Projekt Revolution / Linkin Park Rule!

AWESOME! Linkin Park, the headliner band that put together this 6th annual Projekt Revolution tour, played an amazing hour-and-a-half of new and old masterpieces to a full audience at The Tweeter Center in Mansfield, MA Friday night, Aug. 24. The set, consisting of 17 songs and 3 encore songs, was derived equally from their three albums, with only 7 coming from the new album, Minutes to Midnight.

Linkin Park delighted fans old and new, with rockin' renditions of "Numb", "Crawling" and "In the End" balancing out the more sedate songs such as "The Little Things Give You Away", which lead singer Chester Bennington dedicated to all the recent flood victims in the U.S. The set list was:

Wake/Given Up
No More Sorrow
Lying From You
Don't Stay
Somewhere I Belong
From the Inside
Papercut
Points of Authority
Leave out all the Rest
Shadow of the Day
Numb
Pushing Me Away
Breaking the Habit
Crawling
The Little Things Give you Away
What I've Done
Faint

The Linkin Park encore consisted of three songs: One Step Closer, In the End, and Bleed it Out.

All in all, a very satisfying performance. I'm glad I stayed for the encore, which ended on one of my favorites, Bleed it Out. The only disappointment was they didn't play Hit the Floor.

Immediately preceeding Linkin Park was My Chemical Romance. Even though I don't know their music that well (I don't own any of their CDs), I thoroughly enjoyed their show. It turns out that I know a few of MCR's songs, too. They had a great stage presence, warming up the crowd before LP came on. The lead singer seemed to enjoy asking "the boys" in the audience to take off their shirts and wave them in the air. Funny thing is, he never removed his own tight, military-like jacket.

Other bands on stage before LP and MCR (starting at about 4:30pm) were Julien K, Placebo, Him, and Taking Back Sunday.

I cranked LP in my car on the way home. I was so wired when I got home at midnight that it took me nearly two hours to get to sleep. What a fabulous way to start the weekend! But I sure am glad I didn't have to get up at 5:30am on Saturday to drive to NH for hiking!

Sun., Aug. 19 -- Mt. Liberty & Mt. Flume (2 4,000 footers in NH)

10.4 miles; 4,050 ft. elevation gain
Summit: Mt. Liberty=4,459 feet; Mt. Flume=4,328
Route: Whitehouse Trail to Liberty Spring Trail to Franconia Ridge Trail to Mt. Liberty summit

Review: I told Ray on Saturday that I didn't think I could ever do 4,000 foot elevation gain in one day. Well I proved myself wrong! We climbed from about 1,400 feet to the summits of both Mt. Liberty and Mt. Flume, and then back again, resulting in more than 4,000 foot of elevation gain in one day! I discovered today that I CAN do Mt. Washington if I want to!

This trail, part of the AT (Appalachian Trail) begins on a bike path and climbs via switchbacks to the Liberty Spring Campsite, where a spring provides water and we took a group shot (photo). From the summit of Mt. Liberty, you can look southeast toward Mt. Flume (photo) which is 1.1 miles away.

The temperature was excellent for hiking. Mostly in the 60s. Sunlight graced our view when we were on the Mt. Liberty summit the second time. Yeah!

On the way back from Mt. Liberty, in the conifer forest, we saw a spruce grouse (photo)! It had red around the edge of its eye and stayed near the hiking path as half of our group walked right by it. Then it flew over the path into a nearby tree, where it blended even better against the brown background.

We hiked 8-3/4 hours; the trip back was definitely long. Apres-hike a few of us, including Leaders Jim Plouffe and Wayne Anderson, Sui-Wen and Dirgny went to the Woodstock Inn for some beer and dinner.

Sat., Aug. 18 -- The Osceolas (NH's Whites)

8.4miles; 3,050 ft. elevation gain
Summit: Mt. Osceola= 4,340 feet; East Peak=4,156 feet
Route: Mount Osceola Trail

Review: This is my favorite hike in the White Mountains so far! A comparatively easy walk from the trailhead on Tripoli Road to the summit of Mt. Osceola, using many switchbacks -- very rare on the East coast! And to think I almost bailed that morning due to the rain and chill (49 degrees at 10:30am). I owe a special thanks to Leader Fred Griffith, who unlike me, had checked the weather and informed me that it was expected to clear.

The trail from Mt. Osceola to East Peak requires descending a steep "chimney", reminiscent of the scrambling required on the Caps Ridge Trail to Mt. Jefferson. The summit of East Peak is anti-climatic after the nice views on Mt. Osceola; it is marked by a cairn amidst a struggling group of trees. There is a fine view of the Tripyramids to the east, however, visible from a side trail (photo).

The entire trip was 7 hours roundtrip. And we only had a few sprinkles throughout the day, with a fine temperature for hiking. Thanks to Fred Griffith and Sue Warthman of the Narraganset chapter for leading such an enjoyable hike.

Dinner with everyone at the Mad River Tavern in Campton was a nice end to the day.

Sun., Aug. 12 -- Mt. Crawford (NH's Whites)

5.0 mile loop; 2,100 ft. elevation gain
Summit: Mt. Crawford= 3,119 feet
Route: Davis Path, then a spur trail to the top

Review: The Davis Path, one of three bridle paths to the summit of Mt. Washington, follows the bank of the Saco River for about 200 yards to a wonderful suspension bridge, named for the man, Bemis, who built the granite mansion nearby (must be the Notchland Inn across 302 from the Davis Path ).

Compared to the grueling Caps Ridge Trail of the day before, this trail is a cake walk. Boulders and rocks, to be sure, but no scrambling and a lot less exposure. The last 0.3 miles on the spur off of Davis Path is reminiscent of the granite ledges of the Welch-Dickey Trail. When you follow the trail "until you can go no further" (sayeth Leslie), you end up on a summit with glorious 360 degree views -- of Crawford Notch, the Wiley House, Mts. Webster and Jackson, Stairs Mountain, and the Presidential ridge (though not as far as Jefferson or Washington).

It took us about 2-1/2 hours to the top (we were going a bit slower than usual today because of yesterday's activities!), but only 1-1/2 hours to get down.

Thanks again to Leslie Greer, Janet Spriggs, Dawn Jones and Barbara Fay for leading and co-leading the trip.

Sat., Aug. 11 -- Mt. Jefferson (NH)

5.0 mile loop; 2,700 ft. elevation gain
Summit: Mt. Jefferson = 5,716 feet
Route: Caps Ridge Trail

Review: If you like rock climbing, you'll love the Caps Ridge Trail!

It's easy to misjudge the difficulty of this trail -- its relatively short length and modest elevation gain (for a Presidential) would seem to indicate an easy, quick ascent. It's not! It is, in fact, a strenuous hike up a very steep and rough trail that requires serious scrambling up rock ledges. There are three "caps", or rocky outcrops, to get over before you reach the Cornice, which is 0.4 miles from the summit.

This view of the top of Mt. Jefferson was taken from an outcrop of granite on the south side of the trail, about 1.0 mile in. Unfortunately you can't see the grandeur of the three caps from this photo.

The day started out warm and sunny, with clear views of the summit. By the time we reached the Cornice, however, clouds and fog rolled in and obscured the summit. We ate lunch on top, bundled up and sheltered from the 20mph wind and 50-ish temperature, with no views in sight. That's the way it is in the Whites -- weather can come from nowhere and completely conceal the summit and the views.

It took us 3-1/2 hours to get to the top, and nearly as long to descend the way we came. It was tough on our legs, especially our knees, but there were no injuries.

Leslie Greer and her group of co-leaders from Boston Chapter's Forty Plus -- Janet Spriggs, Linda, Dawn jones and Barbara -- were all cheerful and helpful. They invited me to join them and Santosh Raina for dinner at the Bernerhof Inn. It was a German restaurant, so I had the sauerbraten--beef that's been marinated for 4 days--with roesti potatoes and red cabbage. It was a delicious choice, fortifying me for the next day on the slopes.

I had a nice room at the Dana Place Inn in Jackson. A bit pricey, but there were nice amenities in the bathroom, a room AC and of course, breakfast included the next morning. The restaurant also serves dinner, if you don't feel like going into town after a full day of hiking.

Sun., Aug. 5 -- Mt. Hale (a 4,000 fter) and Zealand Falls (NH's Whites)

8.7 mile loop; 2,400 ft. elevation gain
Summit: Mt. Hale = 4,054 foot
Route: Hale Brook Trail to the summit, Lend-a-Hand trail to Zealand Falls/Hut, and Zealand Trail back to Zealand Road

Review: A much more bearable day than Saturday--by about 20 degrees! About 69 degrees around 9:20am, when we started the hike. And much less humid.

Most of the elevation gain occurs in the first two hours of this hike, on the way up to the summit of Mt. Hale.

The Hale Brook Trail is relatively easy. You pass through a beautiful birch forest before hitting the conifers near the top. Before reaching the summit, there are views through the conifers of Mt. Washington. It's good to savor these views because once on top, the scenery is limited to the large cairn and trees that are growing where the fire tower used to stand 40 years ago.

As it was too early for lunch, we set off down the Lend-a-Hand trail seeking the unmarked spur trail that promised great views. Thirty minutes later we were convinced that we'd missed it somehow and decided to stop for lunch. Well, what serendipity! A barely noticeable trail led off toward the west, where two of us at a time were rewarded with nice views.

Just as we were getting back on the trail again, the two hikers who didn't show up at 9am at trailhead joined us. Their tardiness was understandable -- Jason and Marie had just returned the day before from a week on vacation in the Olympic National Park of Washington State. I'm surprised that they found the time to do a day hike at all after being away for a week!

We saw a spruce grouse in the dense spruce woods with mossy ground. This species is noted for its tameness, and we witnessed that firsthand. Several of us passed within a few feet of the grouse before it scuttled off from the rock into the underbrush. It made gutteral notes and clucks as it moved away.

The hike to Zealand Falls and Zealand Hut was quite pleasant. Everyone (except for me!) took their boots and socks off and soaked their feet in the cold waters of Zealand Falls. We enjoyed the comraderie and sunshine for 20 minutes or so, watching the dozen or so kids playing in the water and having a great time.

We filled up on water, took bathroom breaks at the Hut, and then took off for the last 2.3 mile stretch of Zealand Trail back to the road. This was the most memorable part of the hike, as we crossed numerous streams, log bridges, beaver ponds, and another striking birch forest. What a pleasurable end to a beautiful hike.

It took us about 7 hours in total, with several breaks for snacks, water and foot-soaking, to traverse the 8.7 miles.

Apres-hike, 8 of the 11 of us went to Fabyan's in Bretton Woods and enjoyed local microbrewed beer and a light dinner before heading home. I didn't even mind the fact that I had a 3-hour drive home ahead of me!

I discovered that Pat Kravtin will be joining me on next Saturday's Mt. Jefferson hike.

Thanks to Robin Melavalin and Jim Plouffe for leading this excursion!

Sat., Aug. 4--Mts. Welch & Dickey (NH) Redux

4.5 mile loop; 1,600 ft. elevation gain
Summits: Mt. Welch = 2,605 ft; Mt. Dickey = 2,734 ft.
Route: Welch-Dickey Loop Trail

Review: I did this hike a month ago under cloudy skies with a light mizzle at times. What a difference a month makes! The temperature Saturday was a boiling 91 degrees, with very high humidity. As I noted in my previous blog entry, quite a bit of this trail -- two miles in fact -- is over exposed rock, so there's no shelter from the sun's heat.

Though this is a relatively easy hike and only 1,600 feet of elevation, I found it to be very difficult today, due to the high temperature and humidity . I was seriously overheated, and my body wouldn't cooperate. I was huffing and puffing, and my legs became so tired that the ascent was difficult. Fortunately the group leader was understanding, and encouraged me to stay with my plan to hike Mt. Hale and Zealand Falls/Zealand Hut on Sunday. Knowing that I was fit enough for the hike, I vowed to hike, provided that the temperature and humidity moderated.

On the ascent, the views over to Tripyramid were wonderful, and we saw three A-10 airplanes fly by at low altitude while we were admiring the view. Strange looking planes, those.

Though the Mt. Welch summit had views, the Dickey summit was disappointing and in fact, was easy to miss. The entire round trip, even with my painfully slow ascent, took less than 4 hours.

After a nice shower and some R&R at my inn, I ate a lovely Italian dinner at Maestro's Cafe and Diner in North Conway. A pear, walnut and aged balsamic vinegar appetizer, followed by calamari and linguini. The choice of house wine (a burgundy) was a bit unusual for an Italian restaurant (where was the chianti?), but it was quite nice -- a nice way to end the day.