Katie Constantine

At the beginning of the summer my friend and I decided to drive about three hours north of Boston to make a day out of hiking Mount Willard. It had been a few months since we had seen each other and hiking is such a great way to catch up with friends while doing something different and exciting. The drive was smooth and easy, but when we got to the mountain we had the hardest time finding the trail head. We drove up and down the main road inspecting every little pathway that led into the woods. We even followed a pair of hikers who were walking along the road just in case they were headed to the trail. Apparently they weren’t so we just looked like stalkers tailing them. At least we weren’t in a big white van. Finally my friend spotted a small sign right past an old railroad station that marked the beginning of our ascent. That sign was the definition of a needle in a haystack so if you choose to hike this trail remember that it begins behind the train station off of Rt 302 in the Crawford Notch National Park. That way you can save yourself the embarrassment of looking like an ill-equipped villain from Austin Powers. Continue reading “Hiking Mt. Willard” →

In the summer of 2015, I went to visit my aunt in New Hampshire so that we could go on a hike together. We were in the market for something that was moderate with a great view. After doing a little bit of research, some of which included a painfully outdated, not to mention faded, guidebook, we chose the 6 mile loop that led to the Arethusa Falls, connected to the Frankenstein Cliff trail, and eventually led us back to the parking lot. I was excited to break in my new hiking shoes and finally get back to the trails after being sidelined for a few weeks. It took a couple hours drive to get there, but the traffic was minimal and the parking lot was surprisingly easy to find. I can’t tell you how many trails I’ve been to where it’s more likely that you’ll find Bigfoot than the parking entrance, but thankfully, this was not the case there. After we parked the car, we hoisted our backpacks onto our backs and began our hike.

Continue reading “Hiking Arethusa Falls To Frankenstein Cliffs” →