7/23/22
White Mountains Guide Day Nineteen

Today I tackled Flume Slide Trail, one that I have yet to do, although I’ve done LIberty and Flume a handful of times in the past. I knew the temperatures were slated to be scorchingly hot, so I took a bunch of water and began the climb towards the Franconia Ridge. As I began the hike, I realized that I had never hiked Liberty Spring Trail when there wasn’t any snow. A popular loop that most people have hiked several times was one that I have only done three times and all in winter conditions. There were a lot of people on the trail today. Many times I found myself yielding to those going uphill on the AT, as the Northbound bubble is hammering their way through The Whites right now. 

Today I missed winter. I missed the quiet of the woods that you can only get when the trees and trails are covered in snow. I missed the sound of it crunching under my microspikes as I descend on a solid monorail. I missed the urgency of hiking in temperatures that will freeze my water and kill my cell phone battery if I expose it to the elements. But I relished the ability to sit on the summit of Flume and feel the sun warm my skin. I relished the last day I will be 38 years old, as my birthday approaches, and I welcomed the changing of the seasons that is evident in the goldenrod that has blanketed the sides of the roads, because not all change is bad.

Daily Miles: 9.69
Daily Vert: 3705’
Overall Miles: 194.84
Overall Vert: 67,408’
Guide: 7.3% -> 7.9%
NEHH: 9/100
Summits: Liberty & Flume

Trails:

Franconia Notch Recreation Path
Liberty Spring Trail
Flume Slide Trail
Franconia Ridge
Liberty Tentsite