4000 Footers

Mt’s Tom, Field, and Willey are a group of three 4000-foot peaks that are usually hiked together because they’re all clustered along a single ridgeline above Crawford Notch. It’s not a difficult hike in mild weather, but it’s a reasonably long one …

Mt Cabot is the northernmost White Mountain 4000 footer and a 9.6 mile out and back hike with 3,000 feet of elevation gain. With spring on the horizon, I’ve started to wean myself off cross-country skiing and have begun hitting the trail …

March is the best month to climb the higher peaks in New Hampshire’s Presidential Range when temperatures warm up and the days are longer, but it’s still full-on winter conditions above treeline. This is home of Mt Washington, the White Mountains highest …

Mount Moosilauke (4802′) was windy. It’s often like that. It was really cold too, registering -1*F at the trailhead at the start of our hike, with a -30*F windchill forecast at the mountain’s bald summit. That meant we’d probably need full-face protection …

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 …

Eliot needed Mt Eisenhower for his Winter 4000 footer list, so we decided to climb it on the second day of Winter (12/23). Eisenhower (4780′) is a bald dome in the Southern Presidentials, located about halfway up the ridge between Mt Monroe …

The Great Gulf is a glacial valley that lies between Mt Washington and the Northern Presidential Range in New Hampshire. It’s ground zero for many of the toughest and steepest trails in the White Mountains, including the Great Gulf Trail which climbs …

The Great Gully Trail is one of the steepest trails in the Whites climbing 1700 feet in one mile. It begins at the bottom of the King Ravine headwall (3700′) on the north side of Mt Adams (5774′),  the second tallest peak …

Mt Adams is the second-highest peak on the White Mountain 4000 footers list, with an elevation of 5774 feet. The most direct route to the summit follows the Airline Trail, which climbs 4,500 feet in 4.3 miles. It’s a tough climb up …

I spent most of this month off-trail down in Boston, helping a family member recuperate from major surgery. It was important that I be there, even though it meant leaving my beloved White Mountains for close to four weeks. I decided to …

Mt Moosilauke is a massive mountain located in the southwest corner of the White Mountain National Forest. The main summit has an elevation of 4802′, which makes it the 10th highest mountain on the AMC’s 4000-footer list. My goal on this trip …

Mount Guyot is a 4000 footer (4580′) located near the center of the Pemigewasset Wilderness, almost exactly halfway between Franconia Notch and Crawford Notch, as the crow flies. Pronounced “Gee-oh”, with a hard “G”, it’s named after the Arnold Guyot, a geography …

Mt Lafayette is the highest peak on Franconia Ridge and the most popular because day hikers and backpackers can stop at the Appalachian Mountain Club’s nearby Greenleaf Hut to refill their water bottles and buy lunch. It can also get very busy …

“You know, thirty-below isn’t that bad if you’re dressed properly”, said Eliot, as we stood in the sun by the South Kinsman Mountain summit cairn. We were suited up in full above-treeline regalia including balaclava, facemasks, and heavy gloves. It was so …