George Steffanos
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thread 1/8
September 3, 1983: The Appalachian Trail briefly followed the U.S.F.S. fire road before turning onto a paved road for a while. Eventually, the trail turned off that road, passed through some fields,
#backpacking #hiking #outdoors #landscapephotography #nature #NewHampshire #mountains #forest
09:03 AM - Jan 10, 2024
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George Steffanos
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thread 2/8
and reentered the woods. That was the point where the real climbing began. During the next two-and-a-half miles, the trail rose about 2800 feet — an average grade of about twenty percent. It was a typical White Mountains trail: deeply eroded and covered with exposed tree roots and rocks.
09:03 AM - Jan 10, 2024
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George Steffanos
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thread 3/8
I stopped twice, very briefly, on that long climb in order to catch my breath, but otherwise kept on plugging away. It was an extremely warm day for early September in these parts; I sweated like a politician hooked up to a polygraph.
09:03 AM - Jan 10, 2024
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George Steffanos
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thread 4/8
I passed several day-hikers along that climb who looked even worse than I felt. Nice guy that I am, this cheered me up a bit.
09:03 AM - Jan 10, 2024
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George Steffanos
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thread 5/8
The AT finally reached the ridgeline near the south peak of Mount Moosilauke and turned onto the remains of a very old carriage road, which it followed along the ridge for the last mile to the main summit. This road had been built in the 1860’s, when a rustic hotel was on the summit of the mountain.
09:03 AM - Jan 10, 2024
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George Steffanos
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thread 6/8
Today, it is simply a wide, rocky foot trail, lined with eight-foot-tall spruce. Their aroma filled the air, reminding me of my childhood, when my grandfather used to take my brother and me to pick out our Christmas tree.
09:03 AM - Jan 10, 2024
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George Steffanos
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thread 7/8
Just for old time’s sake, I tried to find the saddest, skimpiest specimen on the ridge and imagine it decorated with my grandmother’s exquisite antique ornaments,
09:03 AM - Jan 10, 2024
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George Steffanos
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thread 8/8
but increasingly-expanding views soon distracted me from this stroll down memory lane.

From my book Then the Hail Came (A Humorous and Truthful Account of a 1983 #AppalachianTrail Thru-hike). Available in paperback and eBook: https://amazon.com/dp/B09Q...
09:03 AM - Jan 10, 2024
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