Outdoor Diversion: Familiar Faces on a Hike to the Osceolas

Summit: Mount Osceola (4,340'), East Osceola (4,156')
Trail route: Mount Osceola Trail
Trail conditions: Dry with wet and muddy sections
Weather: Cool morning temps quickly warming up with sunshine and partly cloudy skies
Total miles: 8.4
Total time: 6:00

Beautiful weather was in the forecast for today with possible showers tomorrow. I decided to head for the Osceolas and would be hiking up to them from Tripoli Road. The drive for me is longer than the approach from the Kancamagus Highway but I prefer hiking up from this side. I was anticipating a solo hike to these summits but that would change.

I enjoy an early morning drive to the trailhead this time of year because the sky starts to brighten at 4:30 AM. The sky was looking spectacular just before sunrise this morning. The brightening sky also makes it easier to watch for moose and I usually see at least one. This morning was no exception but I couldn't get to my camera fast enough.

I arrived at the parking lot and was greeted by a swarm of mosquitoes as I got out of the car. I thought it would only get worse on the trail so I doused myself with bug repellent. Another car had pulled in right behind me. It was Melissa and Rick, two hikers that I have hiked with before and Samantha whom I met for the first time. She was hiking to Osceola for her first 4,000 footer with Melissa. Rick was going over to East Osceola and back to Osceola as was I so we did it together. Vehicles kept arriving and the parking lot was full as we got on the trail.

Rick and I started our hike before the large number of hikers began their hike. It was a very pleasant hike up to the summit of Mount Osceola and the bugs were not bad at all. There were only three other hikers up there when we arrived. The views were spectacular. We spent a few minutes taking photos before moving on to East Osceola.

We began our descent into the col and hadn't gone far when we ran into a hiker that I had met last weekend on my hike to Cannon Mountain. A little bit further we met Danielle, another hiking friend that I've hiked with before. She was doing the two Osceolas as well as bushwhacking to Middle and West Osceolas. She told me where to find the start of the bushwhack and I was going to try and find it on the way back.

Rick and I now had to make a decision in our descent route, the chimney or the bypass. We decided to go down the bypass and up the chimney on the way back. The bypass is not that much easier than the vertical chimney but we made it down without a problem. It was then a hike up to the summit of East Osceola. There's not much for views on this summit and we did not stay long. This was our turn around spot and we were soon on our way back to Osceola.

We dropped down to the col and then it was up the chimney, a vertical climb on wet ledge. There were other hikers at the top of the chimney waiting to come down. We made it up without a problem. We continued up to the summit of Mount Osaceola where we found a large number of hikers. Melissa and Samantha were there and we all spent some time relaxing in the sun.

While I was basking on the ledges I saw another familiar face show up on the summit. It was Guy, a hiking friend that I've been with on many hiking adventures. He was just doing Mount Osceola today and I decided to join him for the hike down. Rick would be hiking down with Melissa and Samantha.

There was a steady stream of hikers coming up as we made our way down. This was a very popular hike today. As we got down to the trailhead the black flies and mosquitoes were relentless. They were not that bad throughout the hike but the parking lot was a different story today.

What I thought was going to be a solo hike was anything but that. It was a very enjoyable hike with lots of friendly faces along the way!

Enjoy the photos and video!