Mt Monadnock, Hiking with Ben

Mountain Man Natural High- This was outdoor adventure minus the speed and adrenaline of some other sports that I know and love. A beautiful, blue sky day, peaceful, very satisfying hike. Ben did great with his first mountain climb! He loves a physical challenge, and really seemed to enjoy the mountain and the vistas. We took the Spellman Trail up, reported to be the most challenging. It was very rocky, deserted, surprisingly steep, with a small meandering stream and wonderful views. White Cross Trail, going down, took about half as long as the trip up. Details- The drive was 1 hr 40 minutes, hike up took about 3 hours, going slow to take pics and explore, 1 1/2 hours going down fast. Ben wished he had his worn hiking boots instead of sneakers. 2 bike water bottles for me and the wineskin for Ben was plenty of H2o for a warm sunny day. We were 2 tired but happy hikers at the end of the day.