Mount Washington Hike

One of the groups that I'm very involved in is Back on My Feet.  With a few breaks for injuries, I've been running with the group since Team Somerville was started.  Here is a blog post that I wrote for the Back on My Feet blog... this was by far, one of the most physically challenging things I've ever done (and I've done marathons and an Ironman!).

“You just ran the Boston Marathon – what are you going to do now?”

Team Somerville’s Brian Doucette and Wahid Chaudhary both successfully completed the 2012 Boston Marathon and had the time of their lives. With that amazing feat completed, the next obvious question for these guys was “What’s next?”

Hike Mount Washington, of course.

For those unaware, Mount Washington is the highest peak in the Northeastern United States at 6,288.  It’s most famous for its rapidly changing, dangerous weather and high wind speeds. (The record for the highest wind gust on earth was recorded at 231mph on the top of the mountain in 1934.)  It is a hike that is challenging and dangerous, and can be found on many peoples’ “Bucket List,” and now, for 12 of Team Somerville’s finest (Wahid, Brian and ten non-res runners), that item is officially crossed off.

On Friday, the report from the Ranger’s Station was encouraging: "Tomorrow's supposed be great! Pretty much the best day we've had all week. Sunny, not too windy. No ice left on the trail, though may be a little wet from all the recent rain. Aside from that pretty much summer hiking all around!"

We set out from Somerville at 6:30AM after a quick stop at Dunkin Donuts, and headed north, 200 miles to Pinkham Notch. We divided up snacks, talked about the plan, circled up, and headed up!  Our plan was to take the Tuckerman’s Ravine Trail on the way up, and the Lion’s Head Trail on the way home for a total distance of approximately 8.6 miles.

We started our hike at 10AM. The weather was gorgeous, low 70s, clear skies and a nice breeze. The first half of the trail was rocky, but no match for our runners’ spry legs. Just a few minutes into the hike, the real challenge started. We went from bounding up the trail to climbing over rocks and boulders.  As our team advanced up the mountain, we were treated to amazing views, each one more spectacular than the one before it!

We reached the summit of Mount Washington around 1:30 PM. There were few clouds in the sky, and therefore miles of visibility. We all enjoyed our “Summit Sandwich” (PB&J was on our menu) and took in the views. 

The whole team at the Summit!

Knowing that the way down would be more of a challenge, we started our descent at 2PM down the Lions Head Trail.  The rocks that we clambered up on the ascent were carefully negotiated on the way down.  The trek down was definitely difficult, but equally as rewarding as we continued to enjoy the views. Our tired legs carried us down in just over 4 hours, the last hour or so spent basking in the incredible feeling of accomplishment.  Team Somerville climbed the highest peak in New England!!

Here are a few other photos from the day.  Please note, I did not take any of these photos, they are all courtesy of the climber in the owl hat, Sara Raiken, Team Captain.