
• snowshoes weren't really necessary for sinkage-- they were helpful preventing slippage.
• a couple of shelf or bracket fungi caught pam's eye.

go outside and play!

another couple-few weeks of playing in the ever increasing snows...

 the days: since i last posted on march 3rd - to today the 18th. we have had plenty of snow, the last storm on the 14th, dropping more than a foot at our house and more than two feet up high. i haven't kept track, but it's has definitely been both cold~ish and warm~ish, as in lots of fluffy, dry and or heavy, wet snow. the wind has also been up and down, but seems like a lot of up. same thing with clouds and sun...sometimes it's grey, sometimes it's blue.

the adventures: way too many to remember, but all the usual local ones...

the memories: skiing with dick over at swma in the morning and with pam out back on her 'loop' around noon. she is on her new skis and loving being able to "scoot right along!" at the end of the loop, we left some tracks down through the field.

        

up on moose mountain in some of that really deep stuff--dried out and fluffy after one of those cold~ish and windy nights.

on town hill, when the deep stuff was not too wet but plenty heavy, i stopped and took pictures of the porky trail where it crosses our ski trail--looking east and west. it hadn't been out plowing the fresh stuff yet.

    

over on cardigan after a big snow, blown about by lots of wind. the bad news: 'the chute' is now being used as a skin track, getting from orange up and over to alexandria. the good news: i still got first tracks coming over the cornice and then coming back down the west side ski trail. 

    

the pictures don't nearly do justice to how nice the skiing was. going down, i saw noah and simon going up. they sent me this picture from just past the bottom of the chute on the hurricane gap trail.

on one of those deep days, pam and i did the loop in snowshoes and i took a 'series' of the fun.

notes:

• sometimes you just have to ski through the trees...
• before getting to play in the snow, there is always plenty of shoveling...
• after playing in the snow, there is always plenty more shoveling...
• snow is wonderful, even when you have to shovel it...

go outside and play!