Picturesque Pinnacle

Two more sponsors this week so I am up to ten.

Thank You:

Rusty Dewees

and

The Smith Family 

I was supposed to go to the gym this morning. But, it was so beautiful out I just could not force myself to workout indoors so I decided to hike the Pinnacle. Shhhh don't tell my trainer. 

Pippin and I at the trail head.

The Pinnacle is located just outside the town of Stowe Vermont. It has been my favorite hike since I was little. It is a great trail to play the game lava, which is when you pretend the ground is hot lava and you can only step on rocks, roots, and bridges. Even now I often find myself trying not to step on the ground. I hiked today with my Mom; luckily she hiked hard the day before and was sore so I could actually keep up. 

Pippin embraces his inner squirrel.

                                                                         

I was also joined by Pippin our little terrier mix. He probably covers three times as much as I do given the number of times he runs up and back or into the woods. The Pinnacle has a pretty impressive teepee and large cairn. 

 Adding a stone to the cairn

Teepee Time

The first mile or so of the hike is steep, but after you reach the vista it flattens out and even goes down hill in some areas. A nice break for the legs. The summit is fabulous because you end up on a little rock area above the trees that almost always has a refreshing breeze to keep the bugs at bay and cool you down. 

 Mom, Pippin and I at the summit.

More Information on the Pinnacle hike go to: http://www.gostowe.com/hiking 

Second Hike

 

What an exciting week I am extremely happy to say I have 8 new sponsors.

Thank you:

Nan Thompson

David Schwartz

Lulu and Dave Leveille

Grammy Bee and Frank

Granddaddy and Mary

Auntie Joan

Genevieve and Michael Borushok

The Kyles

 Check out the sponsor page anytime to see a full list of sponsors. 

Trail-head

Today I hiked Mount Pisgah in Northern Vermont with my Dad. After a week of blistering heat today was beautiful. There was a refreshing breeze and the clouds prevented the sun from baking me. The hike was about 2.5 miles up a well-maintained trail. There were some great bridges to cross and rock staircases to climb.  It was amazing and it is one of my favorite hikes.

 Enjoying Chocolate 

There were little vistas to check out the view; they certainly gave me the stomach drop feeling. Sadly, when we reached the top, clouds surrounded us, so I had a great view of nothing. However a delicious peanut butter and jelly sandwich and piece of Swiss chocolate made up for it. After refueling we headed down, when it began getting stormy we hustled. Luckily, we beat the rain to the car.

It was an extremely fun hike and I highly recommend it. For more information on it go to: http://www.hikenewengland.com/Pisgah040605.html

Starting with Sterling

 

Today I went for my first hike. I climbed to Sterling Pond it was 2.2 miles, and mostly in the shade which was nice on this hot day. The trail is located in Smugglers Notch, about a fifteen-minute drive from the town of Stowe. My friend Jade joined me and we had a great time. There were a large variety of interesting people hiking, lots of young kids and their families, an older man ran by us blasting music obviously he is growing younger. One little boy and his dad were having a race down the mountain. The boy had a serious disadvantage because his legs were about three times shorter but he made up for it in heart and lack of fear.

             The pond was filled with swimmers and surrounded by picnickers. There was a nice breeze that kept most of the black flies at bay. After a delicious snack we ended up running down, probably not the brightest idea in the world, considering I almost tripped and died more times than I care to admit. After our hike, we watched some rock climbers free climbing, some excellent entertainment.

            I am excited to report I got my first sponsor who donated ten dollars to the food shelf. Okay yes it was my parents, but I am moving in the right direction. If you would like to sponsor me click on the sponsor page located on my blogs home page (probably the one you’re on right now).

For more information on the Sterling Pond Hike go to http://www.smuggs.com/pages/summer/outdoor/selfGuidedHikes.php

The Beginning

 

            As I near my senior year of high school I am trying to find a way to give back to my community. I decided to raise money and awareness for the Lamoille Community Food Share, because I believe making sure everyone is well fed is a top priority. I wanted the fundraiser to encourage people to be outside and active. I chose hiking because I am surrounded by many great mountains. My idea is that people can sponsor hikes and all of the money will go directly to the Food Shelf.

             I will blog about the different mountains I climb and hopefully this will inspire others to get outside and hike. If you like this idea I encourage you to participate. Find a way to be active (it does not have to be hiking) and ask friends, family, or neighbors to sponsor you. You will be helping both yourself and your community. For more details go to How You Can Help on my blog home page or email me with any questions.