A Hike to Mts. Stanton and Pickering

CHANGES TO MY BLOG:

After much thought, I have decided to make changes to my blog.  From now on, my blog will essentially consist of postings to my Facebook page which are more frequent, but less descriptive than my traditional blog postings.

There was a temptation to just terminate my blog entirely and be done with it.  However, a blog has advantages over social networks since the content is indexed by Google which makes it searchable. And, with a blog, you own your site and can change the design, and anything else about it that you want to change.

And although I’ve opted to continue with my blog, it is my impression that blogs are generally on the decline.  But, that is just my opinion.  If you do an Internet search, you will find opposing opinions.  My perceived downturn of blogging seems to have happened in conjunction with the mainstream adoption of social networks such as Facebook, and microblogging platforms such as Tumblr and Twitter.  Their rise was bolstered by the prevalence of smartphones, where users generally prefer a shorter form of communication than the traditional blog provides.

And so, with no further ado, here is my first blog posting using this new format.

INTRODUCTION: During the first week of May 2019, I did the little ‘out and back’ hike along the Mt. Stanton Trail to Mts. Stanton and Pickering.   These mountains are located a short distance west of Glen, NH.

PHOTOS:

In years past, when doing this hike in the first week of May, several wildflowers were in bloom.  So, it was somewhat disappointing this year to find nothing but a few sprouts just beginning to emerge.

Near the summit of Mt. Pickering which stands at only 1,930 ft, there was still some patchy snow along the trail.

And, just a few hundred feet from the summit of Mt. Pickering there is a vernal pool (maybe a tarn??) that still had a skim layer of ice.

Of course, there was still snow on many of the ski slopes at Attitash, which isn’t unusual at this time of year.

The views from the north slopes of both Mts Stanton and Pickering provide views looking up the Rocky Branch Valley with the south cliffs of Iron Mountain in the foreground, and high peaks in the Presidential Range in the distance.

Zooming in on Mt. Washington from Mt. Pickering

Zooming in on the south cliffs of Iron Mountain from Mt. Pickering

Also, Mts. Stanton and Pickering provide sweeping vistas of the Jackson/Intervale area and nearby mountains such as the Doubleheads, Kearsarge North and many other peaks.

A huge boulder along the Mt. Stanton Trail.  My propped trekking pole provides some idea about the size of the boulder.