Training for the Whites right in my backyard

I've lived in Boston 27 years, and I finally discovered the Blue Hills Reservation in Milton/Quincy, MA. The park offers more than 125 miles of scenic trails -- mostly for hiking but some also for mountain bikers. It's said to be good training ground for people planning to hike the White Mountains in New Hampshire; I can see why, as there are many ascents and descents, with some steep and rough sections.

There are quite a few vistas of Boston and the harbor on the eastern part of the Skyline Trail. The weather observatory on the top of Great Blue Hill provides 360 degree views. The through-hike from Shea Rink in the east to the Trailside Museum and zoo in the west only took about 5 hours. Mike and Anna and I agreed to get together for future hikes and winter snowshoeing in the Whites.

~8 miles; ~2,500 ft. elevation gain
Summit: Great Blue Hill = 635 feet
Route: Skyline Trail from the Shea Rink to the Trailside Museum

The butterfly and the wizard

Halloween fun in Foxboro, MA.

No silver leather pants for Billy Corgan this time around

Before their 2000 break-up, the Smashing Pumpkins' lead guitarist/vocalist Billy Corgan liked to tour with silver leather pants. Though the pants are gone, the guitar-heavy sound of the past remains as the band continues its reunited tour.

Decked out in all white, members of the band, including Corgan, played 21 songs in the set, but interestingly, only 4 from the most recent CD, Zeitgeist. This is a departure from the early part of the tour, which featured 8 songs from Zeitgeist. Perhaps Billy decided to cater to his real fan base, those who grew to love the Smashing Pumpkins with the 1993 CD Siamese Dream and1995's Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness. I must admit that I was stumped on three of the songs, which didn't seem to come from any of the six albums I know.

They played two encores tonight at the Orpheum Theater, this being the second of three shows there. It was indeed a loyal fan base, choosing to see the Smashing Pumpkins instead of watching Game 3 of the ALCS playoffs between the Boston Red Sox and the Cleveland Indians.

The highlights? The song United States in Encore 1, and the old favorite Bullet with Butterfly Wings.

My first snow of the season

High winds, low temperatures and potentially treacherous open ledges of ice on the way to Mt. Jackson's summit compelled our group of 7 to change plans this morning and hike up the pleasantly graded Crawford Path to Mt. Pierce instead. At 0.6 miles, a side path leads to Gibbs Falls, worth the 5-minute diversion.


If we thought we'd avoid snow and ice, we were mistaken. It flurried on and off as we were ascending, and then, at about 2,700 feet of elevation, the snow covered the ground and tree limbs in a beautiful blanket of white.

It got increasingly colder as we ascended, and near the top there was ice--though quite manageable both going up and coming down. Near the top, to the north, we saw the glorious autumn-colored landscape leading up to Mt. Eisenhower through a thick patch of cloud. One small spot of sunshine broke through in what Mike called a "sucker hole", which he explained appears out of the blue when flying through storm clouds.

Four gray (Canada) jays kept us company on the way up, greedily snatching nuts from the palms of our hands. We discovered that they would not come to anyone wearing gloves--a bare palm was necessary to attract them.

Thanks to Wanda, Joleen and Mike Rice for their leadership.

~5.4 miles; ~2,400 ft. elevation gain
Summit: Mt. Pierce = 4,312 feet
Route: Crawford Path from Mt. Clinton Road

360 degree views from South Twin Mountain (NH)

Amazing 360 degree views surround hikers who make it to the summit of South Twin Mountain. The 4 mile long Gale River Trail and the Garfield Ridge Trail ascend at a fairly easy grade; the hard work comes at the end, with 1,150' of elevation gain in just 0.8 miles. Even though it was a bit hot for hiking, it was worth it. On a clear day, to the northeast, you can see as far away as Mt. Washington (unmistakable due to the smoke coming from the cog railway).

• Views east include Mt. Hale and the Stepped Mountain, as well as Mts. Tom, Field and Wiley (aka "Tom, Dick and Harry" :-)
  
• North you see North Twin Mountain, a tantalizing 1.3 miles away.
  
• South you can see Owlhead, the Bonds and the Osceolas.
• West, back the way we came, you can see Galehead and Garfield.
  

Folks in the New Hampshire chapter of the AMC are the fittest and fastest group I've hiked with all summer. We did the entire hike in a mere 8-1/2 hours (including breaks), solidly beating book time. For the first time this year, I was the slowest hiker of the bunch. My excuse? It was too hot for me; I overheat and tire easily when it's over 75 degrees. I much prefer the cooler temperatures, when I will often hike in a sleeveless shirt.

~10.8 miles; ~3,300 ft. elevation gain
Summit: South Twin Mountain = 4,902 feet
Route: Gale River Trail to Garfield Ridge Trail to the Galehead Hut (at 3,800') and then the Twinway to South Twin Mountain (back the same way). Option for summit of Mt. Galehead (only 0.4 miles away from the Hut).

Walking up Mount Wachusett (Princeton, MA)

Views of Boston (35 miles away), cars, birders, picnic tables, a pond (rumor has it it's usually stocked with koi), and port-a-toilets greet you when you reach the summit of Mt. Wachusett. It's a very easy walk, easily done in sneakers. We walked through a birch forest, then a conifer forest, then a mixed deciduous forest (with maple trees). Despite the time of year, very few trees were in fall colors; as in the Boston area, most trees' leaves are simply turning brown, crinkling up and falling off. The result, no doubt, of the warm nights and lack of rain.

We saw a turkey vulture and red-tailed hawk soaring at the summit. Several birders with their scopes identified the bird sitting on the fire tower as a red-tailed hawk. It's no surprise that Mt. Wachusett is an official hawk watch site.

AMC Narraganset Chapter's Linda Pease, who was the kayaking guide at the Squam Lakes weekend, led the hike today with Yvonne Federowicz and Mike.

~6 miles; ~900 ft. elevation gain
Summits: Mt. Wachusett = 2,006 feet
Route: Stage Coach Trail (from Westminster Road) and Harrington Trail to the summit; then a figure eight loop via Old Indian Head, West Side, Semuhenna, Harrington, Jack Frost, High Meadow and Echo Lake trails back to the trailhead.

Crawford Path to Mts. Pierce, Eisenhower & Monroe

The Crawford Path ascends at moderate grade from the parking lot (across from the AMC Highland Center on Route 302) to the summit of Mt. Pierce. It's a far easier way to reach the Presidential Range than the Caps Ridge Trail to Mt. Jefferson. Once you've made it to Mt. Pierce on the Crawford Trail, the raging wind (approaching 50mph or more) is a constant companion, threatening to knock you down in spots. The incessant wind continues along the entire stretch of the Crawford Path -- essentially along the entire ridge to Mts. Eisenhower and Monroe. If the weather cooperates, and yesterday it did, you can see the summits of the entire Presidential Range, including Mt. Washington. It was a "beyond perfect" day; the expansive views are the best in the White Mountains, in my opinion. But so much depends on the weather; I know many hikers haven't been so lucky. When we were on Eisenhower, the views toward Mt. Washington were unimpeded... not a cloud in the sky!

Mt. Monroe can be summited from the southwest via the Mt. Monroe loop, or from the northeast from the Lake of the Clouds hut. Either way it's a challenge to battle the wind and stay on the steep, rocky path.

The Ammonoosuc Ravine Trail would clearly be a better trail to ascend than descend: it requires some scrambling and BIG steps to get down. But it's still no match for the much more difficult (i.e., more scrambling) Caps Ridge Trail.

Leaders Nelson Caraballo and Don Provencher were excellent, giving AMC's Boston Chapter a good name! The pace was excellent: a "talk while you walk" pace. I'd like to hike with them again.

9.8 miles; 3,750 ft. elevation gain
Summits: Mt. Pierce = 4,312'; Mt. Eisenhower = 4,760'; Mt. Monroe = 5,372'
Route: Crawford Path to Mt. Pierce and Mt. Eisenhower; Mt. Eisenhower Loop to Mt. Eisenhower summit; Crawford Path to Mt. Monroe; Ammonoosuc Ravine Trail down from Mt. Monroe to Base Road