West Rattlesnake, 4-26-09 (whole family)

[TrishandAlex]

Cut and pasted from Sage's very pink hiking blog: http://sagehikes.blogspot.com

Accompanying pictures and videos found there.
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Old Bridle Path. 1.6 miles out-and-back.

We all wanted to get out together and enjoy the day. Rain was supposed to arrive in the afternoon, so we decided to do a short hike in the morning. Sage suggested West Rattlesnake -- a hike we had been talking about since last fall but had not yet experienced.

We all agreed that would be a good choice, so off we went.

The trail is half moderate and half easy. The girls used their hiking poles as broomsticks and flew up the trail.

We stopped near the top of the moderate pitch to take a short breather. A nice couple offered to take a family picture. Funny, isn't this how most family pictures turn out..?

At this point, the girls decided to demonstrate loud examples of sibling rivalry, so we split them up. I went on ahead with Sage, while Alex and Hugh hiked 100 yards or so behind.

From this point on, the grade was easy (almost flat), and Sage enjoyed running along the trail.

We stopped for a rest, and I took a short video of Sage.

Soon afterward, we came to a few look-out boulders which are close to the summit. Hugh and Alex caught up with us, and we took a short water break on the rocks.

We then continued on toward the summit.

Lovely views over Squam Lake. Really nice. We stayed there for an hour, playing games, eating, and sometimes smacking the bugs away (they're baaack...).

The forecasted rain never showed up, the sky turned to bright blue, the clouds became white and fluffy. What a great way to spend the day.

Eventually we decided to head back down toward the car. Sage and I went ahead while Alex and Hugh followed along behind.

Sage flew down the trail, pretending she was a witch and talking to herself, inhabiting some elaborate imaginary world. At one point she resurfaced and asked if I would take her picture on this rock.

We had some water here, and Hugh and Alex caught up and went on ahead.

At this point, Sage's hiking pace slowed to a near stand-still. Not because she was tired, but because she insisted on descending like this...

It was a fine day, we were in no rush, so I just enjoyed watching her do her thing. Eventually we made it back to the car.

Everyone was happy, it was a relaxing day. Looking forward to more of the same in the near future.

[CHRIS]

Looks like you all had a nice family hike. Thanks for sharing.

[Stets]

Great description as always.

It is not always easy to get the "whole" crew out there, but it is always worth the extra effort.

Very nice to have the whole family on a hike.

Beautiful photos.

Gotta love "Golden Pond".

[Tim&Val]

Hi Trish,

This is a wonderful story, and West Rattlesnake is a great hike for a young child to get used to the whole "hiking" thing. It looks like you had a good day for it and that Sage enjoyed herself. I was especially fond of the video of how she came down the mountain.

We're lucky enough to live just about 15 minutes from there, and so we did it after work on Monday. We were surprised to have the summit to ourselves on a crystal clear (early) evening. Well, us and the blackflies.

That's one hike that really does provide bang for the buck.
Valerie

[TrishandAlex]

Chris, Stets, Tim&Val,

Thanks for your nice comments. It is a nice little walk, that one. The kids enjoyed themselves, and the views are very nice for practically no effort.

Yes, the bugs are out again. Each season has its pros and cons, I suppose.