Adventures on Mt. Avalon in Crawford Notch

I have now hiked up to Mt. Avalon twice. Once in early spring with snow still three feet high and now in early summer. Both have been enjoyable, though this time I didn't have to worry so much about ice in the steep parts. The trail to hike in the Avalon Trail and it trails up 1.3 miles before turning left another .5 miles to Mt. Avalon.
 The view is amazing! You can see Mt. Washington in the distance and on the other side the valley of Crawford Notch. I was very happy it was a sunny day and could see all over. There are boulders to sit and eat lunch as you glance around. Hiking was a round trip of about five hours with time to eat lunch and take pictures. If you haven't hiked Mt. Avalon, I would say put it on your To-do list for hikes in the White Mountains. Park below near the Crawford Depot.

Here are a few pictures of the adventure:

Mt. Washington in the distance

Crawford Notch Valley

Climbing up the boulders we ate on at the top

A small acquaintance we hiked into a long the path

Happy Hiking and enjoy the views this summer!!!

Aerial Tramway to the Summit of Cannon Mountain and Rim Trail

If you haven't been to Franconia Notch State Park and want to visit this summer, you might enjoy a trip up Cannon Mountain on the Aerial Tramway. The Tram runs from 8:00am and to 4:00pm. I enjoy going in the morning and when it's quiet. So this year I visited the tram in early June. The weather was fair, sunny and cool on top of the mountain. The views were beautiful and I enjoyed walking along the Rim Trail on top which is part of the Kinsman Ridge Trail. The trail takes visitors to the tower which is set high to give you a 360 view of the area. It's well worth the $16.00 dollars to ride as an adult. You can see stunning views from New Hampshire, Maine, Vermont, New York and Canada on a perfect sunny day. I wanted to show a few pictures of my adventure this year up the mountain.

Leaving the station on the tram

The view of Echo Lake from the Tram

View of Eagle Cliff

The view of Fanconia Notch State Park and Parkway

One of the many views from the Tower

Another breathtaking view from the Tower

The Tram coming up to the summit

 There are two Trams, one being yellow called "Mustard" and the other one red called "Ketchup". One shown in the picture above is Ketchup. Both are the same, just different colors. The ride up has some swinging at the poles but the ride down in smooth. Great visit.

Happy Hiking and Visiting the White Mountains of NH!

Visited Arethusa Falls and the Willey House over the weekend

Hiked up to Arethusa Falls this weekend. It was beautiful as always. Its an easy hike. The road if off route 302 for parking. The trail is 1.5 miles to the falls. There is a side trail if you want to see Fawn Pool, Bemis Falls and Colliseum Falls. The side trail is called Bemis Brook Trail, it hooks back on to the main trail to see Arethusa Falls. Arethusa Falls is the tallest in NH, 176ft. This time of year there are many visitors.The Falls was crowded. It only takes about 45 mins to an hour to reach the top. The trail is well taken care of. If you want more of an adventure, after the Falls you could always hike over to Frankenstein Cliffs, which is another 1.5 miles away. There you can see a view of the Mountains. Here are a few pictures below.

If you look closely on the Xlarge picture of the Falls, you will notice a person on top. He hiked around the Falls and went on top. Not the safest thing to do but if you are daring and have no fear of heights, then you ca take a chance, I prefer to enjoy the Falls from below!

Then I went and had ice cream at the Willey House which is also located in Crawford Notch, up the road from the Falls. There is a pond on the other side of the road which has trails to follow and a pond. Here are a few pictures. After a great day hiking, a stop for ice cream is always a great idea!

The pond

The house with ice cream and gift shop

The baby fox that lives near by. He didn't mind his picture being taken.

Happy Hiking and enjoy some yummy ice cream when you can!!! :)

A Hike To Lonesome Lake in June! Franconia Notch

 This weekend I hiked with a friend to Lonesome Lake in Franconia Notch. It's around 2.7 miles to the Lake from the Basin on Highway 93. The trail is easy, yet there are two places where you cross through Cascade Brook. You start at the Basin and follow Basin Cascade Trail to connecting to Cascade Brook Trail to Lonesome Lake. The view from the Lake is amazing! Many hike to enjoy the view or even go for a swim in the lake. The hut (Lonesome Lake AMC Hut) has an wonderful view as well if you ever want to stay. The hike was around 7 hours because we enjoyed lunch at the hut and hiked around the Lake which was almost another mile. If you ever wanted to hike and want to start easy, this is a great trail to start. You don't even have to go all the way to the Lake, you can also just stop at the top of the cascades. The top is about 1.1 miles from the Basin. Here are some pictures to show you the views from the Lake and around the Lake. 

The View from the Hut (Mt. Lafayette, Mt.Lincoln, Little Haystack)

The View from the other side of the Lake where you see the Hut

Mt. Cannon from the Lake

View from the porch of the upper Hut

My friend, her dogs and me at the Hut!

Happy Hiking!!! :) Enjoy your summer...in the Mountains!

A hike to Ethan's Pond in Crawford Notch...almost

Headed up to Ethan's Pond last weekend. Was excited to see the campsite, the pond and the view of the mountains around the area. I never got there...the hike was going to be 2.6 miles up and then back the same way on Ethan's Pond Trail. The hike started on route 302, the parking is .3 up the road. You can also see Ripley Falls on a side trail which is .5 miles off the main trail. As you head up 1.3 miles you can go off the  trail .3 miles to see Kedron Flume which has a beautiful view through the trees. I stayed on the trail until I was almost .2 miles from the site. The trails was mostly a small river with snow patches. Couldn't hike through the water so turned around. I plan on trying this trail again in the summer. Because of the snow I hiked for five hours...I recommend waiting until summer to hike this trail unless you love tough obstacle courses.

This is where I was defended and turned back. I went through the snow and into the water.

After 1.6 miles it was mostly snow, but your feet would sink due to the sun melting it under your feet!

View at Kedron Flume

Ripley Falls

Until next time...Happy Hiking!