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Pierce and Eisenhower
5/28/2018
Crawford Path, Edmands Path
Around 10.1 miles
3180 feet of elevation gain
Sage and I posed for a picture before I left to hike solo. I am excited that we are now wearing T-shirts with Union of Concerned Scientists' (UCS) logo when we hike.
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| Photo by Trish Herr |
After saying our goodbyes, I started hiking on Crawford Path. Mom and Sage took the 2-mile road walk leading to Edmands Path.
There they went! I watched them for a second before immersing myself in Crawford Path foliage.
When I am alone, I become more confident, observant, and clear-headed. When I first began solo hiking, I was nervous and wanted to make sure I did everything perfectly. Now that I have solo hiked several mountains, I feel more comfortable being responsible for myself out there. Since my first solo hike, my enjoyment of solitude has increased.
Brand-new shoes:
Rocky trail...
I spotted a chipmunk sitting on a tree branch, enjoying her/his snack.
After reaching this intersection, I believe I started hiking faster. It usually takes me the first mile or mile and a half to "get into my hiking groove," if you will.
Onward...
I saw numerous streams along the way.
I love this shirt! I am happy to be supporting UCS.
Trying to show the logo...
Close to the alpine-zone...
I was excited to get above treeline!
It was a cloudy day, but it felt amazing to be up there.
Hiking up Pierce...
Little plant formations...
On the summit...
Powerade tastes better on a hike, when you are working out.
Heading over to Eisenhower...
Little beauties...
The clouds dissipated a bit.
The Mount Washington Hotel...
More flowers...
Pretty rock...
I loved seeing beautiful purple and green plants...
When I reached the intersection with the trail leading to the summit of Eisenhower, I had not yet seen Sage and Mom (who were hiking the loop from the other side, starting from Edmands Path). I figured I would see them on the summit of Eisenhower.
Cool ladder...
Up I go...
Still cloudy...
I reached the summit! I still hadn't come across Sage and Mom.
I took some summit selfies and then ate a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
After a mildly short break, I started heading back down...
I was getting a little bit worried that I had not seen Sage and Mom yet, but I assumed I would see them soon.
Sure enough, I came across them while hiking down Eisenhower! We greeted each other, took some pictures, and then I headed down the summit cone while they kept ascending.
Once I reached the intersection with Edmands Path, I hiked down, off the ridge.
Coming down...
Some white flowers I saw:
Pretty green foliage...
Looking down...
The trees were so fully green and beautiful.
I finished hiking down Edmands Path, and then I just had the 2-mile roadwalk left.
The scenery I saw while walking the road was beautiful.
Gorgeous sky and clouds...
I was happy to finally reach the point at which I started the hike.
I had an amazing time! It is wonderful hiking alone. Everything I experience seems to be more vivid when I solo hike.
