HIB IX: Tom, Field, Willey, Avalon

​Dear Folks,
​I am in the process of catching people up with some early hikes and other encounters with nature that I thought people might find interesting as part of a "How It Began" (HIB) series.  Mostly this will describe specific hikes and perhaps some lessons learned along the way...if there are any.  They are meant to be short and, perhaps helpful in some way to other hikers or fellow-travelers.  I will post the dates of when I hiked a specific mountain since the ones in this series are NOT posted at or near the date hiked.

SEPTEMBER 27, 2021

What a hike this was.  We took a few days and stayed up north to get some hiking done.  First up was the 10.2 mile loop of Tom, Field, and Willey--all 4,000 footers--and the slightly smaller Mount Avalon.  We had a somewhat rainy and overcast day for it, but we had taken the time off and up we went.  When I say "loop" I am being somewhat generous.  The map looks like a lollipop that was dipped in fuzz.  We chose Mount Tom first (off a spur from the Main trail).  Then we hit Field for the first time.  Then there was a longish hike to Willey, then back to Field as the fog closed us in and a return to the actual loop onto Avalon where, blessedly, we experienced one of the best views ever.

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This last point is important.  The three bigger mountains (all four are really quite tall) didn't have much of an overlook that particular day.  Actually Field had a little bit of a view when the clouds broke and I am told Willey is nice when it isn't fogged in.  In any case, their major claim to fame--other than making it on the 48 list--has to do with the awesome foliage and the super-friendly Gray Jays that populate all four peaks.  If you want to start a fight with New England hikers you can bring up the feeding of these birds (or butt-sliding...but more on that later).  Whether it damages the ecosystem to do so is hotly contested.  Honestly I don't know the answer to this question, but I choose not to feed them just in case.

The best views are all on Avalon, which is one of the greatest mountains in the history of mountains and the only one of the four I would climb again.  We saved it for last, not knowing what we would get.  We almost skipped it, in fact, because of some nasty scrambling on its spur trail.  I am glad we persevered.  We emerged from the forest wet and tired for a treat that really, you can only get right there.  Sitting on Avalon I learned the value of a good view, and the attraction of the 52WAV list that I continue to pick away at when logistics allow.

In the end we hiked about 3,750 feet of elevation.  We saw a few other wet hikers, all of them doing the lists--this was 8, 9, and 10 of the NH 48 and the 2nd of the 52WAV for me--and headed down to prepare for what turned out to be an even bigger hike the next day.  

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