 |
On the summit of Cascade Mountain; 9 of 46
|
After the thrill of conquering Giant Mountain we headed back to our hotel to thaw out and relax a little. It was a long, cold, tiring day and a hot shower and sleep were definitely in order. The temperature was supposed to be a little warmer the next day, but still well below 0°. We had plans to head back out to climb then to head across the state to visit Dan's friend Dan who had joined us on our first hike in the Adirondacks. I was excited to see him and his wife again and to just enjoy some time seeing the state.
We slept good that night, and completely overslept for our early start time. We finally got up and out of the hotel and headed back to the mountains. Cascade and Porter Mountains are known to be the two easiest of the 46ers, so we knew the small parking lot would fill up quickly.
 |
Summit handstand on Porter Mountain; 8 of 46
|
Luckily we got there early enough to get a spot and get started on the trail. I was surprised with how much easier the hike was than any of the other ones we had done. It felt like we made it to the split in no time. We headed right to go tag Porter Mountain first. Up, down, and around through the pines. There were a couple of spots with great views, but the sky still wasn't very clear. We could see parts of the valley but not 100% of it. We finally made it to the summit and topped it off with another handstand photo.
It was hovering around -15° so we knew we couldn't stay long, after a quick break we headed back towards the split. Porter offered some great butt sliding on the descent and we were back to the split and heading up Cascade before we knew it. It was a short spur up to the summit, and though definitely my easiest 46er so far, the summit of Cascade was really cool. It is all exposed rock much like the summits of Marcy, Wright, Algonquin, and Skylight, but a lot easier of a hike. I could easily see why most people start their 46er journey here. We spent a little more time on Cascade's summit taking photos, and chatting with the ice climbers who had just scaled the mountain. It was getting cold and there were no views so we headed back on down the mountain and to the car.
 |
Dan leaving the summit of Cascade
|
The descent down Cascade was a weird one. Dan and I got separated by a little bit of space as I was descending a little quicker than he was. As I walked along the last mile and a half my mind began to wander. As I spoke about in my last post, this Christmas season had been totally different than any before. I was going through major changes in my life at this time, which brought on some confusion. I don't know if it was being tired, walking through the woods alone, or just the culmination of the last few weeks events, but it all started to hit me like a ton of bricks. Suddenly I just wanted to be out of the mountains and back home. This has been a constant in the emotional roller coaster of change that these hiking journeys have brought on, and it would not be the last time I felt that way.
We had a long drive across the state ahead of us so once we were back to the car we loaded up and hit the road. A quick stop at a McDonalds for food and to change in to some warm dry clothes and we were on our way. We knew we were going to hit some snow so we wanted to make up as much time as we could from the beginning, and then the snow hit. It was heavy and coming down hard. Dan was having a tough time but he got us there safely.
 |
Dan on the summit of Cascade Mountain
|
It was great to see Dan and Jenn again. There are some people in this world that from the first moment you meet them that make you feel like you have known them forever, and this entire family are some of those people. We got there late and didn't get to spend too much time catching up but I was happy to be out of the car and in a warm house. We hit the hay pretty early for a good night's sleep.
We woke the next day and enjoyed the morning catching up with Dan and the kids. They made us an amazing breakfast and then we suited up to head outside. Snowmobile time!! I had never seen a snowmobile in person, much less ridden on one. All of that was about to change. Dan went out and cut a trail through the fresh powder that had fallen the night before, then turned over the keys. I was very hesitant at first, this was a heavy machine, and I'm a small guy, but a few trips around the house and I was starting to get comfortable with it. We headed back to the field on the back of his property and he told us to go for it. Dan was a lot more ballsy than I was at first. I was still very hesitant. It felt like as soon as I got up over 25 miles per hour it was going to throw me off, but eventually I got the hang of it. We rode for what felt like hours, around in circles, it was like being a kid again on that brand new orange bicycle I got for Christmas one year. I rode that thing in circles for days out in the street. I could have done the same on the snowmobile.
We went in and got showers and packed back up. It was getting a little later in the day and we had decided to head home. It was New Years Eve and the thought of a new year and new journeys ahead had me excited to get back home. 2017 was an odd year for me. It started in Boston during a trip I never thought I would take, and ended at home on my couch after 2 great trips to New York back to back. I covered a lot of miles in 2017, on foot, in a car, and in the air. I visited 13 states, logged 53 summits, felt 140° of different temperatures, made new friends, and conquered a lot of my own personal demons. I had no clue what the next year might hold for me, but I made one promise to myself. The next year I was going to go higher, faster, and farther. Now to just figure out how.
