Mt Moriah is a 4000 footer overlooking the town of Gorham, NH, at the north end of the Carter Mountain Range in the White Mountains. There are a number of different trails that climb to the summit, but the most direct is …
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Hiking the Twins and Galehead in November
Climbing the White Mountain 4000 footers gets more difficult in November with the onset of colder weather, seasonal and fire road closings, cold water crossings, and fewer daylight hours. But the show must go on if you’re hiking The White Mountain 4000 …
Read More »10 Tips for Climbing Mt Washington in Winter
Backpacker Magazine got it right when they named Mt Washington (6288′) one of the 10 most dangerous hikes in America. Several weather patterns collide on Mt Washington and produce its notoriously foul weather, which can move in quickly. The winds on Mt Washington …
Read More »Backpacking the Bonds in October
October is always a month of transition in the White Mountains from the peak foliage of Columbus Day to the onset of winter on the higher summits. The mood of the weather gods can seemingly change overnight, so it’s best to take …
Read More »Great Hikes: Bushwhacking Mt Jeffers and the Hogsback Ridge
Off-trail hiking also called bushwhacking in New England, isn’t for everyone, and requires more advanced compass or GPS navigation skills. But if you have those, there are many nice autumn hikes that you can go one in the White Mountains where you …
Read More »Hiking an Adams and Madison Loop
With a high-pressure system parked over the White Mountains, I set out for another October climb in the Presidential Mountain Range. With temperatures in the high forties, winds under 20 mph, and fall foliage peaking in the valleys below, I looked forward …
Read More »Hiking a Monroe, Washington, Clay, Jefferson Loop
Winter comes early at the higher elevations in the White Mountains, especially on Mt Washington and in Presidential Mountain Range. Our first high elevation snowfall this year (2021) was on September 30, so when you get some good days in October where …
Read More »Hiking to Owls Head Mountain in September
Owls Head Mountain (4025′) is a White Mountain 4000 footer that is located deep in the Pemigewasset Wilderness. While it’s not a difficult peak to climb in terms of elevation gain, it’s an 18 mile out and back day hike with numerous …
Read More »Appalachian Mountain Club Huts – Gear List
The Appalachian Mountain Club runs 8 rustic, but comparatively luxurious mountain huts in New Hampshire’s White Mountains, all in spectacular locations. Listed south to north, these include Lonesome Lake Hut, located beside a glacial lake on Cannon Mountain Greenleaf Hut, just above …
Read More »Hiking and Fishing the Hancocks
North and South Hancock are two White Mountain 4000 footers in New Hampshire’s Pemigewasset Wilderness that are connected by a short ridge. Climbing them requires a fairly strenuous, wet, and muddy 9.8-mile hike with 2700′ of elevation gain, and most people do …
Read More »The White Mountains 4000 Footer Grid Is not Boring
I guess I’m a “gridiot” now. That’s the endearing name given to hikers working on The White Mountains Grid, which requires climbing the 48 White Mountain 4000 footers once in each calendar month, for a total of 576 summits. A lot of …
Read More »Backpacking the Bonds
The Bonds – Bondcliff, Mt Bond, and West Bond are three of the most scenic 4000 footers in the White Mountains, a place with no shortage of mountaintop views. They’re eleven miles from the nearest trailhead, smack in the middle of the …
Read More »Hiking a Mt Clay Loop
Mt Clay is a 5500′ subpeak of Mt Washington that towers over the west end of the Great Gulf. While it’s become an increasingly popular destination in the Northern Presidentials, you can still find yourself alone on the summit when the surrounding …
Read More »Two Ravines and a Gulf Backpack
Castle Ravine and Jefferson Ravine are two glacial valleys in between Mt Adams and Mt Jefferson, the second and third highest mountains in New Hampshire’s Northern Presidentials. I did a one-night trip last week where I climbed both on successive days, with …
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