Outdoor Diversion: Mark Completes The Grid

Summits: Mount Washington (6,288')

Trail route: Ammonoosuc Ravine Trail, Crawford Path, cog access road

Trail conditions: Dry with some wet and muddy section, cog access road has very loose rocks and dirt

Weather: Warm start, cool breeze at the summit and hot on descent with sunshine and passing clouds

Total miles: 6.6

Total time: 6:00

I would be participating in a very special hike this weekend. Mark was going to hike Mount Washington to complete his grid having hiked all 48 4,000 footers in every month of the year for a total of 576 summit climbs. I would be joining Mark and his son Scott along with Jill, Jim, Robin, Amy, Steve, Rhonda, Joe, Scott and Lisa.

We were getting an early start to try and beat some of the heat and humidity as well as beat the crowds at the summit. My plan was to camp close by on Saturday night in my newly built truck cap camper along with Scott and Lisa. I arrived at our camp location about 9:00 PM and we visited for a bit before going to sleep for the night. I'm going to need to get a different mattress which is difficult to find because I have a short bed truck. I'm temporarily using lawn furniture cushions and really wasn't comfortable.

We were up at 4:00 AM with a 5:00 AM start time. Our hiking group met at the Marshfield Station hiker parking lot, there would be 12 of us altogether. We were soon on our way up to the Ammonoosuc Trail. It was a nice hike up to Gem Pool and then the relentless steep climb to Lakes of the Clouds Hut began. Scott, Lisa and Jim moved ahead of the rest of us so they could climb Mount Monroe.

When we arrived at the hut Scott, Lisa and Jim were waiting there having already climbed Mount Monroe. There was a big crowd inside the hut and breakfast was about to be served. We continued our hike on the Crawford Path to Mount Washington. There was an occasional breeze but it was still a warm hike to the summit. We could see the cog train far below just starting to make its ascent to the top and were hoping we would beat it. One final push and we were on the summit.

We went straight to the summit sign since no one was there yet thanks to our early start. Mark got the ceremonial approach to the summit under raised trekking poles. After years of hiking the 4,000 foot summits in all kinds of weather and trail conditions he was finally on summit #576 having hiked the 48 4,000 footers in every month of the year! This is a phenomenal feat that requires dedication and perseverance. As we completed our summit sign photos a line started to form, this was a well timed hike and well worth the early start time to beat the crowd.

Trains were arriving and the auto road was open with a steady stream of vehicles arriving at the summit, the crowd was starting to grow. That was our cue to start our descent. There was no firm plan for which route we would go down. It wasn't until we got down to the Gulfside Trail that we decided to continue down the cog access road.

As we continued down the access road it became apparent that careful footing would be required since rocks and dirt were sliding with every step. It was a tedious descent. The sun was blazing hot and there was no shade for relief. Many trains were coming up and down sometimes two at a time. We arrived at Waumbek Station along the cog to find ongoing construction be conducted with some heavy equipment. We all made it back down to Marshfield Station without injury or mishap.

This hike was initially planned for last weekend but was postponed due to mid winter conditions on the high summits with several hikers that ventured out needing to be rescued and one unfortunate hiker that died from hypothermia. In sharp contrast was today's high temps with some humidity but another good reason for our early start was that we finished our hike before the hottest part of the day.

We had an awesome group of hikers that accompanied Mark today and we all had a very enjoyable hike to the tallest mountain in New Hampshire. I have been on many hikes with Mark in the past several years and I was glad to be able to join him today on this monumental hike...Congratulations Mark!

Enjoy the photos and videos!