Now I really have 8 4,000 footers, mis-count

Today I hiked to South Hancock and checked off number 40 of the 48 4,000 footers in NH. I thought it was 41 but I miscounted the number of peaks left. I didn’t hike the loop trail that would have given me 40 and 41 because the last half mile to the peak did me in. It was so steep and it was so humid and I was short on time.

I’m glad we turned around yesterday on the trail because the loop trail close to the summit is no place for a dog. Maybe after more practice. The Hancock Loop trail is spectacular and as I’m building up my hiking legs I’m hoping to finish the remaining peaks this year.

I met an interesting woman on the trail today, Jill. She is what is called a Grid hiker, someone who climbs every 4,000 footer in each month of the year. She is 58 years old and hikes primarily by herself although she does have two male friends also Grid hikers who sometime join her when they need to check one off. One of her friends hiked Waumbek today and she didn’t need it for September so she did North and South Hancock. She said she tries to find different trails to each peak. I thought it would be interesting to really get to know one trail, hiking it 12 times, but she liked the variety of different trails.

Here are the photos from the trip, in order:

First trail junction. 1.6 miles to the top.

 

.5 HARD miles to the top.
The Top of South Hancock. Wooded Summit
Trail marker on the top of South Hancock

Dog Hike to South Hancock

Winnie did great on the hike to South Hancock. There were several stream crossing and a few times she had to lay in the river to cool down. The trail was magnificent and a nice hike until the last mile to South Hancock when it was a good climb.

The first stream crossing. It was a nice leisurely hike for the first 2 miles and we took a lot of water breaks.
So many rocks and streams. The hike was awesome.
The start of the trail from the Kancamagus Highway.

 

Critical Hours, Search & Rescue themed reading

Critical Hours Search and Rescue in the White Mountains

Today I got the Gibson’s Bookstore newsletter and learned about a new search and rescue book, Critical Hours: Search and Rescue in the White Mountains by Sandy Stott and he is coming to the bookstore next week for an author event.  This book will be a perfect next-read after I finish Not Without Peril for this month’s themed reading about rescues in the White Mountains.

I did a bit of research and Sandy Stott is a teacher, editor and ultra runner. In one article he wrote he talks about how trail running is the new endurance event for people looking to push their limits so there are much more runners on hiking trails (and that they are rescued less). I’m looking forward to attending the event and buying his book.

I’m still reading Desperate Steps and it’s really good. The stories are so intriguing and at times I’m actually holding my breath waiting for the rescue teams to arrive. I can’t put it down even though my eyes want to close and go to sleep (I tend to read at night). Many of the stories brought me to tears when a hiker/climber dies. Mathew Potel Foundation. I admire the rescued hikers and the other survivors who let Peter Kick tell their stories in this book to educate others. I particularly like the detailed information about how each search was executed and communicated between each organization; it’s what I enjoyed so much about Ty Gagne’s book about Kate Matrosova. Interesting connection that I just learned: the article I reference in this post is written by Sandy Stott.

P.S.
Last week’s training (read: giggling from happiness from the number of hours and actually feel pretty darn good on Sunday night).