Carter Ledge 7/17/10

Pics of this hike HERE

With the weather forecast calling for hazy, hot and humid conditions with a chance of an afternoon T-Storm, I made the decision as I usually so to head to the Sandwich Range. I decided during the drive to head to Chocorua's Carter Ledge. This would be our 4th or 5th visit but this area never gets old!

We started at 7:30am on the Piper trail, a very gradual and wide. I nice way to start out a hike! Mosquito's were very bothersome however. Mushroom Season is upon us and we were finding them everywhere! I kept and posted (on Flickr) 61 mushroom photo's in all! Already getting humid and sticky, we arrived at the Nickerson Ledge trail and began to climb steeply up to the Head of the Ledge, a side path (right) at the rock boulder erratic's. Onward now through some mossy woods, a small col. than back up the loose, gravelly portion below the Carter Ledges. Trails here are really washing out bad. I foresee some ladders being built here in the near future, or at least some extensive trail work or trail re-routing. Just above the first ledge outlook to Chocorua we came across a small pine blow-down. What I've been hoping for! I had just purchased a pack axe for just such an occasion! I chopped and chopped and the tree was moved off trail, victory!!

Once on the sprawling ledges we hiked up to the uppermost erratic which I call Carter Rock and we dropped our bags. We ate, relaxed and explored the dozens of ledge area's up here. This is truly a spectacular place. Views to Chocorua the best, quite and teaming with erratics, lichen and Jack pine. We hung out on the ledges for over an hour before heading back down. It was slow going on the loose trail but that was OK because we were in no rush and were still searching for mushrooms.

We passed all but 1 group of four below the ledges and three others on Piper trail. It was on Piper that I noticed the shroom jackpot so-to-speak. A large colorful mushroom about 15 ft. in the open woods.

We arrived back at the surprisingly empty parking lot at 1pm. The laugh of the day came when Scott, after finding that his M&M's candy had spilled ad melted in his cooler bag. Just South of Chocorua lake on Rt.16 at the top of the hill he went to dump them out the window when the whole cooler bag went out. It was pretty funny. We turned around and retrieved it without getting run over! Traffic was awful along 16! See all the pics HERE!

Algonquin Trail 6/26/10

View Pics HERE
One of my favorite trails in the White's! Algonquin Trail is really beautiful! We planned this hike since there was a chance of an afternoon thunder shower and this trail was relatively close and the hike is on the shorter side, though very steep. And it is one of the quietest trails in the Sandwich Range.

We headed down the always interesting sandwich notch rd. We parked in one of the 3 parking spaces, empty as predicted and started our hike at 8:30am. I thought we would be dealing with bugs on this part of the trail, but was happy to only be swatting at an occasional mosquito. The trail is very gradual until you reach the small river and now climbs steeply up the bank. From here on the trail just gets steeper and steeper, getting a break on some open rock area looking up to Black Mountain and the Algonquin Ridge as I call it.

The climb around Black Mt. reminded me a little of the Ice Gulch, steep and rocky, covered with moss and lichen. We arrived at the first scramble and came out on the first view point just as an eagle floated past. Views were nice, though hazy and I am guessing partially due to the fires in Canada. We continued on back into the trees, up two other scrambles and back out into the open, views are stunning as always over to the rocky Welch Dickey Range, Acteon Ridge and Noon Peak. We made our way to the destination point a bit past the Black Mountain Pond Trail, up over a rock that overlooks Black Mt. Pond at 11:00am. Winds were comfortable and we had lunch and just relaxed. My second most favorite spots in the White's!

Heading back down this trail went good. A little slippery as this trail always is. We startled a moose or bear back down on the old logging road, as we heard a loud splash in the water a couple hundred ft. in the woods. We arrived back at the truck at 1:00pm. A nice short hike, but not for the weak! Rugged, steep, slippery and technical. The reward: QUITE, beautiful moss and lichen covered trails and sweeping views that make you feel like your way out in the wilderness.

View pics HERE

Mt. Chocorua 4/24/10 TR

What a perfect day! The sun was shining, a nice light breeze a-blowing. And boots trudging down a lonely trail. Scott and I chose Chocorua as their is still too much snow further up North and with reports of clouding up in the afternoon we wanted a hike we could get to quick and enjoy the day.

Trails: Up, Piper-Weetamoo-Hammond-Liberty; Down, Piper. We started at 8am and finished at 2:30pm. What a great hike. Plenty of rock scrambling, views and Weetamoo rock is something. I even got to climb this 50 ft. tall boulder! We ran into snow in the col. areas particularly between the sister peak. There really wasn't the crowd I thought we would run into. About 6 pairs of people at the top and several coming up Piper. Not bad for Chocorua! Found 1 lonely painted trillium at the start of Weetamoo trail, sweet! Blacflies popped in once-in-a-while but for the most part were non-existant, thanks in part to the wind.

Pics here

Rollins Rhyme (Whiteface/Passaconaway 2/20/10 TR)

This would be a lucky, ducky day;
My brother thought all night of his friends foolish way;
Foolish to be climbing Mt. Washington in snow coulds of gray;
Forocious winds and 20 below windchills the report did say;

So a call I got at 7:30 in the morning;
My brother did call and ask if I was hiking;
Scott was sick and I would be home sulking;
But not now, we were soon off for some 4000 foot peak bagging;

We parked at Ferncroft at ten-o-eight and headed up Blueberry Ledge;
Sky's were mostly sunny, a snow packed trail we climbed the steep ridge;
Jeremy kept a quick pace, I kept the pics to a minimum which made me cringe;
We soon took off the heavy outer-gear as it was warm just a smidge;

Just below the ledges we met up with an older couple on the trail;
The very funny lady said to go ahead, that she "moved like a snail";
Over the steep ledges we went, making it to the false summit with a joyous wail;
It was 1pm so we ate our lunch and they did the same, the woman and male;

Tummy's full, pushing on to the true summit with excitment a-fluttered;
Down and up almost missing the cairn, with snow most of it was covered;
Now the dreaded Rollins Trail..."this trail will surely kill us", I muttered;
I thought of this long, annoying, PUD infested trail, ugh, I shuttered;

But much to my surprise it was packed pretty well;
So we charged down this ridge like two bats-out-of-hell;
A long hour and a half later, behind us this ridge fell;
My brother and I exhausted with signs of defeat did I smell;

But one last challenging push did we have to complete this story;
Long switchbacks and steep pitches, boy was this trail ornery;
Then finally reaching the top at three p.m, oh the exictement and glory!
And down to the view for one last look to the North, oh so stormy;

We hussled down now to reach the truck before we lost the light;
Passing the couple we had seen earlier drained like us of their might;
Sliding and scurrying we reached the end, timed just right;
5 pm, on the road we arrived, the sunset a warm, comforting sight.

Hike Overview:

Bagged my 26/48 4000 footer
Bagged my first 2 winter 4k's!

Total Time: 7 hours
Total Mileage: 11.5 miles
Total Elevation Gain: 4,450 ft.

Weather: Mostly Sunny Sky's, Clouding over around 2:30pm. Winds off and on in areas 20 mph. Temps ranged from low 40's at the base to low 30's/upper 20's on the summits. Trails well packed. Light traction required on the Whiteface ledges and Passaconaway. Another beautiful February day!

Pics of this hike HERE

Middle Sister (Chocorua) 2/13/10

With reports of clouds possibly hovering over the Northern Peaks and trail reports of deep snow drifts on Mt. Flume's Osseo trail I thought it best to stay more South. The pick for the day would be Mt. Chocorua via the Nickerson Ledge-Carter Ledge-Three Sisters-Piper Trails. When we got to the Piper parking lot we found that it was not plowed. Why? Do we not pay parking fees for trail and parking maintenance. Should not the popular trailheads be plowed? The home right at the spot unplowed was charging $3.00 for parking. Having paid an annual parking pass I wasn't up for paying to park. No where near the road to park I decided to drive over to the White Ledge Campground gate and parked there. This would change our plan of action slightly, we would ascend Carter Ledge trail at it's start here (bypassing Nickerson Ledge - not much of anything anyways) and we would descend Middle Sister trail.

We geared up and took the immediate left down the loop road. The trailhead (signed) was down a bit on the left. We started up the trail at 8:47am. Only one set of footprints were visible but the snow was hardpacked with just a little crust on top. Many sections were bare from water run off. This section of Carter Ledge trail was rather pleasant up to the Nickerson junction. You pass through many boulder fields, it remains gradual to moderate and contains many fine, large Birch stands. A half mile in we were taking jackets off as it was surprisingly warm. We passed the Middle Sister trail junction which was not packed out and continued on arriving at the Nickerson junction. Continuing on up Carter Ledge trail making it to our first ledge and Chocorua view at 10:45am. It was here we were passed by the only two people we would see all day. Temps. were now reading an incredible 46* in February!! And the warm sun was very pleasant.

Onward now through some steep sections past a slide area and arriving at the seamingly endless ledges and rock slabs. Having done this hike Spring of 2009 and now back here in the winter this area is truly my favorite in the White's (Eagle Crag and Algonquin trail ridge. trailing close behind). Outstanding views to Chocorua, the Piper trail ridge, the Hammond trail ridge, the Three Sisters and the rock slabs containing countless stunted red pines and the occasional rock erratic. We took a break here before dropping back into the trees in a minor col. (North Sister jutting up in front of us) finding some deep snow and post-holing our way through. We snaked our way up the trail to the base of the very steep climb up ledge that was covered in several feet of snow. We careful followed the shrub line for something to hold onto and pulled, post-holed and mumbled our way up. Once atop this first section it got a bit icy and, well, a simple slip and your gonna have a long ride down. So I put on my fresh-out-of-the-package micro-spikes. Boy do these things work! We soon came to and climbed a couple other scrambles then made the height of land. We continued on mostly level grades before popping out at the Middle Sister summit (3,340') at about 1:00pm.

The wind was a little cold here but not too bad, we still didn't need our jackets! Views were impressive (and really just as good as Chocorua's summit, minus views to the south). The Sandwich range loomed to the West, the many peaks North up to the Presidential range, North East to the Conway area and East into Maine. We ate lunch and decided we had our fill for the day. Besides, if we continued on to Chocorua that would put us in around 1-2 hours of hiking in the dark, no thanks! We didn't see the Middle Sister trail junction on the way up, nor did we find it on the way down, so we had to back track the way we came. Again the steep snow covered ledges were a lot of work but we hussled down them and back through the col. to the Carter ledges. Removed our micro-spikes and took a last break and took in the sights one last time. Then down and out arriving back at our starting point at 4:00pm.

Total Time: 7.25 hours
Total Mileage: 7.4
Elevation Gain: 2,790 ft.
Weather: Mostly clear sky's, clouded up by 3:00pm. Temps ranged from mid to upper 40's at the base and ledges to mid 30's at the high points. Light winds now and then and at the summit. Beautiful day!
Hike Overview: My favorite hike in the White's. Beautiful, secluded, ledgy and excellent views.

View pics of this hike HERE

Mt. Paugus 11/28/09

With a sketchy weather report for the mountains I was not sure this would be a good day for a hike. My brother really want to go so I figured it wouldn't hurt to give it a shot. The afternoon was supposed to see some improvement so I figured we'd get a late start to hopefuly cash in on some of that nice weather. We parked and got on the ski pants, winter jacket and other gear. I felt like an astronaut trying to walk around in all this clothing for the first time this year.

We headed out at 10:45am under cloudy sky's and a wind driven mist. Once the thermometer cooled off to outdoor temps. it read in the low 40's. The trail was leaf covered and easy footing. I decided to go the opposite direction as my spring loop hike and go counter clockwise up Mt. Mexico via. Big Rock Cave Trail, over Paugus than down the Cabin Trail. I wanted to ascend the ledges rather than descend them in case they were icy, and I remember the other side to be more gradual and a nice descent. After being startled by a tree top breaking and crashing down 50 ft. off the trail we encountered a burst of ice showers for a couple minutes than back to just winds. Jeremy had a pretty good wipe out almost rolling into a run-off stream, ha, ha, ha! Grades were gradual up and over Mexico and down to the Big Rock Caves. These caves are actually a HUGE chunk of rock split in three/four which created tunnels that you can walk through.

Once down to the river the sun began to peak out from the clouds...sweet! Once cross the river we crossed over Whittin Brook Trail and up Old Paugus Trail and the trail continues at gradual grades. Once you come to the base of the first ledges the trail becomes steep as you make your way through chunks of rock that have fallen from the ledges. The trail verges sharp right near the top and crosses in front of the bottom of a sheer cliff. Once past Bee Line Trail now on Lawrence Trail you again climb steeply to the base of another ledge and you climb around it's left side and come out to the top of it. It is here we had our lunch. Back on trail you now cross through a pine grove for a bit with peaks of Mt. Chocorua. Once past the pine grove the trail makes it's final steep ascent to the false summit (about 3000') which was covered in a thin sheet of patchy ice at 2:00pm. Here you want to walk down the rock passing some small boulders and through the trees to get to the ledge. Views here to Mt. Whiteface and Passaconnaway are breath taking. We battled the 50 mph winds briefly and headed back to the false summit.

Heading down the other side (still Lawrence Trail) was a breeze! I was happy to be going down the never ending switch backs this time instead of up them and we jogged down much of this section. Footing was a little more tricky on this side of the mountain with many slippery roots. I tripped on a root (while jogging) just as the trail suddenly climbed and I crashed to the ground and burst out laughing... I joked with my brother, "now we're even!" Once at the bottom of this you have some asceding to do as you skirt a ridge than climb to it's South Knoll. It is on these sections you get awesome views of the Paugus Ledges a reminiscent orange similar to Mt. Lowells Ledge/slide seen from Mt. Carrigain. The sun going down now we picked up pace coming to our Cabin Trail Junction. We arrived back to the truck at 4:30pm.

Total Trip Time: 5hrs. 45min. Total Mileage: 8.1 miles Weather: Temps. Ranged from the mid 40's to low 30's. Winds 30-40 mph with 50mph wind gusts. Cloud ceiling was above 4000' allowing decent views with partly sunny sky's. Snow was 2 inches at it's deepest. Ice minimal.

Pics of this trip here> http://www.flickr.com/photos/excape1/sets/72157622895285628/

Algonquin Trail 7/25/09

Being very interested since I read the description on the Sandwich Dome Algonquin Trail, I thought Ascender/Scott and I would check it out. I drove through Wolfeboro and up Rt. 109 to Rt. 113 coming close to hitting three deer around a bend in the road...glad I was paying attention as I try to do up North with all the wildlife around! The Sandwich Notch Rd. was difficult to find. When you come into Center Sandwich Village from the South end look for a yellow blinking light with a General Store (closed) on the left. 113 bears left while the road you want forks straight ahead. The road changes to dirt and forks (here there is a sign for Sandwich Notch Rd. - Left). Soon the narrow road becomes somewhat rough with large pot holes (which the rain filled up and probably made worse) and some rather steep pitches...(little cars beware - bottoming-out is a possibility!) Continue on for approximately 2.5 miles passing Guinea Pond TR and then the Algonquin TR. The parking is limited to three spots at the trailhead and a couple spots a short distance back the way you came. I backed into my own personal spot between trees and we got the packs on, noticing only one other truck in the lot. Starting at 9:30am the trail begins as an old logging road and turned out to be one of the more pleasant logging roads I've been on. Only a few mosquito's were buzzing whenever we stopped to take pictures of the numerous mushrooms on the, yes, you guessed it, wet trail from the rain that morning and night before. The trail crosses a brook and soon climbs steeply alongside a river and then breaks from the river and up to the South end of Black Mt. Here you will find some open rock areas similar to that of Sandwich Mtn. TR on Sandwich's North end, the difference being that instead of a view up to Jennings Peak you are given a view up to trailess Black Mt. The trail easily makes it's way around the mountain then drops slightly before climbing very steeply. This section of trail reminds me of Wildcat Ridge TR from Glen Ellis Falls. As you make your way up the steep, rocky TR you come to a somewhat tough rock scramble and up/through and around two others. Once atop these we were awarded with our first good views. As we exited the ledge area we ran into three men who belonged to the lone truck in the parking lot. One stated he had never seen anyone on this trail before, claiming it was little used. We joked about the "dry" season we have had this year, complained about the slippery trail and made our farewells. Now we quickly began to climb out onto open rock areas with low alpine trees breaking up the rocky ridge. The one thing that I noticed was that the trail here was narrow and the rocky ridge was not trampled down by heavy foot traffic (confirming that it was a less used TR). We arrived at a rather attractive ledge area where we took a break to take in the view and serenity. Views were magnificent North to the rock sided peaks & ledges of Sachem Peak on Acteon Ridge, Jennings Peak and Welch and Dickey with Tecumseh & the Osceolas in the distance. We carried on to the Black Mt. Pond TR junction at 3300 ft. arriving at 12:15pm with a beautiful ledge with an outstanding view South East to Black Mountain Pond and it's adjacent marsh...definitely visiting that area soon! We determined this was as far as we needed to go as there was a great view and a nice breeze. We also wanted enough energy to get back down the steep, slippery trail. We dropped our bags in some scrub and explored the ridge further, climbing up another 100 ft. or so to a large boulder. We came back for our bags, ran into two other guys and we hiked back down to the ledge with the North view to have lunch. After spending 1.5 hrs. on this beautiful ridge and our stomachs satisfied, we started back down at 1:45pm. To our surprise we met a solo female barefoot hiker on the rock scramble. First time I've seen this species on a trail, we exchanged hello's and she went truckin' on...probably having an easier time on the wet rock than we did! As we got back down to the river we passed a family of five heading to camp at Black Mt. Pond. I mentioned the climb up the ridge was very steep, to which the father replied, "oh, there's a ridge?" After we continued on I began to think, why didn't they take the direct route up Guinea Pond TR? Why are they starting out on this trail so late?? Is he perhaps on the wrong trail??? How are they going to get there young kids (2 of them girls) and a dog with overnight gear weighing them down up the rock scrambles???? I began to worry and was hoping they would have the common sense to turn around if things got difficult. We then came back to the logging road and passed another family of three with nothing more than fishing poles and tackle boxes at 3:15pm, apparently also headed to the pond...WHAT??? After snapping shots of more shrooms we missed on the way up and passing the two ill-informed (I'm assuming) groups we arrived back at the truck at 3:30pm.
<View Pictures HERE>
I must say I greatly enjoyed this hike, it has a feeling of seclusion and affords great/unique views and has the exciting rock scrambling that I love. A trail to re-visit again and again!

2009 Flags on the 48!

2009 Flags on the 48 registration is in progress! Just learning of this event this year, I was hesitant to register as a cooridinator. But I decided to accept the challenge and responsibility and accuired North Tripyramid in Grafton County located near Waterville Valley. The event will be on September 12, 2009 from 12:00pm - 2:00pm on all of NH's 48 4000 Footers. It is great to see even the hiking community come together to remember America's most tragic and world-changing event 9-11. And also in honoring our soldiers who have and continue to fight for our freedom. To become a coordinator or join a group click on the links at the top of the post. Support our nation and enjoy the freedom of hiking in the beautiful White Mountains of NH! "Oh beatiful for spacious skies, For amber waves of grain, For purple mountain majesties, Above the fruited plains, America! America! God shed His grace on thee, And crown thy good with brotherhood, From sea to shining sea!" America the Beautiful

Crew List: Jason Morris (Peak Coordinator), Scott Lavoice, Tracey Morris, Jeremy Morris, Brian Philbrick, Ian Dubi, Brian Keane & 3 friends.

8/10/09 Update: I am excited to say that registration for this peak is full! Just waiting on some names for registration. It should be a fun filled day with a lot of climbing in the process! I have the rope purchased and will be getting the flag soon. Also a friend of mine Donna (Donna's Home and Office Improvement) is working on a pole that will be connected with cuplinks for easy set up and break down. Look forward to spending the day with what is turning out to be a great group!

Sandwich Dome 6/27/09

Despite our cancellation of our June 27 hike to celebrate my mothers 50th birthday (and sister backing out due to work) we decided almost at the last minute to take a chance despite the forecast for isolated thunderstorms (most of which were forecasted for late afternoon anyway). It would be my mom, brother and I and we decided on Sandwich Dome. We arrived in the Sandwich Mountain Trail Parking lot at 9:30am. Overcast and wet as expected we started up Sandwich Mountain Trail at 9:50 stopping at the trail head sign for a group picture. The trail head is obscured from the parking lot. Walk 15 ft. or so down the road and the trail is on the left. Cross the ski trail and towards the fenced in power plant, continue following the fence until the trail breaks left into the woods and quickly drops and crosses Drakes Brook. Hope that short walk warmed you up because the trail immediatley begins a moderate climb. As you crest the North side of Noon Peak (2,930 feet) you cross over some sections of rock slab and the Lichen & moss becomes plentiful. One clump of lichen topped moss had a pretty slug on it like I have never seen. Continue on until you come to your first ledge outlook with views North to Waterville Valley and surrounding 4000 footers. We were bug free until this point, though they seemed to be hanging out on just the ledge area. Passing this area you soon come to another open rock area with an excellent view to Jennings Peak (3,455 feet). Drop back into the woods and at the junction take a right for a short climb to Jennings Peak consisting of a wooded summit with several beautiful ledges (all of which were busy with hikers). Here you will find excellent views South to Sandwich Dome, and South West to the Acteon Ridge and Whiteface beyond. Once back down to the main trail we passed by a garter snake curled up in some moss. As my brother and I took some pictures my mother continued on. Then suddenly we heard a loud crash and thump...then our mother calling out to us a bit startled. We ran to see what happened, a smile on her face she pronounced that we had just missed a face-to-face encounter with a buck moose. It took off startled! Well that moose brought us luck as the sky continued to stay free of rain! Now a little steeper we climbed to the summit of Sandwhich Dome, 3,393 feet, arriving around 1:30pm. We broke out lunch and we were soon bombarted by black fly swarms. We took some pics, broke out the Mountain House dehydrated birthday ice cream which was pretty tasty and headed back down. We got onto Drakes Brook Trail and were soon sprinkled on for a short couple minutes. This trail was very gradual and had easy footing. We passed some attractive water falls and onto a logging road where we made a stop at a large cascade/flume area. Then a simple stroll down the logging road arriving at the parking lot at 4:30pm. This was a great hike containing a large number of lichen & moss species. Views are average and limited with a particularly interesting view of the Osceolas but a great hike that is well sheltered for an overcast hike. View Pics Here

Mt. Whiteface trip report 6/13/09

Didn't plan on hiking Saturday but my mother (Tiny Tornado) called Friday and asked if I was hiking. The weather sounded all right so I said OK let's do it. Scott sat this one out as he had a long, stressful week at work and wanted to sleep in and get stuff done. Decided to do Whiteface in Sandwich Range as Scott (Ascender) and I only got a view of clouds when we hiked it in "07". I decided on making a loop out of it ascending Blueberry Ledge Trail and descending Rollins and Dicey's Mill Trail. We got to the town of Wonalancet late at 10:30, but to my surprise the usual overflowed Ferncroft parking lot had a couple spaces open. We headed up the popular route of Blueberry Ridge TR. The skeeters were buzzing and the black flies out too A pleasant gradual hike for about .6 miles then the trail get's pretty rocky before you come to your first rock slab, with limited views south. For the first time I was noticing lichen and moss on the rock in a different way after reading about granite succession in Tom Wessels book "The Granite Landscape " http://hikethesummits.blogspot.com/2009/06/granite-landscape.html. You continue your gradual climb in and out of trees/scrub & rock slabs before re-entering the woods. About 2 hours in you get your first good view to Whiteface's massive ledge then soon you reach the first set of rock scrambling. This area is tough especially the area where a ladder once helped out that is no longer there. If you have issue with heights or climbing you should not attempt this trail. Once you've climbed several ledges and rocks you are rewarded with several good eating areas and a ledge with view across to the whiteface ledges (which I seemed to miss this time...blocked by tree growth?). Soon after at 1:30 we reached the double rock knob of Blueberry Ridge, another good spot for lunch with views North East to Washington, East to Passaconaway, Paugus & Chocorua and South to the Lakes Region and South West to Sandwich Dome. We broke out lunch and swallowed it quickly due to the onslaught of black flies that were swarming us We continued on to Rollins Trail, dropped down then back up and passed the Whiteface true summit (a small cairn in the woods). Rollins Trail follows the "U" shaped ravine along the wooded ridge about 2 miles in length with 2 small ledge look-outs towards blueberry ridge and whiteface. You PUD (pointless ups & downs) your way along, at times with a 1500' drop to your right that would be pretty scary if not for the small pine making a safe barrier. The trail is rocky on it's upper sections but generally has pretty easy footing. We made our final drop and climbed over Passaconaways South Ridge to Dicey's Mill trail. We headed down on this TR saving Passaconaway for another day. Rollins Trail was very gradual with very easy footing with only a few steep pitches. We passed a Parish group from Tewksbury. Mass. of about 15 kids and 5 adults heading for camp Rich. We passed by several large old trees in the valley made a couple river crossings and got back to the road at 5:00 passing by some beautiful old homes who's homeowners have a great back drop of mountains to look at everyday Not too bad of a day dispite the BF's and an enjoyable route over an enjoyable mountain. Pics on Flickr> http://www.flickr.com/photos/excape1/