“I’m not feeling too confident about this,” I said to Jason over the phone as I stood in the Portsmouth, NH EMS on Monday evening gathering last-minute essentials for our 38+ mile Pemi Loop.

“They’re talking about 70mph winds tomorrow, then record-low temps and a snow storm on Wednesday. We’ll be under tree-line most day on Wednesday, but still… maybe we should reconsider?”

The plan for the upcoming three days was to attempt an extended version of the Pemi Loop, a hike that Backpacker Magazine refers to as the second hardest day-hike in America. The loop passes 10 of New Hampshire’s 48 4000 footers, and while we wouldn’t be completing it in a single day, we would hopefully be adding on two more 4kers just for the fun of it.

When I woke up on December 29th and looked out the window I couldn't help but smile; winter had finally arrived.

Many people in New England despise snow, as it makes for cold and wet commutes as well as frozen toes and sore backs from shoveling. I am not one of those people. 

As kids my sister and I would rise from our beds in the early morning hours to see the new snow falling outside. We would eagerly watch the TV, cheer happily when the local news channel would report school closed for the day, then don our jackets and snow pants to spend the entire day playing outside. Not much has changed since those days. I still take as many opportunities as I can get to go outside and play in the fluffy powder, and this day would be no exception.

One by one, the miles fell by the wayside. We tagged North Carter (not an official 4000 footer) Middle Carter, and South Carter in quick succession. As we crossed the open ridgeline near South Carter we were greeted with a spectacular glowing view of the Presidentials, something we were definitely not expecting with the weather forecast we had read in the morning. We stopped for a moment to snap a few images and appreciate the beauty of the mountains surrounding us before continuing on our way.