Elevation: 873 ft. (overall) 1,249 ft. (total)
Time: (with an 8 and 4 year setting the pace) 1:49 (Middle Sugarloaf) 3:03 (North Sugarloaf) 4:20 (Total)
Trails: Sugarloaf Trail, Trestle Trail
This summer my youngest daughter (4) has been asking about doing a family hike so she can come along and do a mountain with her sister and I. So at the end of a week off, we all headed to the White Mountain to take Middle and North Sugarloaf. I have been her before, so I was pretty confident our youngest could handle it and would enjoy the hike. For her it would be the first on the NH 52 With a View list. For her older sister, it would be number 6.
After getting to the trail head and getting our gear on, we hit the trail with the girls in the lead. I wanted them to set the pace because I know I can set to fast of a pace and I wanted them both to enjoy it. They both did good, but a new pack for Liliana (our oldest) and new (to her at least) gear for Madison (our youngest) meant many things were a novelty and it went a bit slow and frustrating at times. There was lots along the trail for the girls to check out, so that helped in keeping them moving on to the next thing.
Two little hikers ready to go
Madison and Liliana in front of a glacial erratic
The girls got to choose which peak we went to first, and they wanted to go to the higher one. This meant going left at the intersection and hitting Middle Sugarloaf first. At the top the girls took off their shoes and socks and enjoyed the sun, nice temps, and plenty of snacks before exploring the whole summit area.
Madison at the top of the stairs on Middle Sugarloaf
Madison and Liliana on top of the stairs
View from Middle Sugarloaf
Madison enjoying herself at the summit
View north on Middle Sugarloaf
Eventually we moved on to North Sugarloaf so the girls could see that peak as well. It isn't as big or as open, but it is still worth the visit in my opinion.
Their own bottles of trail mix were a hit today
Zealand Valley from North Sugarloaf
Family photo time
In the end the hike went well for everyone. As we do a few more hikes with Madison the novelty of all the gear and snacks will wear off and she can focus a bit more on the actual hike. She had fun though, and still had plenty of energy on the hike back down. This was a great pick for her first bigger hike and would be good for others with younger kids too. Lots of other happy hikers along the trail encouraged both girls along the way and were glad to see more young hikers enjoying the trails.
Google Earth representation of the hike
For more pictures from the hike, click HERE
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