Ritzhikes

Where: Mt. Hale (4054'), NH When: 5/28/2024 With: Solo My original plan for this NH48 4K peak was an overnight loop - Haystack Road parking, North Twin trail, Fire Warden's trail, Lend-a-Hand trail, Twinway, North Twin Spur, North Twin trail. It would have tagged Hale, filled in an section of the Twinway that I missed when I took the Zeacliif trail in 1991 , and red-lined the North Twin Spur. At some point earlier this year my plans changed and I decided to claim Hale on a day trip, following a different loop. I can always do the overnight loop another time. The stars aligned and both my schedule and the weather forecasts were clear, so off I went. Out the door around 5:15, and at the Hale Brook Trail trail three hours later. Big storms had come through overnight, and a few lingering showers were around for my ride north, but there were also patches of blue sky. Two other cars were in the trail head parking lot when I arrived. I grabbed my pack and was on my way quickly. The o...

Where: Sudbury River, Fruit St. to Cedar Swamp Pond When: 4/28/2024 With: Sterling Worrell Sterling is a photography teacher at the high school, and runs a drone club there. We've connected a few times about using drones to document trails, or locating waterfalls to photograph. At some point he mentioned an interest in paddling up the Sudbury, and I told him I'd done it several times, so we began to make plans to go. I'd tried to paddle up in 2019 , but was stopped by heavy brush in the waterway above the beaver dam near Cedar Swamp Pond. Since then I've wanted to make another try at it. There were problems though. First, the road bridge by my put-in spot was being rebuilt, and access was limited. Further upstream, a huge construction project was beginning where the river crosses under the Mass Pike and Route 495, and I was concerned that access there would be impacted.  Both access concerns turned out to be unfounded, but a new problem emerged. A large beaver dam had ...

Where: Mt. Wachusett state reservation When: 3/22/2024 With: Wilma There was a recent post on one of the Views From The Top hiker forums about Mt. Wachusett , and I commented that my dog & I had walked most of the trails. That's true, but in addition to the trails, Wachusett has several unimproved (dirt) roads. I've crossed them often on the trails, and have wanted to follow them some day. Today was that day. Wilma & I made the quick drive to the trail head and began our walk on the Administration Road. We'd walked part of it on our last visit, entering from the Jack Frost trail and exiting on Echo Lake Road, but today we'd walk the entire road. It was a wide path with a rough surface of crushed rock, and Wilma had to content herself with sniffing piles of leaves along the edges. We passed the junction with the West Road (which we'd be returning on), then a crossing of the Harrington Trail before arriving at a paved road and a picnic area. My map showed the...

Where: Mt. Wachusett When: 12/23/2023 With: Wilma I stopped taking Wilma on climbs like this after she came up lame following a trip. She spent several days hobbling around and getting sympathy, and I figured that mountain days were over for this 16+ year old dog. Best to stick to long walks on level trails.  Now, I'd been thinking of a hike up Wachusett for some time - maybe redline a few more trails - and when the weather and my schedule lined up nicely, I decided to go. I mentioned it to my sister on a phone call and said Wilma wouldn't be going along. "Oh take her," she said, and I thought, why not? Wilma hadn't been showing any signs of aging lately. Just the opposite, in fact. On our walks around the neighborhood, she'd break into a trot sometimes, often on the uphill section. So I bundled her into the car and off we went. I drove to Wachusett without the usual navigation assistance, and found I knew the way just fine. Today's starting point was the ...

Where: Mt. Monroe (5372'), Mt. Washington (6288') NH When: 9/1/2023 With: Solo I've had this hike in my mind for some time now. The primary objective was to climb Mt. Monroe and check another peak off my NH 48 4K list. Monroe rises next to the AMC's Lakes of the Clouds hut, which is at the top of a tough but direct (and relatively short) trail. And on the other side of the hut is Mt. Washington. I'd climbed it back in 1992 , so a revisit wouldn't advance the progress on my list, but hey...it was right there. Climbing it would correct an omission from my last visit. In those pre-digital days, I carried a film camera and had used the last shot on the roll before I got a shot of myself at the summit. This time I resolved to get a summit photo. In addition to Monroe & Washington, I had a thought of trying to summit Mt. Jefferson, another NH 4K peak. There was a trail junction after Washington where I could continue to the Jefferson summit trails, or just head ba...

Where: Mt. Lincoln, Pelham MA When: 8/16/2023 With: Solo I check the trail reports on the New England Trail Conditions website from time to time. I mostly look at the New Hampshire reports, especially when I'm planning a trip north, but I make a point of checking the Massachusetts reports as well to look for new places to explore. I checked the MA page yesterday, and saw a report from the previous day for a peak I hadn't heard of - Mt. Lincoln in Pelham MA. I did a quick search and found it was just west of the Quabbin Reservoir, near Amherst. Intrigued, I opened the report and found this note in the Lost & Found section of the post: I lost my beloved walking stick at the summit, I put it aside to take a picture and then had a senior moment and walked away. It was polished brown with black hockey tape on the handle with a leather strap. If anyone finds it I would like to get it back or at least know someone else is enjoying it... Forsooth! A quest! I'm familiar with ha...

Where: Callicoon NY When: 8/12-13/2023 With: Xeth & Chip On June 11, Xeth sent out this message: Hey, you boys have any interest in kayaking on the Upper Delaware this summer? I know it's a bit of a schlep. But  there's a cushy campsite in my backyard... Beeyooteeful river... There was general agreement, and about a month later we'd confirmed the weekend of August 12 & 13 for the gathering. Chip announced he'd be arriving a day early, in part because of the length of his drive, and Dave planned on a Friday evening arrival. I said I'd be there by mid-morning Saturday, figuring on leaving Hopkinton by 6AM. Both Chip & I mentioned early departures on Sunday, to get back for previous commitments. Friday night I got my car all packed up - changing my mind on several items over the course of the evening - and I pulled out of the driveway at 5:50AM. It was a 240 mile ride to Xeth's, but the majority of it was highway driving, mostly on Route 84 through Conn...