11/19/22
Day Seventy 

Today I did a traverse over Black Mountain and Blueberry Mountain in Benton, NH. The weather has gone from November temperatures to February ones overnight and don’t seem to be letting up anytime soon. Two days in a row of frigid summit temps and loose snow on the trails has been exhausting. It takes a lot more calories to stay warm in the winter and more energy to hike in unconsolidated snow. Each step requires more strength and the added clothes feel stifling. I am adjusting to what my next few months will look like and it’s not easy. 

I’ve never done Black Mountain or Blueberry before and they were both really pretty peaks. I loved doing them as one long traverse because it meant I only had to hike to the top of each peak once instead of twice as out and backs. I was pretty tired all day because I just hiked the day prior but there was only one way back to my car and that was over the top of Blueberry Mountain and back down the other side. I was thankful that my energy improved as I made my climb up the mountain and I really liked the slow gradual ascent of Blueberry Mountain Trail from the less traveled side.

Daily Miles: 11.23

Daily Vert: 3169’

Overall Mileage: 781.69

Overall Vert: 233,297’

Trace: 33.9% -> 34.5%

Trails:

Black Mountain Trail

Chippewa Trail

Blueberry Mountain Trail

Blueberry Mountain Summit Spur