First, a brief journey into David's mind...buckle your seatbelts...
White Mountain TrACS has been quite the journey, and I will take you through some of its highlights (warning: mileage may not be entirely accurate… at all).
Mile 0—the start of the Dirrettissima, our first “real” trail.
Mile 11—crossing the Raymond Path waterfall/river in the pouring rain and slipping and sliding down the mudpath trail.
Mile 27—the Glen Boulder undercast, see Eben’s post above.
Mile 43—the controlled fall down the Wamsutta, and the wheeling back up to the Auto Road
Mile 64—the scorching hot day while TrACing the logging road of Shelburne Trail
Mile 68—the drenching rain on the second day of Shelburne Trail
Mile 72—the drenching rain on the third day of Shelburne Trail
Mile 96—being foiled at the Peabody River while trying to tackle Sphinx Trail on the backpacking trip
Mile 98—getting coffee at the White Mountain Café after being foiled by the Peabody River
Mile 102—successful crossing of the Peabody River
Mile 115—the glorious view from the Imp Face
Mile 137—the bluebird sky day on the rock faces of Welch Dickey
Mile 162—tubing a mile down the river during All Corps
Mile 178—climbing Tecumseh… two days in a row… from opposite sides.
Mile 192—stopping at Zealand Hut for lemonade.
Mile 194—Quote of the season from a passing hiker—“Remember Eben: Listen to the frogs”
Mile 202—hiking with Trevor on Chippewa Trail
… and more to come.
Stay strapped in as we are now granted special access into Eben's thoughts on the season....
With so many memories to pick from the whole summer from training to TrACing it is hard to put a finger on the best part. The one I am about to tell you about is just one of many highlights I have had over this summer. This one took place early in the season on Glen Boulder Trail. At the trailhead the sky was dark and cloudy. After a long hike we broke tree line and discovered how the trail go its name. About a mile or two back from the junction with Davis Path is a massive boulder perched precariously on the edge of a cliff just asking to be pushed off. It was a magnificent sight. We were high enough in elevation that we were looking at the surrounding mountains breaking through the clouds below us. The view was so nice that we elected to have an early lunch so we could take in as much of the view as possible. I found the perfect place to sit and pulled out my PB&J and let the beauty of the White Mountain National Forest sink in. It was at that moment where I started to laugh. I was thinking about where my friends back at school were at that exact moment. I have a friend working as a bus boy at a restaurant, one at Wal-Mart, another working at a grocery store, and many others working indoor jobs. And here I am. In the White Mountain National Forest working above tree line above the clouds with breath taking views everywhere I looked. It is moments like this one that make me really appreciate how fortunate I have been to spend a summer with the SCA.