Twelve of us began our hike of Mt. Tom State Reservation on a sunny but chilly Saturday morning.
With temperatures in the 30s, we would be traveling over a variety of terrain on our 7-mile hike
to the 1202 foot summit of Mt. Tom and back.
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We started at the shore of Lake Bray where the hiking was very easy, but soon found ourselves on a
steady ascent along the Keystone Trail. Alisa and Lingyan make their way up the hill, with Kate and
Namita right behind them.
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It wasn't long before we worked up a sweat. Courtney, Steph and Lana stop to remove a layer or two.
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Traffic jam on the switchback: Descending from a hilltop on the Nature Trail, we proceed single file down
the narrow path and around the bend.
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The Nature Trail brought us to the Metacomet-Modnock Trail, a 117 mile trail extending from the
Massachusetts-Connecticut border to New Hampshire's Mt. Monadnock. We would follow this trail southward
along a ridge for about 2 miles to the Mt. Tom summit, stopping for lunch at a scenic point near Whiting Peak.
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From an outcrop further up the trail, the Connecticut River Oxbow was clearly visible to the northeast beyond the
pines and basalt cliffs.
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We arrived at the summit at 1:45PM, about 3 hours after beginning our hike and about 1000 feet higher in elevation.
Our route back down would be shorter and faster, taking us little more than an hour and a half.
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Our descent backtracked along the Metacomet-Monadnock trail. Much of this trail is blazed on a series of rock ledges which we needed
to climb up and down. The climbing was not too difficult because the fractured rock surfaces provided ample footholds, but there were
some pockets of ice which we needed to be wary of.
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Carly carefully works her way down a rocky section of the Metacomet-Monadnock trail.
Back on less challenging terrain, Kate, Steph and Namita hike down the Quarry Trail with Carly, Alisa, Lingyan
and Chih Wei behind them.
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On the Kay Bee trail, Lingyan, Elizabeth, Shannon and Lana wait for the rest of the group to catch up.
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The last few steps: Lingyan, Alisa, Carly and Steph cross over Cascade Brook on the road to our parking area.
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Sometimes you just can't get enough of a good thing. On the ride home, we were all still full of energy and ready to tackle another mountain.
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From an outcrop further up the trail, the Connecticut River Oxbow was clearly visible to the northeast beyond the
pines and basalt cliffs.
We arrived at the summit at 1:45PM, about 3 hours after beginning our hike and about 1000 feet higher in elevation.
Our route back down would be shorter and faster, taking us little more than an hour and a half.
On the Kay Bee trail, Lingyan, Elizabeth, Shannon and Lana wait for the rest of the group to catch up.
Sometimes you just can't get enough of a good thing. On the ride home, we were all still full of energy and ready to tackle another mountain.