A Major Sunrise

 The transition from 2018 into 2019 brought us a string of unfortunate events, both of our cars needed repairs and my wife lost her job, all within a week. With all that behind us, my son and I were back on track for our second sunrise on our quest for a sunrise each month from a different summit.
  Our day started after working a double shift on Friday (7-3, 3-11), So my sleep was approximately 1.5 hrs then out the door by 1:00 am for a 2.5 hr drive to Mt Major in the Belknap range near Lake Winnipesaukee, NH where Evan had planned another fantastic hike for us.

  After spending the 80's and 90's hiking only 4k'ers of New England numerous times it wasn't until Evan (Evan's Blog) started introducing me to smaller mountains that I realized just how challenging and exhilarating other mountains here in New England are. As a parent it's been a great experience having my son introduce me to these different summits and I've been impressed of his accumulating knowledge of New England's geography.
  We arrived at the trail head in Alton, New Hampshire just after 4:00 am. With the sun not rising until after 7:00 am we had plenty of time to trek up the one and a half miles to the summit.  Evan chose the Mount Major Trail (Blue blaze .7 miles) then a left turn on the Main Trail which is blazed in yellow .8 miles to the summit. Here is a link to our round trip trek: https://www.strava.com/activities/2073206595
  The temperature was 4 degrees Fahrenheit, with a "feels like" temp reported at -10F and the trail conditions started with a few inches of well packed snow that had iced over, so spikes were needed and snowshoes were strapped to our backpacks in case they were needed at the higher elevations.

  We tramped at a constant speed digging the spikes in the ice with every footstep, as the trail was an ice sheet covered in a thin blanket of snow, and the only visibility was in a narrow tunnel of light from our headlamp along with stars above us in a cloudless night sky. The winds were howling above through the tree tops, we knew it was going to be bone chilling cold on the summit, but for now we were heated by our energy usage being expelled to hike up the moderate incline of the mountain.
  We arrived at the short steep head walls just before the summit at just after 5:30 am, so before exposing ourselves to the winds on the open summit, we decided to hunker down for a bit within the shelter of the trees.
  Once the sky started illuminating we knew it was time to get up the final walls of the trail. The steep sections were covered in snow drifts and ice that presented the only challenge of the trek up, but within 10-15 minutes we stood on top of the 1785' summit with presidential elevation winds slapping us in the face until we reached an old stone foundation left behind from a shelter that once stood (Read more about the structure here), this blocked the winds that were coming from the Lake Winnipesaukee side of the mountain (North).

The view from the stone foundation as the stars were disappearing

The old stone foundation with the White Mountains in the distance.

The Southeast horizon was brightening with every minute that went by, with the pinkish hues reflecting off the few clouds that were above the horizon growing, we knew it wasn't long before the celestial heater in the sky shows it's splendor, which was much anticipated at this point...

  With a clear sky, in front and above us, we watched as the stars slowly disappeared from the illuminating sky. The sun was slowly rising from the horizon as the minutes ticked by and the winds were trying to pierce through our layers of clothing.

  

Bella waiting patiently

Behind us the sun rays were illuminating the snow covered White Mountain peaks in a pinkish glow. We took a lot of pictures until the sun was above the horizon.

Lake Winnipesaukee with the snow covered White Mountains in the background

The view North from the foundation

  We started hiking down Boulder Loop trail on the southern slopes. With the sun shining down on us and the mountain behind us blocking the northern winds, I'm sure the temperature crept into positive territory on our way down.

Ice covered shrubs and trees

Evan leading the way down Boulder trail

   The trail meandered through snow covered trees and giant boulders scattered throughout the mountainside. The trail was an easy 1.6 miles back to the parking lot, which was a nice way to warm ourselves after spending the last hour or so stationary in such extreme conditions.
   Another fantastic sunrise with Evan in the books!

My favorite photo from all that I took.

Our GPS Route: https://www.strava.com/activities/2073206595