Hiking can be compared to a glimpse into our lives. There are ups and downs, rocks, roots – all of it trying to bring you down and keep you from achieving your goals. The pain and the struggle, the obstacles along the way, all of this will ultimately lead you to a pure moment of beauty, which words sometimes cannot describe, and the best way to experience it is to breathe it all in and just never take a second. for granted.
I go prepared for each hike, with a plan, where I’m going, how long I want it to take me and sometimes I forget that I have the opportunity to just be and live in the moment. For me, slowing down and truly enjoying a good day is rare, I always have something on my mind that pulls me down or puts me in a different mindset.
Today I tried not to focus on the future, to forget the past and live in the peak of the leaf season, of the moment.
Rooster Comb Trail – 4.5 miles round trip, 1,729 feet elevation
Since it’s almost peak leaf season, there were quite a few people on the trail, but not so busy that you were weaving between people.
There is a small pond before the trailhead that you can choose to go around and leads back to the parking lot. The trail starts with a slope and rarely stops until the top. The terrain was filled with moss, fallen red and yellow leaves, rocks covered in tree roots, and many fallen logs that you had to stop for a quick breath and a sip of water.
Before you get to the top of the mountain you have to climb a small ladder, this can be done with dogs, as there were a few on the trail that made it up. The summit offers plenty of space to sit and admire the multitude of dogs. colors that the high peaks have to offer in autumn. Reds, yellows, oranges and always a shade of green for miles and miles. Each direction you look gives you a different view of the mountains in the distance.
There were people at the top having lunch, chatting and even having photo shoots.
A few moments were taken with the view, the sun and a lunch of beef jerky and banana chips. On the way back it was possible to take a side trail to view the Valley View Ledge – just 0.1 miles away it was worth another view of the beautiful mountains.
Although a shorter hike in the High Peaks region, this hike provided a great workout and fantastic views – highly recommended if you’re looking for views of fall foliage this season.
