The Zion Traverse: A bucket-list backpacking trip through Zion National Park
This trip report summarizes my experience completing the Zion Traverse, an increasingly-popular 50-mile backpacking route through one of Utah’s most famous national parks. I hiked from April 18-19, 2019, and was blessed with plentiful springwater due to the high snow fall this past winter. Disclaimer: I hiked 37 miles...
Cycling the Whites: An AMC Maine Chapter Trip Report
By Sarah Hunter. Originally printed in the AMC Maine Chapter Winter 2018 Newsletter; reprinted here with permission. Challenging climbs, thrilling descents, and stunning scenery framed our White Mountains cycling adventure this fall, while comfortable lodging, good company and camaraderie made this trip truly great. It was late October when...
The Single-Day Pemi Loop: Secrets for Success
Over the last 10 years, the Pemi Loop has grown in popularity with hikers of all ability levels. It logs more mileage and vertical climbing than the Presidential Traverse, and leads you across some of the White Mountain's most celebrated stretches of trail: Franconia Ridge, Garfield Ridge, and Bondcliff....
The White Mountains Bicycle Tour (experience, proper bike optional)
By Nicholas Arthur, sport climber and friend of the Notch. LAST WEEK I did the White Mountains Bicycle Tour with my close friend Henry. It’s a three-day, 130-mile cycling tour that includes overnight stops at three hostels: Notch, Rattle River, and White Mountains Hostel (see their joint blog post for more info on these havens). See...
Hike Anyway! Plus eight other rainy day things to do in the White Mountains.
We’ve all been there — after weeks of looking forward to your planned escape to the White Mountains, the weather app refuses to budge from its 90% chance of rain forecast. It’s too late to cancel reservations and you’ve already lined up the plant sitter. You pack rain gear...
The Other Mountain Club: RMC is NH’s White Mountains’ Hidden Gem
While you’d be hard pressed to find an east coast hiker who is unfamiliar with the Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC), the majority have barely scratched the surface of the vast network of Randolph Mountain Club (RMC) trails in the White Mountains. Many have never visited or even heard of...
Hostels: Why They’re Awesome and Where to Stay in the White Mountains
Here at the Notch, we’re proud to be part of the hostel community, and we’re enthusiastic about our travelers, their journeys, and the plethora of adventures that await our guests in the White Mountains. However, hostels are not everyone’s first pick......
Winter Hiking in the Whites: What to Wear
It’s 7 a.m., the thermometer outside reads negative one, and the trees are swaying with ominous winds. While other vacationers to New Hampshire’s White Mountains are tapping the snooze button, hikers are hitting the trails, braving deep snow, frozen river crossings, and subzero wind chills. Some may think us...
Cheers to the 1st of the 48
By Shannon Grossman There is this part of my essence with the sole-purpose of seeking out adventures. The more unusual the experience, the more appropriate it corresponds with my life. So, it is only natural that I climb my first 4000-foot peak in New Hampshire with winter-like conditions. (Lila,...
Breaking Trail On Patagonia’s Cerro Eléctrico
On November 18, my brother Dan and I arrived in Chalten and began madly preparing for our climb. We were there with our family as part of a longer trip through Argentina and would only be in town for three nights. We had decided on a mountain on the...