The NH 48 4000' Mountains
“The windshield is bigger than the rear view mirror for a reason, because what is in front of you is so much more important than what is behind you.” - Jelly Roll
For anyone that knows me, knows that I live for having and completing goals and thrive when I have a sense of accomplishment. Whether it be a time to shoot for in a race, total miles run in a year, completing an event, or summiting all the peaks over 4000' in the White Mountains, the thrill and satisfaction I get when completing a goal really defines the way I like to live my life.
Last year, I was fortunate enough to help my friend Becca finish running a marathon in all 50 states by pacing her at the Jackson Hole Marathon. Watching her complete something that big, really motivated me to see what else I could do.
2024 was already set to be a big year. After putting in the most mileage I have ever run in the first half of the year (and well on my way to hitting 4000 for the year for the first time ever), I completed the Tahoe 200 (my longest race ever) in June.
With Tahoe now in the rear view mirror, I moved my attention to one of my secondary goals for the year; finish the NH 48 4000' peaks.
The Early Days
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| Mnt Washington 8/11/10 |
Also some time in the pre-GPS era (2007-2009) I also hiked Garfield with Amy, Jen, and Keith.
On my 30th birthday (August 2010), Amy and I summited Mount Washington and were treated with one of the clearest days that I remember.
It's funny to think back on these hikes as all of this was well before I got into long distance running. I laugh now at how a 9 mile hike back in 2006 nearly killed me.
Checking the First Big Box
After few years of running ultra marathons, I started to set my sites on some bigger goals (pun intended) and in 2017, I took on and completed my first single day Pemi loop with my friends Chris and Patrick which includes 8 (Flume, Liberty, Lincoln, Lafayette, Garfield, South Twin, Bond, and Bondcliff) of the 4000' peaks.
The next year, I tackled the Pemi for a second time and then the Moriah, Carters, Wildcats traverse, checking off another 6 (Moriah, Carter Dome, Middle Carter, South Carter, Wildcat A and Wildcat D).
At this point, I was ready to get serious about completing the 48 and started obsessively drawing up options to do it as fast as possible.
Unfortunately, this ended up being a fault start. After tagging the Wildcat's again and then the Northern Presidential Peaks in June of 2019 in what I called the 3 Huts Loop, I backed off from the mountains for the remainder of the year as I trained for the Midstate 100.
In 2020, even with the pandemic, I was able to get up to the mountains a handful of times and most notably tag the Tripyramids (North and Middle), Whiteface, and Passaconway.
Also that same summer, Neil joined me for his first 4000' peak (Jackson) and a few weeks later Amy and I were able to sneak away for a weekend where I was able to get in Hale, Tom, Field, and Willey.
Finishing Them Up
Even though I had high hopes of completing the remaining peaks in 2022, it would take a little longer to figure out times to get each of them in. Having done a majority of ones that were more accessible or part of a longer traverse, I needed some real planning.
In 2022, Neil and I did Cannon and then Donal and I did the Hancocks and Owl's head. In 2023, after an aborted two day Hut Traverse which included the Wildcat's, Madison and Pierce, I went on to tag the Kinsmans, the Osceolas, and Tecumsey.
Finally, 2024 was the year for me to finish. I had 4 peaks (Carrigain, Waumbek, Cabot, and Isolation) which would take 4 separate days.
On September 15th, Keith and I summited Isolation completing the NH 48.
What's NextThis is always the age old question. I am not done with the White Mountains yet. There are many more trails up to some of the major peaks that I have yet to explore. Additionally, at some point in the future, I still want to complete a single day Hut to Hut Traverse (46 miles / 16000' climbing).
But, until then, "The mountains are calling and I must go."
- Scot
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