Mt. Techumseh - 7/4/20
4003 feet - 5.0 mi
I had a long weekend for the 4th of July, and I wanted to get a hike in. The weather seemed like it would be good, and I figured now would be as good a time as any to try to knock out a 4000-footer. My wife, Mary, wasn't really interested this time so I decided to rope my dad into going with me. He is something of an outdoorsman, if perhaps a bit past his prime. I talked to him the night before and he agreed to go. He had never hiked a 4000-footer either but was up to the challenge.
Tecumseh would be a 2 hour drive for me, so I knew I wanted to leave early. I packed my bag the night before, and Lana got extremely excited because she thought we were going hiking at 9pm. I tried to let her down easy but she doesn't speak english so she was confused and disappointed. Fortunately for her, we got up early and went hiking the next day.
The mountain was very easy to get to. It's only about 10 minutes off the highway, and the trailhead we started at was right in the parking lot for the Waterville Valley ski area. There were only a few cars there when I arrived, but unfortunately my dad took a wrong turn and got there 30 minutes late, and a few more cars showed up in the meantime. But it wasn't that big a deal, and we got to hiking by 8:30am.
The trail itself is easy to miss as you drive past it since the sign is tucked back in the woods. I knew roughly where it should be, and the other cars clued me in. Just past this sign there is the first of three stream crossings. The water level was quite low, and the humans crossed without getting wet, while Lana barged right through. I imagine this crossing (and the others) could be pretty sketchy on a warm day in early may when the snowmelt swells the creek.
The trail follows a different stream in more or less a straight line, with a relatively shallow incline, for probably half a mile before it hooks abruptly to the right and crosses the water again. From there the slope gets a bit steeper and the ground is more rugged. There are lots of tree roots and some rocks. I was somewhat concerned about Lana's paws but she handled it like a pro.
The trail continues up and levels out briefly as it works its way across a ridge, then sharply down the other side to the third stream crossing. Once again, we were able to stay dry while Lana splashed through the water. Just across the stream, up a little rocky scramble, we came upon an interesting lookout point. A short way to the left of the real trail, an offshoot took us to a ski trail with sweeping views of the other nearby mountains.
After taking a couple pictures, we turned back to the main trail. From this point on the hike was much more strenous. The terrain was very rocky and it climbed steadily, in a straight line almost all the way to the summit, which was still around a mile away. The rocks were arranged into steps in some places, but it only improved the footing and did little to affect the effort required to climb. We took it slow, making sure Lana and my dad both had plenty of breathers.
After what seemed like an eternity of this rocky path, the trail took a turn to the right and followed the ridge up to the summit. The path here was level and almost pleasant compared to what came before it. No more than perhaps a quarter mile below the summit, the trail forks. The two sides meet at the summit, forming a loop so you can choose your path. With no idea of which was the better route, I picked one at random, and we headed off to the left. I quickly regretted this choice. This short distance to the summit had probably the most treacherous footing of the entire hike, with rocks like knives and slippery roots in abundance. I was very concerned about Lana's paws, and would have carried her if I thought I would be able to stand with an entire dog in my arms. I wish I had taken a picture, but I needed my hands to keep myself steady rather than mess around trying to take pics. Regardless, we were careful and all made it safely to the summit. I checked the pup's paws and saw no sign of injury.
The view from the top was fine but nothing to write home about. It is small in area and there were already a few people there so it felt a little crowded. We took a quick water and snack break, snapped a few pictures, and headed down. We decided to try our luck on the other side of the loop, and it was the right choice. This path as far from easy but I was less concerned about the dog. There were some ledgy parts, with drops of 2-4 feet but Lana just jumped down them. My dad did slip and fall, but luckily did no real damage, just a battered buttcheek. The descent was somewhat treacherous, since the rocks were still a bit damp from rain the previous couple days. We stuck to our mantra of "be careful and take breaks" and safely navigated down most of the long straight rocky section. As we neared the bottom of it, I noticed another offshoot trail that appeared to lead out to a different ski slope. We ventured down it and arrived at the base of a chairlift midway up the mountain. We looked around and took a few more pictures here before moving on.
After this it was just a short way to the first water crossing of the descent. Lana and I were a little ways ahead of my dad, so I let her stand in the water for a bit and cool her paws off. Once the entire party crossed the water, we climbed back up over the ridge, and the descent got a bit easier. Dad was complaining about his aches and pains, but I couldn't really blame him. Even Lana was starting to slow down a bit, and I could tell she was getting tired. We made sure to take a couple breaks and drink plenty of water, and we forged the two creeks and made it back to the parking lot without further incident. I turned my car on and let the AC work it's magic while Lana laid in the shade. I'm not sure if she felt quite as pleased with our accomplishment as I was, but she definitely was happy to be off her feet. 1 down, 47 to go.
