Hike North Pack Monadnock

June 6, 2015

Emilie Phillips

Isaac and I saw lots of lady slippers and fun streams on our hike up to the cliff on North Pack.

Tyson worked all Saturday, fixing some critical bugs. So Isaac and I were on our own to have fun. Since it is spring time, I thought Isaac would enjoy the waterfall on Ted’s trail up North Pack. I had troubles motivating myself to pack for the two of us, so we didn’t get to the trailhead until 11:30. I also made a couple wrong turns getting there.

We stopped at the first stream to throw rocks and eat snacks. Isaac alternated riding in the pack and hiking every half hour or so. That was about how long I wanted to carry him. I was not expecting to find lady slippers, but they were all over. Isaac thought spotting them was a great game. He liked the waterfall, but not any more than the other streams.

Once we reached the waterfall, I had no plans for the rest of the hike. Isaac requested we go to the top. He also requested we go see mountain sheep or moose at the top. I figured we could go to the cliff rather than the summit because it is a more interesting destination. Isaac fell asleep as I started up the steepest portions of the trail.

I was surprised we saw no one at the cliff given it was a nice Saturday. After eating snack, I checked the time and realized it was 4pm. That might be part if why no one was up there. Isaac was full of energy again and headed off following the blazes back to the car. I mentally calculated when we might get back to the car given it took 5 hours to hike up. I was so busy enjoying the hike that I hadn’t kept track of time. On the way down, I needed to enjoy a little less and hurry a little more, especially since I did not have a headlamp.

We made good time on the way down Carolyn’s trail. I carried Isaac more of the time, and when he did hike, he hiked faster down. I still found time to take pictures of more lady slippers. The mosquitoes chased us out the last half mile. 5.5 miles, 7 hours, and 220 photos.