The Moose

L and cuarentayuno and I are hiking Mt. Moosilauke on Saturday and I couldn't be more excited. I can't believe I will have made it to July without a trip north.

For awhile I was trying to climb all the 4,000-footers in NH (and I still may) but there are some mountains I just enjoy too much and I end up spending my time on them instead of trying new mountains. Moosilauke is one of those favorites. I'm also a pretty big fan of the Lafayette-Lincoln-Little Haystack route, and when I lived in the Monadnock region, I did regular trips up Monadnock, on a super-secret locals trail that I'm not going to reveal here.

The hiking bug bit me probably 8 years ago now when I was living with an artist friend of mine who used to do days-long solo trips into the woods, even in winter. I haven't soloed in a long time, mainly because I've read and I believe that if you hike by yourself, you should do so with the understanding that you could die.

I'm also a big believer in the notion that you can never be overprepared. I usually bring a water filter (although I don't know where mine is, rats), a headlamp, a shiny silver emergency blanket rain gear, a compass (which, BTW, I don't know how to use) and lots of food.

I'm also excited for the ginormous meal I plan on eating on Saturday night.