Mount Israel: July 2nd

I've read about this small mountain located south of the Whites for several years.  It sounded like a perfect day hike and overall was not considered all that challenging.  So I made the somewhat long drive from Brattleboro over to Sandwich New Hampshire and found the trail.

It's funny, there were a few dirt roads I had to travel down to get to this trail.  One was so steep that when I came to the top of it I could not see if cars were coming up on the other side and had to hope that they were not.  Lucky for me they were not.

The guide book said that the start of the trail was steep but that it would soon even out a bit.  I found it to be just as they said, though there were a few more steep sections throughout the hike.  It was a bright sunny day with large puffy clouds crowding themselves throughout the sky.  The forest filled itself with dappled light making it close to impossible to take a photo given the extremes in lighting. You, of course, can take a photo, but within the forest, you have to be selective and such lighting lends itself to more intimate photos.

There were a good number of hikers already coming down from the summit given to the fact that I was starting out at around 2:30.  I figured the listed 3-hour hike would give me plenty of time and perhaps the opportunity to come back when the lighting was more conducive to my liking.

The heavy spring rains had left the trail wet.  Well, to be more accurate, the trails in places had melded into small streams and were thick with mud.  I was wearing for the first time on a hike, new boots that had amazing grip and also a larger toe box.  I have one toe that always seems to get inflamed on longer hikes and had made this investment into a tougher shoe.  It worked out really well too!  Way to go KEEN shoes.  They are also waterproof and I gave them a great test throughout the hike.  Best of all, the soles have a type of rubber, that for my weight and the conditions that I found myself in, worked really well and I only slipped several times.

So why all the worry about slipping?  I am still carrying my heavy pack (heavy with my Nikon D810 and three lenses) that is not weighted in a manner that is all that comfortable.  In fact, on several desert hikes during the year when I wore it, I felt incredibly uncomfortable with it on some of the ledges where I found myself and had to be helped by those who don't suffer from the fear of overhangs as I do.  I continue to promise myself that I will, really I will buy a lighter camera system before the end of this summer.

Ticks:  I hike in fear of ticks.  Thus I hiked with long hiking pants and a long-sleeved shirt with pants tucked into my socks.  I slathered in bug (safe) spray and wore a hat.  I did lots of tick checks throughout the hike.

I slogged.  Slogged some more for about two hours passing wonderful waterfalls, a handful of flowers, and glimpses of mountains and Squam Lake here and there.

The top, like some many mountains in this region, is open with pines that have been shaped to some extent by the wind.  Swaths of rock adorn the peak and the ever present cairn signifies that you have reached the top.  I had only brought one water bottle of water with me, so I finally broke it out and then ate.  There was a pine tree with dark blue pine cones that I photographed poorly and I tried to get some images of the peaks that were all around me.  I loved my iPhone panoramic view from the top for it shows the beautiful Whites as well as the aforementioned clouds.

It was the hike down, however, that slowed me down.  I envisioned myself slipping and sliding butt-first bouncing over rocks, roots, and mud and being found the next day on this mountain.  I was the last one down for the day and I knew that if I got hurt, I'd be sleeping there on my own for the night. I have to remember in the future to leave a note for others so that they will know what time I left and where I was heading.  Or it that a bad idea?  Is that an invitation for someone to take his/her time in breaking into my car (not that I have anything inside worth taking)?

The view from the top of Mount Israel is nice.  The waterfalls are great as is the forest.  I would suspect on an overcast day the lighting inside the woods would be glorious though on this day, it was not.  The forest, however, offers so much beyond pictorial beauty.  It offers the breeze rattling the leaves, two trees scraping against one another and producing a forest song, birds communicating and on trails like this, intersting people of all ages who love the outdoors.