Moosilauke

Moosilauke Ravine Lodge never looses its magic. I was a little nervous taking the kids to someplace that had been so special to Ian and I but I need not have been. It was great to be there as a family.

Summiting Moosilauke
Knowing that it would be impossible to summit Moosilauke with the kids (given that the longest hike we had ever done was 3 miles) we decided to just hike to Last Water and back. Fueled by a hearty lodge breakfast the kids raced up the mountain. Ben and Nik hopped from rock to rock to rock. Ben kept racing so far ahead he would have to sit and wait for us.

In Shenandoah we met some AT thruhikers and Ben was taken with the idea that they had trail names so we decided we needed trail names, too. Ben picked Snapper (because I had worked on the Snapper Trail), I was Wheezy (my asthma was acting up), Ian was Stomache, and Nikki started out as Hungee… He decided that was not a sufficiently dramatic name and changes it to Snapper-Butterfly after a while.

At Last Water (1.6 miles) the kids were still full of enthusiasm. Ben said he wanted to continue to the summit so we decided to go for it. Soon after Last Water the trail turns quite steep. Nik climbed on Ian’s shoulders for a ride. At first Ben continued to race ahead, but slowly he ran out of steam and was walking holding my hand. As the trees started to get shorter, Ben’s energy started to flag. A bribe of pizza, ice cream and a trip to the movies if he made it to the summit revived his enthusiasm till we got above tree line. A final bribe of whoever gets to the top first gets my last cookie got Ben to sprint to the finish.

The summit was beautiful. We could see in every direction for miles… Threatening rainclouds were rolling in above us adding to the drama.

The hike down was tough. Ben was pretty tired but a real trooper. He never complained. Nikki rode on Ian’s shoulder for about ½ of the descent. My knees were really hurting for the last stretch. It started to rain just as we were walking the last ¼ mile. The kids arrived at the lodge exhausted... but having hiked 7.2 miles!!!




Lodge Hospitality, Lodge Food
No trip report would be complete without mention of lodge hospitality and food.
The crew at the lodge was as fun and friendly as ever. 2 slightly cranky, slightly hyper kids were welcomed with open arms. The food was better than I remembered… and they served home-made DONUTS for breakfast that were to-die-for!! (The chocolate is good, but go for the maple, they are superlative).

A weird thought – I am now older than Hooke was when I was an undergrad (he was a DOC advisor)… am I really that old?!? He seemed so old when I was in college!