I had high hopes of going hiking many, many times this summer, but like other year, summer has been very busy and gone by much too quickly. It also has been a fantastically beautiful and hot summer, which makes hiking with a baby difficult because there is a major concern for overheating. So now that the days are beginning to get a little shorter and the temperatures are dropping, we are going to try to fit in as many hiking trips as we can!
This weekend we went hiking in the White Mountains, which I was very excited about because I think it is one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen. We planned on hiking up Mount Monroe via the Ammonoosuc Ravine Trail. This trail leads up to the Lake in the Clouds where it forks and you can either go up to the summit of Mount Washington or Mount Monroe. Robbie and I prefer going up Mount Moroe, not because it is a little bit shorter, but because there aren't any man-made structures on top of it nor can you drive to the top of it so it is a must more serene and satisfying hike for us. We enjoy being on the top of the world without the company of women in high heels hogging our photo opt on the summit. Mount Monroe is beautiful and we love hiking it.
We never made it to the summit however. It turns out, hiking with a baby changes everything; something we seem to forget easily. We got up at the time we usually do to go to the white mountains, but since we had to get Meo ready this meant we didn't arrive at our destination until about two hours later than we intended (about 11:30). We decided to go anyways, and just be prepared to turn around if we needed to.
I wore Meo againfor this hike, and Robbie carried our food, water, and extra clothing/diapers for Meo. Wearing him has changed a little these days because he has gotten a bit bigger and more busy. He likes to see everything and point at things of interest so he is constantly swinging back and forth looking over my shoulders. This make trying to maintain balance while climbing a little more challenging, but we did just fine. Also, Meo weighs nearly 25 pounds now, so with the extra weight, the wiggling, and having to be extra cautious so as not to fall over with Meo on my back, the hiking was a little slower than usual. I think we still kept a good pace though, and I never felt physically exhausted (until the end when I really wanted to take a nap).
Robbie gave Mattimeo a "walking stick" which he loved waving about throughout the hike (and sometimes twacking mommy with it). Meo was also busy pointing to interesting objects (usually trees), and Robbie and I kept busy telling him everything we saw and occasionally pausing to let him touch a leaf or something.
Thwack.
Meo and his stick
Looking around at the forest with the moss carpet
We stopped for a lunch break on the trail after about an hour and a half of hiking. Mattimeo seemed like he was hungry and wanted to have some crawling time for a little while. Daddy made us cucumber sandwiches and I brought Meo a pouch of spinach and apple puree we had lying around in addition for Meo in case he'd rather have that. He ate the whole pouch in like 3 slurps!
lunch break
Sometimes Meo makes the goofiest faces
Watching the bumblebees pollinate the flowers
Watching the bumblebees pollinate the flowers
He wanted something I had
Mmm, crackers!
Looking at Daddy
Finishing up some lunch
After lunch, we continued hiking. We made it to the waterfall, which marks the end of the flattish segment of the trail (about 2/3 of the way) and the beginning of the steep assent into the clouds.
At the waterfall
Meo and I at the waterfall
Unfortunately, we didn't make it much further than the waterfall. We hiked up for about a half hour more, and Meo started screaming and crying at the top of his lungs. He wouldn't calm down. I took him out and tried nursing him since I forgot to nurse him at lunch time.
Nursing my little Meosaur
Nursing on the trail
Once he was done, I popped him back on my back, hoping he would be calm and drift off to sleep (which would make the assent less nerve racking for me...I was afraid of falling on the climb up with all his busy body moving!). But he just started crying again; he wanted to crawl around. Determined to keep going, I started to climb back up, but Robbie suggested that we turn back. It was getting late, and Meo needed some independent exploration time. Begrudgingly, I agreed to turn around. We hiked back down to the waterfall (Meo eventually calmed down when we started singing and I tapped his bum), where we let Meo out to play for a awhile.
Back to the waterfall
Watching the waterfall
Meo pointing to the water
My guys
Taking Meo to see the water
Mommy and Meo feet
Testing the cold mountain water
Crawling like a monkey
"Can't see mom!"
I love my happy boy!
Feet in the water
Climbing
This baby loves to climb
Making progress up the rock
Daddy said that was high enough for now sweet Meo
Looking at the stream
Daddy and Meo
Collecting rocks on the mud
Putting the small rocks on the big rocks
Tired Daddy
After about a half hour or so of play time, we continued on our way down. We gave Meo another stick to play with and sang songs to him, and it wasn't long until he fell asleep.
Asleep on mommy's back with his stick
Sleepy baby
Still sleeping with the stick
Sleeping with his stick
Eventually he dropped the stick, but he continued to sleep for a good two hours or so. He woke up just 15 minutes before we reached the end of the trail.
I admit, I was really bummed that we didn't get to the top. I was even more disappointed that we didn't get enough altitude to see the really fantastic views. Most of the reason I love hiking in the White Mountains is because there are spectacular views. I had visions of watching Meo play by the Lakes in the Clouds, and seeing him crawl along the ridge as though he was on top of the world. So when we didn't even make it to the Lake in the Clouds, I was feeling pretty down. But Robbie helped me out of my slump. He reminded me that life isn't about the destination, it's about enjoying the journey. We got to walk in an amazingly beautiful forest on a perfect summer day. Meo had so much fun carrying his stick, seeing all sorts of beautiful things in nature for the first time, and he absolutely loved crawling around and exploring on the trail and by the waterfall. For him, it was an amazing hike with the two people who love him most. Once I stopped sulking long enough to think about this, I felt incredibly happy and fortunate. Even if we didn't get to the top, I still had a lot of fun, I still got to see so much beauty, I still got lots of exercise, and I still got to spend a wonderful day with my two favorite people in the whole world.
Oh, and I still got to have pizza, which is our end of the day after a hike tradition!
Pizza with my guys
Thank you for for a perfect day Robbie and Meo! I am looking forward to trying to conquer that mountain again with you! Life sure changes when you have a baby, but you know what, I think it is way better.
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