A wanted, and an unwanted break.

I've been taking a break of sorts from hiking. Climbing Monadnock two Fridays ago was so much fun and I loved every second. From there, I had my Disney vacation which was an incredible amount of fun. My Garmin tells me that I walked over 90 miles - nice! Once I got home I noticed I wasn't feeling well, so I took a COVID test, and guess who's positive! I'm running with the conspiracy theory that Mickey Mouse gave me COVID. Regardless, I've been stuck in my house since. It's now day four and my symptoms continue to change. Right now I'm at the "everything leaves me out of breath" phase which kind of sucks. It fmeans that I hvae some flat hiking ahead of me when I am released from quarantine. I'm working on viewing this as a chance for my legs/feet to heal after a lot of hiking and even more walking while on vacation. I just miss being outside. Soon hopefully!

Mt. Monadnock (Lost Farm, Cliff Walk, White Arrow, White Cross)

Mt. Monadnock (Lost Farm, Cliff Walk, White Arrow, White Cross)

Hike Type: Loop
Distance: 6.4 miles
Elevation: 2080 feet
Time: 4 hours, 22 minutes
Hiking Challenges: 52 Hike Challenge; Monadnock Redliner

The Hike

This was the day before my Disney vacation, and I was so excited to visit Mt. Monadnock for the first time in years! I have always loved this mountain and always consider it my first "big" mountain. Booked my park reservation the night before, arrived to the main parking lot at 6:30am and was greeted by truly the most beautiful sight at a trailhead - a composting toilet. I quickly made use of that and got on my way by finding the yellow-blazed Parker Trail, accidentally scaring away a pack (a flock, a gobble?) of turkeys, and paralleled the Poole Reservoir as the sun was rising. This section of the Parker Trail was gentile and slowly rising. 

The white-blazed Lost Farm trail is where elevation started to climb. Old stone walls were abundant, and there was a Spruce Grouse who was not fond of my presence. Every couple of minutes it would scare the life out of me and fly further down trail. The upper half of the Lost Farm Trail became more and more scenic and reminiscent of the higher altitudes of the Whites, and terminated at a gorgeous viewpoint looking South into MA.

From there I did some light redlining. Went away from the summit on Cliff Walk to hit the Pt. Surprise Trail and Hello Rock Trails before heading back up Cliff Walk to Bald Rock. Both the Pt. Surprise Trail and the Hello Rock Trails were unblazed and clearly less used than the other trails I've been on this day. The forest was dark and thick, and I found the cold wind that has been shielded from me all morning. Every minute or so I'd click my poles together just to alert any critters that I was around because I always get spooked in forests like those. 

My trip up the Cliff Walk was amazing and I will absolutely be back. The Cliff Walk is blazed with white triangles on trees and white "C"s on the ground. The views are nearly endless and the terminus is at the incredible Bald Rock which gives views to the South and towards the Summit (pictured at the top). I took a nice break at Bald Rock to eat and drink and rest. 

From there I descended back into the scrubby woods on the Smith Connecting Trail, and then continued onto the Ampitheatre Trail. The blazes in this are were confusing, but trails easy to follow. At Bald Rock, the Smith Connecting trail was indicated with a yellow "S," and then towards the junction with Ampitheatre it looked like a yellow cross and four yellow dots, and then I saw a yellow and a white rectangle. A mystery for now!

The Ampitheatre Trail brought me back to my beloved White Arrow Trail. Most times that I've visited Monadnock I've taken White Arrow from the Halfway House. I immediately remembered the incredible views, and I tried to not remember how steep it got towards the top. I put my poles away and took my sweet time and only swore a few times heading up to the Summit, and the summit, to my delight, had very view people and full views in all directions!

Looking back at Bald Rock from the White Arrow Trail. 

Summit of Mt. Monadnock.

After a short, windy break at the summit I started my trip down. I forgot how much I dislike descending on rock slabs. I had a lot of small, sideways, switchbacking steps heading down the upper reaches of the White Dot trail. There was a brief flat section over some vernal pools where I saw some frog eggs!

At the Dot/Cross junction, I happily followed the sign indicating that the White Cross trail was the less-steep descent. There were a couple more slabby sections that I did not enjoy, but overall it was a nice trip down. About halfway down my poles came back out to save my ailing knees, and when I made it back to park headquarters I was greeted by a sea of people. 

I love this mountain so much, it was so nice to come back, it was great to kick off my vacation week with a hike here, and I cannot wait to go back!

Step-By-Step

• Start at the paved parking lot at the park store.
• Walk to dirt lot and join yellow-blazed Parker Trail as it parallels Poole Reservoir.
• Turn right at junction to white-blazed Lost Farm trail.
• At terminus, continue straight onto white-diamond-blazed Cliff Walk towards unblazed Pt. Surprise Trail.
• Turn right at junction to unblzed Pt. Surprise Trail.
• Turn left at terminus to unblzed Hello Rock Trail.
• Turn left at terminus to join Cliff Walk.
• Follow Cliff Walk to Bald Rock.
• Continue Straight to Smith Connecting.
• At junction, turn left to Ampitheatre Trail.
• At junction, turn right to White Cross Trail.
• Follow White Arrow trail to Summit. 
• Look for signs for White Dot/White Cross trail.
• Follow White Dot trail down the mountain.
• Veer right to White Cross trail.
• At terminus, continue right onto White Dot Trail.
• Return to parking lot. 

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Skyline Trail (Middlesex Fells Reservation)

Skyline Trail (Middlesex Fells Reservation)

Hike Type: Loop
Distance: 8.06 miles
Elevation: 925 feet
Time: 3 hours, 4 minutes
Hiking Challenges: 52 Hike Challenge

The Hike

It's officially Disney week so I decided the best way to practice my walking and standing was to head into the woods! My feet were still a bit sore from hiking Wachusett yesterday (I really need to figure out my insole situation), but we did it anyway! Drove right from school to the South Border Road parking lot and started my journey!

Walked along Bellevue Pond on Quarry Road and then started my clockwise loop along the Skyline Trail! This trail was incredible well-marked which I was thrilled to see. There is a version on AllTrails, but there are some moments that are incorrect on that map in the southern side of the loop. I ignored the off-route alerts and kept following the blazes and always ended back on the AllTrails track. The first part of the trail follows rocky ridges and occassionally dips into the forest - almost reminded me of the Kittatiny Ridge in NJ, just smaller. Once dipping back into the woods around B5, the Skyline Trail parrallels the Reservoir Trail, and then both the Reservoir Trail and the Mountain Bike Loop. Thankfully, there weren't too many people, likely because I was hiking on a Monday afternoon. 

The trail remains relatively the same throughout the Western side of the reservoirs - ups and downs in the woods. No views and signage reminding hikers to not go near the reservoir waters. The first real change of scenery from the strict woods was at the North Reservoir where there are obstructed views of the dam and some construction going on. 

The Eastern side of the trail was my personal favorite, as it had more of the ridge-like hiking and very partial views. The most surprising moment was the Sheepfold section. I had been in the woods for around 5-6 miles at this point and suddenly am walking through a parking lot and on pavement? That section was short-lived and the trail quickly went back in to the woods traversing up and down rocky hills. At this point of the hike my feet were HURTING. I want to blame the rockiness of the trails but in reality my feet have been giving my problems recently and i need to play with the insoles (I think). 

I was incredibly grateful that I chose to do the loop clockwise becuase this hike ended at the Wright Tower on Pine Hill which gives an incredible view of Boston, the communities North of Boston, and the Blue Hills in the background. Two guys were sitting at the view smoking cigarettes and blasting music so I didn't stay long, but it is an incredible view. 

Heading down I made a mistake a followed the wrong trail, but I was tired and did not feel like backtracking, so I made it work. Back at the car I aired out my feet and had some beloved snacks! Overall, it was a nice hike, but I'm not itching to get back. The only real view was from Pine Hill, and the noise from the surrounding roadways was loud - much louder than at the Blue Hills (except for that one spot by the Great Cedar Swamp when you need to walk on the highway...). I also noticed that the people on these trails were not nearly as friendly as I'm used to at the Blue Hills, but I'm trying to not make that judgement just yet. I am looking forward to exploring some of the other trails within the reservation. 

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Mt. Wachusett via West Side Trail (Mt. Wachusett State Reservation)

Mt. Wachusett via West Side Trail (Mt. Wachusett State Reservation)

Hike Type: Speghetti Loop
Distance: 6.1 miles
Elevation: 1404 feet
Time: 3 hours, 13 minutes
Hiking Challenges: 52 Hike Challenge; Wachusett Mountain Redliner

The Hike

First hike in a while! Survived the norovirus (barely - it was not my most glamorous time) and finally had energy and a slightly improved appetite so I felt comfortable getting back out. I had never been to Mt. Wachusett before so I decided to check it out, and I'm really glad I did! The Wachusett Hikers Facebook group hosts a redlining patch challenge, and the author curated a set of four hikes that would fulfill it. I followed the route of hike #2 and added the remainder of the Semuhenna Trail. 

The day started when my 4:45am alarm went off, which I QUICKLY vetoed. Pushed it back an hour and left just before 6:00am and landed out there just after 7:00am. I wasn't sure how to gauge the crowds/businesses since I've never been before, but when I made it to the West Side Trail parking area it was just me! I gobbled up my slice of Cumby's breakfast pizza (arguably a mistake) and got ready to go!

The West Side Trail heading up started slow and steady with a few steeper sections. Once at the auto road I found some frosted sections which were fun to see. That fun ended when I hit the Semuhenna trail and turned left when I started my hike through the swamp. These trails were wet wet. Some spots were avoidable, and other spots were a careful obstacle course of logs, roots, and the smallest rocks you ever did see. The route on Facebook turned around when Semuhenna hit the auto road again, but I continued on to finish out the Semuhenna Trail. Before heading down, though, I followed the auto road for a minute to the ski slopes where I got a cool view of the melting slopes and the hills to the North! I also dipped into the woods to answer nature's call, which really had me reflecting upon how there is no graceful way to do number two in the woods. Also, I need to get more hand sanitizer. The rest of the Semuhenna Trail got steeper but was much drier. Return trip wasn't too bad, and once I got back to the junction with the West Side Trail I continued on Semuhenna until its final terminus, which followed a relatively level path with moderate degrees of wetness. 

At the terminus of Semuhenna, I turned right onto the Harrington Trail which shockingly followed some wet descending sections. The Harrington Trail crosses two dirt roads that criss-cross the park (I'm curious about this history of these roads). I followed West Rd. to Administration Rd., which brought me to the Jack Frost Trail (which appears to be labeled as the Lower Link Trail on the main map, but was clearly labeled as Jack Frost Trail in person) which followed a nice rhododendron tunnel. The Jack Frost Trail veered right while I turned left onto the Lower Link Trail which brought me back to Harrington. 

This started the final and steepest stretch of the hike. The Link Trail branched off of Harrington for 0.1 miles, which I quickly hiked and then started the real climb. While I was fighting for my life, the climb was fun. Lots of scrambling up rocky slabs. Thankfully there was a gorgeous vista (the main photo on this post) waiting for me just as I was about to pass away. I gathered myself there and continued on the final push to the top. The top has a pretty standard sense of underwhelming awe that auto road summits have. It's developed, but still has gorgeous views. To the East is Boston and the Blue Hills, Greylock and Mt. Tom to the West, and Mt. Monadnock is very clearly to the north. I didn't stay up there for too long because the wind picked up and it got cold. 

The return trip started on the steep Old Indian Trail which had my knee acting up, but stabilized once I got back on the West Side Trail for the final return! The Old Indian Trail was busy, and there was a group of 15-20 people all loudly climbing. I get that people want to be with friends and family, but I can't help but get annoyed when I can hear a group of people shouting from a mile away. Either way they were very nice. The final stretch of the West Side Trail was part of my favorite simply because there was no one. I was constantly running into people the whole hike, which is completely fine, but I'm so used to being alone I was a bit overwhelmed. When I got to my car I realized why the West Side Trail was so quiet - I was still the only car parked there!

Overall it was a fantastic hike and a great way to spend my morning. I'm really excited to head back for my next hike!

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