Calenders of the White Mountains designed and taken by Ariel Snow

I love hiking! I love the mountains! I love going on an adventure through the White Mountains. As I hike, I enjoy taking pictures at every great spot, view, and lookout in the mountains. In the past few weeks I have worked on a calender for my house and at the same time wanted to make it public for others to put up in their homes to enjoy. My first degree was graphic design and I enjoy taking breathtaking pictures. In this Calender you will see beautiful photos of Mt. Washington, Lonesome Lake, Franconia Notch, Crawford Notch, The Lakes of the Clouds and many more.

Come and check out this stunning calender and get one for your home to enjoy! 

Premium Calender $28.95

Standard Calender $17.95

These Calenders came be found on my Author's Spotlight called Adventure Shop:

 Click HERE

HAPPY HIKING! :)

Great Autumn Loop in Franconia Notch

One Great Loop to hike in the White Mountains is the Franconia Ridge.  It is a great day hike that takes about nine hours or so to do. The start is at Lafayette Place Parking. Hike up .2 to a two way path, one being Falling Waters Trail and one being Old Bridle Path. Doesn't matter which way you decide to hike, there are so many wonderful great views. You will also then hike along the Franconia Ridge Trail and view landscapes from three different mountains. The loop is 8.8 miles and worth every step! 

What you will see along this great hike:

• Stairs Falls
• Swiftwater Falls
• Cloudland Falls
• Shining Rock
• Little Haystack
• Mt. Lincoln
• Mt. Lafayette
• Echo Lake
• Greenleaf AMC Hut
• Walker Cascades 
• and many amazing views along Old Bridle Path

During Autumn the leaves are changing colors and the air is cool. You will see many views along the Ridge were the colors are beautiful. If you get a chance this fall to hike a wonderful loop, take this adventure in Franconia Notch! 

Hiking along the Franconia Ridge

Greenleaf AMC Hut

 Happy Hiking :)

The 4000 Footer Club...With PICTURES:)

The 4000 Footer Club

So, on my way through the Franconia Ridge Trail, we meet a guy who is in the

4000 Footer Club. I have heard of this club before and have already started

writing the dates down in my book of the mountains I hike. He had already

done all the 4000 footers! I was so impressed! 

To be part of the 4000 footer club, one needs to hike all 48 peaks in the White

Mountains, 14 peaks in Maine and 5 in Vermont.

This year I hiked many places but I only got to hike 5 of the 4000 footers,

next year I hope to double that number and hike ten. 

Though its hard because I always enjoy my hikes and 

want to do some of my favorite mountains every year. 

I really enjoy hiking hiking Mt. Washington, Mt. Madison, and Mt. Liberty.

I know I have to adventure out and start doing some new mountains

next year, I am very excited about this thought! 

I hiked four of the larger mountains this year, all being over 5000!

Lets check them out!

 Mt. Washington 6288ft

Mt Lafayette 5260ft

Mt. Lincoln 5089ft

Mt. Madison 5367ft

and also..

Mt. Liberty 4459ft

I am hoping next year to hike Mt. Adams and Mt. Monroe 

and add them to my list.

...Plus a few others which I will be looking over during this winter.

Already excited about next late spring.

Happy Hiking:)

This winter I will be snowshoeing, XCountry skiing, and skiing in the
White Mountains so be looking out for some posts on those!
Plus more on hiking here, I sometimes go up Tuckerman Ravine
when there is snow to see the skiers!

Mt. Pemigewasset (Indian Head) Fraconia Notch

Mt. Pemigewasset (Indian Head)

I really wanted to hike this mountain for two reasons. First that there are stories about UFO sighting and that the first alien abduction ever heard of happened right there! Second is that my parents went for their honeymoon in the area when they had gotten married. So I asked them if they wanted to go back and hike the trails with me. My mom can but sadly my father had already made plans to go fishing. I also took along my husband, stepson and our dog Stitch! The hike was a good steady uphill. The paths were muddy in some places but the path itself was nice. Of course it gets stepper as you get closer to the top. Mt. Pemigewasset is 2557 feet, and for someone who hikes a lot I didn't find this hike hard. My mom had to make a few stops but that was about it, to just relax. Now, when you do get to the top, the cliff can be a little scary to some people. I recommend having your dog on a leash when you get to the top. I have heard that I guy had almost lost his dog off the cliff, because it was chasing a squirrel. The view is beautiful. You can walk around and see different views. The hike itself was 4 miles long. We took the Indian Head Trail to get to and off the mountain. There is a parking place to park your car at the bottom near the Indian Head Resort.

Here are a few pictures of the hike:

If you see this sign at the beginning of the trail, then you at the right spot!

There are some large boulders that were dropped on the ice that had went 

through millions of years ago. My stepson loved climbing them!

The Cliff on top of the mountain, amazing views all around!

You can see Mt. Liberty and Mt. Flume from the Indian Head

Hope you enjoyed the Post and Happy Hiking:)

Speechless Wednesday...In the Valleys Below

Speechless Wednesday...In the Valleys Below

Some of my favorite Valley shots:

 The valley view from Mt. Liberty

 

 The valley view when hiking up Mt. Washington

 

The valley view from Mt. Madison

Happy Hiking:)

The Flumes Gorge in Franconia Notch

The Flumes Gorge

Over the years, as a child, I have enjoyed coming here with my family, now as an adult, I take my family here. The Flumes George is located in Franconia Notch, off exit 34A. It is a beautiful place to come visit alone, with your loved one, or with your whole family! You start at the Flume Visitor Center. Inside you get your tickets, they have bathrooms, a place to eat lunch, and a gift shop with some great New Hampshire and White Mountain souvenirs. When you leave the Center, it's like a huge circle. You head to the right and go through a The Flume Covered Bridge. Then you will hit The Flume Gorge which is so beautiful. The Picture up above is close to the start of the Gorge. Here is another picture of me looking back when we were half way through the Gorge:

 It is really amazing to walk through, with walls on both sides and just a narrow walk way. You can see in the picture that there are people bending over looking at the water. There are so places that can be a little scary where you are up high, near the wall with water below. So, hopefully, you are not scared of heights!

There is a lovely waterfall when you reach the end of the Flume Gorge called Avalanche Falls. It is so beautiful. Now The Flume is a natural gorge extending 800 feet at the base of Mount Liberty. I have hiked up Mt. Liberty a few times so they water is cold, fresh mountain water and when it reaches the Flumes it comes down off the Falls into the Gorge. Now, after the Gorge you can continue around the loop, the whole loop is about 2 miles long from the Center. Here you will also see the Liberty cascades and go over the Sentinel Pine Covered Bridge. Walking a little further down you will see the The Pool which is beautiful.After seeing The Pool, you will head back to the Center. This trip around normally takes us about three hours or so to do. If its your first time, it will probably take you longer for you will want to take pictures of everything. 

The Flume Gorge is open daily from May 12th to October 23rd, 2011. Operating hours are 9:00 am  to 5:00 pm. I would say try to get there early and enjoy your whole day! The fall is such a lovely time to go for the trees are so beautiful with their leaves.

Admission is $14 for adults (ages 13+); $11 for children (ages 6-12); children ages 5 and under are admitted free with paid adult.

Now they also have Discovery Pass (Includes Cannon Mountain Aerial Tramway & Flume Gorge): Adults: $26.00, children (ages 6-12): $20.00. So, if you haven't been to either yet, this can be fun to see both, do one in the morning, eat then go enjoy the other in the afternoon!

I hope this has been helpful and that you get to enjoy these wonderful places this fall or next spring!

Mt. Liberty on a beautiful Sunny Day

Mt. Liberty in Franconia Notch

I love spending time hiking in Franconia Notch. I love all the views from every mountain top. When we hiked up Mount Liberty it was a beautiful sunny day. There were prefect views all around us. I had to take pictures though there is nothing like seeing the views with your own eyes. If you are ever up in this part of the White Mountains, you have got to hike up Mt. Liberty. Some people make it a whole day trip and do Mt. Flumes as well. I am hoping to do both at once next year when I stay at the Tent site up near Mt. Liberty. If you want to learn more about the tent site, it was two posts before this one. Mt. Liberty is a 4000footer, 4459 feet. The best Trail to use when hiking up would be the Liberty Springs Trail. The Flume Slide Trail can be very muddy making it very slippery. Be careful when on that trail! You can also reach Mt. Liberty by going across the Franconia Ridge Trail which hits five main mountains in Franconia Notch.

Here are some of my wonderful pictures:

Here is Mt. Liberty 4459 feet 

Hiking this mountain in Sept. was great for there are few hikers out, 

so the mountain almost feels like its yours.

 My friend up the trail with my dog Stitch. This was also

stitch's first hike up a 4000 footer and he loved it!

Stitch and I look every small from where my friend took this picture. 

We are near the very top of Mt. Liberty and could see all the way around. It was awesome!

 This is a picture of Mt. Flume from Mt. Liberty

This picture is of Mt. Cannon, you can see the clouds rolling over it.

Here is where you can hop on the Franconia Ridge Trail and head over to 

Little Haystack, Mt. Lincoln, Mt. Lafayette!

Over all I loved this hike and hoping to do it again next year but this time stay over night up in the mountains!

Happy Hiking!

PS...On This hike we made friends with a guy from Conn. He drove up just to do some hiking, staying and then leaving the next day.  He hiked all over and seemed to know everything about the Whites. He talked about his ex-wife, his new girlfriend he meet on a Hiking dating site, his dog he had for five years, a cat that was really not his, but he ended up paying money to put to sleep, that he was the youngest, had older sisters, and he enjoyed a beer after a hike..the only thing I never got was his name! lol ...Thanks for hanging with us on our hike, it was great meeting you (No Name) :) 

ALWAYS ENJOY MEETING NEW HIKERS ALONG ANY OF MY HIKES!:)

Mt. Liberty (Liberty Springs Tentsite) Franconia Notch

Liberty Springs Tentsite in Franconia Notch

We went up to Mt. Liberty little over a week ago and came across the Liberty Springs Tentsite,

on our way up Liberty Springs Trail. I enjoyed seeing the tentsite and now hoping to have my

first overnight next year with my friend at this site. It was great and only $8.00 per night during the season for each person. They have a Site Watcher, a place to get fresh spring water and different sites. When staying here they have an Outhouse for use. There are Group and singles camp sites. 

I really hope that I do get to stay over night next year!

Here are some pics of the tentsite!

You will see the Tentsite Watcher first when you come up the trail

Here are the Tentsites and where they are located

This is where you can get fresh water to drink and 

fill up on the way to Mt. Liberty

Here are the Group tentsites, the singles are in the back

Great place to stay and wake up to continue on an Outdoors Adventure!:)

Dream Hike in the Franconia Notch

The Franconia Ridge Trail

My dream hike would be in the Franconia Notch. It would start at the Flumes, where I would hike up the Flume Slide Trail over to Mt. Flume, then head over to Mt. Liberty. After them, I would walk along the Franconia Ridge Trail. This picture above is of the Trail that runs along five amazing mountains in Franconia Notch. Then I would head over to Little Haystack, then Mt. Lincoln, with a final stop at Mt. Lafayette. This would take all day so then we would stay over night at the Greenleaf AMC Hut. I have always wanted to stay there. The next day we would travel down the Old Bridge Path, over the Parkway, to Lonesome Lake Trail, where we would go up to Lonesome Lake, then head down the Cascade Brook Trail to where we would be very close to the Flumes. That would be an awesome hike trip! Maybe one day, I'll get the chance to do it!

On Little Haystack with Mt. Lincoln behind us

Amazing views from up on top of the Ridge!

The views from Lonesome Lake

Very popular spot for hikers

Happy Hiking:)

Three Great Hikes in Franconia Notch

I know that there are many of great hikes in Franconia Notch. Today I am going to talk about three wonderful hikes that you many enjoy if you travel to this area.

Number three: Lonesome Lake

I have done this beautiful hike and the best part is that there are many trails to get to the beautiful lake. Some hikers like to hike from the Basin. This is a 2.4 mile hike which starts on Basin Cascades Trail then continues onto Cascade Brook Trail. This is a very popular route to take!
There is also starting at the Lafayette Campground which is a shorter route. This is about 1.2 miles. You take the Lonesome Lake Trail all the way up. There is a beautiful Hut called Lonesome Lake AMC Hut that you can stay over night at if you decide. You can also trail around the lake which is 0.8 miles around. Great for dogs to swim in as well. Elev. 2763'

Number Two: Mt. Liberty

This is a great hike. The trail to travel is Liberty Springs Trail which is 3.5 miles to the top of Mt. Liberty. There is also a Liberty Spring Tentsite for those overnight travelers. I have also got some fresh water from a spring here. Now you can travel back the same way or you can head over to Mt. Flumes on the Franconia Ridge Trail. I have not done this yet, though I hope to do it some, but it seems awesome. It would be about 1.2 miles. Then you can head down Flume Slide Trail which is 3.3 miles, this trail then connects to Liberty Springs Trail which leads to the parking. Mt. Liberty is 4459' and Mt. Flume is 4328'

Number One: Loop of Mt. Lafayette

Now I have never done the Loop, but I have had many travelers tell me how wonderful it is. I hope to do it next year and stay over night at the Greenleaf AMC Hut. You travel up Old Bridle Path which is 2.7 miles to the Hut, then continue up Greenleaf Trail to the top of Mt. Lafayette. Then hike the Franconia Ridge Trail over to Mt. Lincoln 0.9 miles away. After travel 0.7 to Little Haystack. I have been up Little Haystack. The view is beautiful! Then travel Falling Waters Trail 3.0 miles back to the parking. There are three beautiful waterfalls to see along the way on this trail. Mt. Lafayette 5261' Mt. Lincoln 5089' Little Haystack 4761'

These are my top three! Happy Hiking!!:)

Top 5 Great Hikes in the White Mountains

After hiking around the White Mountains and having some of my friends how me some of their amazing hikes here. I have come up with some great hikes. These hikes are for those that can stand a long time on their feet and be ready for a grand adventure!

Number 5 Mt. Chocorua
This hike starts on the east side of the Kancamagus Highway. The Trail to start on is the Champney Falls Trail which is 3.6 miles up which you will pass the Champney Falls. You continue near the three sisters still on the Champney Falls Trail until you get to the top of Mt. Chocorua. The mountain is 3475' above sea level. I have heard the view is amazing!

Number 4 Mt. Jackson
This hike starts on Rt 305 in the Crawford Notch near Soca Lake. This is also where the AMC Highland Center is as well. The Trail is called Webster-Jackson Trail because it leads to both mountains. about 1.4 miles up it turns to two trails, one being Jackson Branch. Follow that trail 1.2 miles until you reach the top pf Mt. Jackson. This mountain is 4052' above sea level. Beautiful views, can see Mt. Washington and the Mt. Washington hotel too!

Number 3 Mt. Liberty
This is such a lovely hike. It's in Franconia Notch and you start hiking near the Flumes. You pretty much stay on the same trial much of the way up called Liberty Springs Trail. There is a tenting site and a stop where you can get fresh water on the way up. Then at the top you will connect with Franconia Ridge Trail for .3 miles and then you will see the views! Amazing! I could see all the way around standing in one spot! This mountain is 4328' above sea level.

Number 2 Mt. Madison
If you are looking for a rocky climb, then this is the mountain for you! It starts on Rt2. There is a place to park, always full of cars. Everyone loves hiking here! There are many trails to pick from to climb up or down. Most pick between Air Line and Valley Way. Both will lead you to the AMC Madison Spring Hut from there you hike on the Osgood Trail until you reach the top. It's very windy but lovely views. On the way back down there is a lovely lake near by to see called Star lake. Mt. Madison is 5366' above sea level.

Number 1 Mt. Washington
This has to be my favorite mountain to hike. I can't wait to hike back up it again this year. There are so many ways to get to the top of this mountain. I enjoy taking the Ammonoosuc Ravine Trail for it leads to the Lakes of the Clouds Hut. This hut is very nice instead and you get to see the Lake of the Clouds! Then follow up to Crawford Path that leads to the top! Mt. Washington is 6288' above sea level.

Always make sure the weather is good for hiking before you start you hike. Weather changes very quickly when you are up high and without tree coverage. Drink lots of water for you on your adventures and stay safe!
 Happy Hiking!:)

Flumes: Great place to visit!

If you are ever in the Franconia Notch area a great place to stop and check out in The Flumes. All you have to do is get off Exit 34A and it's right down the road. You park at the The Flume Visitor Center and then start your adventure! The Flume is a natural gorge that is about 800ft long at the bottom of Mt. Liberty. The pathway through the gorge is rebuilt every spring for the safety of the guests. It also have caves to explore and beautiful New England Bridges to walk through. The trail itself is over a mile long but is so worth to visit! I go just about every year to see this natural wonder!

Here is a picture I took as I was entering the Gorge. It can be slippery so wear good shoes. The walk path to the left is small but there are railings to hold on. The journey through the gorge is with every penny! It's amazing!

Franconia Notch Hikes and more

I love to travel through Franconia Notch. There are some amazing mountains to hike, I have gone there to climb cliffs, to see some of the attractions, historic sites, there is a campground, and some beautiful waterfalls. I have hiked Mt. Liberty last year. It was a beautiful hike and had some amazing views. You could see all the way down Franconia Notch which was great! I have also hiked Mt. Lincoln. It was about two hours from the base. I loved the view, so peaceful on top. I hiked that mountain in the fall so the trees were so colorful.
There is also some awesome attractions you can stop to visit while passing through. I have been on the Cannon Mtn. Aerial Tranway. There are some trails on top of the mountain where you can see some views of Franconia Notch. There are also some passing trails so hikers can stop on top of the mountain if they need a rest.
I also love to stop at The Basin on my way through the Notch. There is a trail that takes you to the Basin from the road. There are some trails that start near the Basin. I have gone up a trail to Lonesome Lake. The lake was lovely and it was nice to see the new hut up that way called the Lonesome Lake Hut. Hikers can sleep up in the hut, there are restrooms and place to eat.
Another place to see along the Notch is the Flumes. Many visitors of the area love seeing the Flumes. There are some trails that start near the Flumes. That was were I started to get to the top of Mt. Liberty.
I hope to hike some new trails this summer and fall. I will add them to my list of awesome hikes! Stay tuned for more:)

Liberty Peak

Last summer, I wanted to go hiking in Franconia Notch. It was a beautiful partly cloudy day. The temperature was around 75 degrees starting at the bottom. I have hiked in Franconia Notch before and this time wanted to try a new trail out. We went up Liberty Spring Trail. This trail leads to the top pf Mount Liberty. Mount Liberty's height is 4459ft above sea level. The trail up started off flat, but soon got steeper. Much of the path was climbing rocks up until we got to Liberty Spring Tentsite. Here people who want to camp up on the mountain can stay. There is also a lovely spring with fresh mountain water. We filled up our water bottles and continued to the top. After a little while, we reached Franconia Ridge Trail which we turned right on and lead us right to the top of Mount Liberty. The view was amazing. We saw from three different sides of the Mountain. We eat lunch up above on a large rock and enjoyed the views. Then we decided to go back down the way we came. The Hike as a whole was about six hours. It took us about 2 1/2 hours to reach the top of Mount Liberty and it was worth it for the views. If you climb the mountain, do it on a day where it's not to cloudy so you can see every wheres!

This is me to top of Mount Liberty. This is just one side where the view was amazing! It is so worth the climb!