The climb that was to do me in.
I am standing on the saddle between The Gateway and the last serious climb up to the table land. Its about a half mile climb which gains about 900 feet of altitude. If you look closely you can see some people about half way up (look for a red spont, which is a red shirt).
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View down
Just over that peak is "The Gateway" and in the valley far below somewhere is our campground.
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The Table Land, looking back
At the top of the steep climb is a small promitory, visible in the rear of this picture. This is what the table land looks like, flat, rocky and wind swept.
Note the hikers coming towards us.
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And then there was one.
I ran out of energy and stopped about a fifth of a mile beyond Thoreau spring (8/10ths of a mile for the top). It was late and I was exhasted and decided to turn around. Paul (see in this picture) made a dash to the top and met me on the trail back down.
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"The Owl"
The hike up "The Owl" is brutal. Very steep (and dangerous in places) but with the reward of great view. See Eric's trip photos. Eric and Marc had climbed this the day before.
The area to the right rear of the mountain is the famed "Klondike".
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Beware of gnomes!!
When one is hiking down a moutain after a long and torturous hike, and very tired, one starts to see things. I swear I saw a gnome pop out of the ground!
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He tops mountains and still cooks
Paul, after climbing Baxter peak (10.4 difficult miles round trip), finds the energy to cook dinner - pan seared filet mignon, with a dried red cherry Pinon Noir sauce, fried mushrooms, and garlic mashed potatos.
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Marc and his trusty Daewoo
This is Marc's fourth (third?) trip to Baxter State Park, and the second for the Daewoo.
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Eric is happy
While Andy, Paul and Marc attempted to climb Baxter Peak, Eric did a scenic day hike to Daicey pond and back (see his photos).
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Headlamp Adjustment
Eric and Marc both had new LED headlamps, which shed a nice light in a very small package.
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5:45 AM, South Branch Pond
I think South Branch Pond is the most beautiful spot on earth. This picture says it all.
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South Branch Sunrise II
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