White Mountains

Owl’s Head Mountain in December

Owls Head

The two most difficult winter 4,000 footer hikes in the White Mountains are Owl’s Head Mountain and the Bonds, consisting of Bondcliff, Mount Bond and West Bond Mountain. The difficulty in reaching these peaks stems from their remoteness. All of them are …

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Trees of the Kilkenny Ridge

Gnarled Trees of the Kilkenny

I often tell people that the White Mountains are a rain forest to explain the sheer density of trees and vegetation that you find in the forests here. That is certainly the case along the Kilkenny Ridge Trail where the trees are …

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Southwest Twin Mountain Bushwhack Attempt

South Twin Mountain seen from Southwest Twin Ridge

My friend Barbara said, “the reason bushwhacking is so challenging, is that there’s no guarantee that you’ll reach the peak. We’re so used to getting anything we want in this world that there are few things like that anymore.” She was right, …

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Climbing Slide Peak

Slide Peak (4760')

Winter has arrived in the White Mountains of New Hampshire and most of the high peaks are now snow-capped as far west as Franconia Ridge, all the way east to the Presidential, Carter and Wildcat Ranges. I spent this weekend, hiking and …

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The Tripyramids in Autumn

The Mount Tripyramid Trail

The Tripyramids are three peaks in the Sandwich Range of the White Mountains, North (4180′), Middle (4140′), and South (4090′), which are all over 4,000 in feet. Most people only bag North and Middle which are on the White Mountain 48 list, …

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Bushwhacking Northwest Hancock Mountain

The Canister on Northwest Hancock Mountain (4020)

Last weekend, I co-led a bushwhack to Northwest Hancock (4020) with a small group of experienced hikers from the Appalachian Mountain Club. This was my second attempt to summit this rarely climbed peak, the first of which was ended prematurely by cold-induced …

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