Day 100 New Hampshire

Today I hiked a full day in New Hampshire and made good progress toward the White Mountains. 


I slept pretty well last night and woke up around 6. I was hiking by 6:40, after packing up quickly to make it to a trailhead where my mom was going to pick me up and bring me down to Beverly so I could surprise Ashley with a day off together. 


First thing in the morning I passed a field and boardwalk then hiked steeply up Moose Mountain. The sun was still rising as I climbed. 




There was a nice view from the top at the south peak. 




There’s a feeling when I’m sitting in the mountains, looking out at the world. Listening to the wind and the birds. It’s a bit like peace, but with a deep sense of appreciation. I very rarely get this feeling when I’m not out in nature. And I very often get this feeling when I am out in nature, taking a quiet moment to myself. I forget all the worries of the day, the thoughts about the miles ahead of me or behind me, and I just exist. Exist as a small piece of a beautiful massive system that operates whether I’m there to see it or not. These moments are fleeting, as I’m just passing through.


 I had a moment where I experienced this feeling while sitting alone at an overlook, looking out over New Hampshire while eating lunch. I was trying to get through 19 miles quickly so I could go surprise Ashley, but stopping at the overlook allowed me to soak in a quiet moment. 



After lunch I had one more steep uphill climb to Holt’s Ledge, a sheer cliff that hosts peregrine falcon nesting habitat. I didn’t see any falcons but I did enjoy the overlook. 





From Holt’s Ledge I hiked steeply downhill then through flat fields and forests until the end of the day. 






I met my mom and my sister Shelby at 1:45 after hiking 19 miles on the day. They drove me 2 hours to my parents’ house where I took a shower and grabbed a change of clothes. Then I drove to Beverly to surprise Ashley at dinner. I had her roommate Elena make dinner plans with Ashley, so Ashley would show up and not expect to be meeting me. It all went smoothly. 


We ate Indian food then hung out for the rest of the day.


Goodnight,

Walker 





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