By the numbers, with today's three laps on Mt. Abraham, Vermont's lowest 4000-foot peak, my total recorded summits of the mountain is 120. Month with most recorded summits is April with 21, and month with least recorded summits is August with 5. Total summits on all five of the VT 4000-foot peaks is 203, including 60 on Camel's Hump and the balance divided between Mt. Mansfield, Killington Peak, and Mt. Ellen over a period of about 8 years. While popular, these VT summits account for just 33% of my total summits during the same period.
Wrapping up the NH 4000ers and the ADK 46ers several years ago, many people might accuse me of being a peak-bagger and they'd be justified in using that moniker. But I would argue that the repeat ascents of these local mountains is something different than peak-bagging. Sure they're super-convenient with easy access and straightforward trails for year-round hiking and training, but I've found that there's also something enjoyable and maybe even reassuring about visiting a place in all seasons and really getting to know it. After a while the trees and the rocks and the shape of the land become familiar and over many visits there are even chance encounters with wildlife that inhabit these places. Truth is, I never set out to summit these mountains so many times, but over time your own tracks become part of the tapestry, and these old friends start to feel like home.
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| Mt. Abraham rises beyond the New Haven River |
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