Adventure with Alex

Alex’s first rock climb shared with cousin Jessica!

August 30, 2013 by David Lottmann

August 27th, 2013 will be remembered as Alex’s first climb. At just over 23 months of age after watching his beloved 12 year old cousin Jessica warm up on some top-rope climbs at Fryeburg’s Maine’s “Jockey Cap”, he started announcing to everyone “Alex do it, Alex do it”. During a short wind-down bouldering session we found a suitable boulder in the V0— range and up he went. With limited beta and pure determination he stuck the top-out and was all smiles as he sat on his first summit… and since I’ve already been asked a few times I’ll put it in writing… no, I did not tear up ;). I was awfully proud of my little guy though!

Jessica was visiting us from New Jersey and was pretty stoked to go rock climbing outside again. When she was 9 she got the climbing bug top-roping on the Thin Air Face on Cathedral. Last year she climbed her first multi-pitch route with me, Upper Refuse, and cruised Seventh Seal, a 5.10, on top-rope. This year after an afternoon learning about rappelling and working technique on some steep face climbs she had her sights set on a bottom to top climb of Whitehorse Ledge. (1,150ft). But first some pics from Jockey Cap.

Our first top-rope after rappelling

Organizing the rack

Climb #2

One of 3 climbs we did

Jessica at the cool summit marker with Mount Washington far behind her

Scenic Lovewell Pond in the background

Happy Cousins!

The next day we headed over to Whitehorse Ledge to climb “Standard Route”, 9 pitches, 5.7, 1,150 feet. I had made plans for a climbing friend to join us so Jessica could just enjoy the climbing while my friend belayed and cleaned the route, but we had mis-communicated the actual date and she was far from town when we realized our error. Considering Jessica’s level of maturity and my familiarity with the climb I decided we could still pull off the climb but it would be a lot more effort on Jessica’s part. She would have to belay each pitch and “clean” or remove the protection after each pitch. Both of these responsibilities take more physical and mental energy than just being the middle person on a 3 person climbing team, but I knew she was up for the additional challenge, and she showed great determination and focus though-out the climb!

Whitehorse Ledge

Jessica at the top of Pitch 2

Top of Pitch 3

Looking down with Jessica climbing the crux pitch 6

Looking down pitch 7

Last pitch, almost to the top!

Cathedral Ledge in the background

Summit Shot

Upper slabs in the background during our hike down

We got back to the car just after 3 hours from starting, which is quite fast for a roped climbing team. Most recreational parties take 5-6 hours to complete this route so we were feeling pretty good about ourselves. I was so inspired by the two days I decided to dust off my cheezy iMovie skills and threw together a short vid of our two days together. Enjoy!

Posted in Trip Reports | 6 Comments »

Champney Falls Trail, Mount Chocorua, and a lesson in ego.

August 11, 2013 by David Lottmann

I’ll admit it. I have a competitive streak when it comes to hiking. When I look at an estimated hiking time in a book I quickly think about how much I can “beat” that time. Hiking solo I could often cut the book time in half. Hiking with Alex on my back has adjusted that down to about 2/3 of “book time”. I like to move quickly through the mountains and I don’t feel I am missing the vistas or not smelling the flowers… I feel “efficient”.

Today’s Forecast: 72 degrees and “abundant sunshine”, light winds, low humidity, perfect. Michelle had been wanting to climb Chocorua (elev. 3,500ft) for a while. That’s understandable as we can see it from our neighbor-hood and it is the most photographed mountain in New Hampshire; a recent addition to the backs of NH State Quarters.

Late last night we planned to take the Champney Falls trail to summit, a heavily traveled route from the Kancamagus Highway that rises 2,250ft in 3.8 miles (using a bit of the Piper trail at the top). Everything was in place for a fun family hike.

Trailhead shot

Book time for this ascent was 3 hours flat. I figured we could do it in 2 hours, 20 minutes. The first mile of the trail was a gentle ascent and we passed multiple parties. I’d be lying if I didn’t say I love passing parties with small backpacks (if a backpack at all) with Alex on my back and when I do so a small smile creeps across my mouth. That smirk gets full blown when just before I go out of earshot up the trail I hear someone I passed exclaim “wow!” As any racer knows passing people makes you feel stronger. However this is a part of my ego that needs to get checked when hiking with the whole family.

As we hit the steeper switchbacks an hour into the hike Michelle mentions we need to slow the pace, and I oblige. I can cruise with the 45 pound load on my back on flat and gentle ups, but when it gets steep I welcome reining in the pace. All seems well when we reach out first nice view, an hour and 45 minutes into our hike.

A good spot for a break, if one is smart.

Here I make a fairly big mistake. When I mention to Michelle how much further we have she suggests a break, her legs are feeling fatigued and a bit shaky. I justify we are “super close” to the summit and we should push on. Ego. We’re on par to crush book time. Up we go.

20 minutes from the top

It’s just over there!

A crowded summit

5 minutes from the top

We scramble up the last 100 feet. There are some third and possible 4th class moves here, and the exposure + crowds of less than sure-footed hikers has got Michelle a bit anxious. I can see it in her face. This is not fun for her. I’m somewhat surprised at the summit marker when I turn to her and she sends me a high-five. She’s not stopping up here on the exposed crowded summit though, and wants to retreat down to the col below before stopping for our first break of the day.

Total ascent time: 2 hours, 15 minutes. While we crushed the guidebook time we would pay for it later. We stopped on a nice flat sandy spot with some excellent blueberry bushes. Alex was ecstatic to learn that “boo-berries” could be plucked and eaten on the spot. It was an excellent break.

Comfy late lunch spot

After a substantial break (30 minutes), we loaded back up and started out descent at 2:45. Despite the break, we were feeling the fatigue of the non-stop ascent with zero breaks that I had coaxed us on. Not 20 minutes down the trail Michelle rolled her ankle. Still being weight bearing, we continued albeit more slowly. We had stopped talking. Michelle rolled her ankle again. We slowed down again. Carefully making our way down it took 1.5 hours to get back to the car. It was a LONG ninety minutes. It wasn’t fun. I knew I had pushed us too hard on the climb up and Michelle probably would have not rolled her ankle if our pace had been more “normal”. Had we taken a 10 minute break at that first view point the whole day could have been a success. I wouldn’t hike that fast with clients up Mount Washington because I know what wearing someone out early leads to. You hit “the wall”. You crash. You risk injury. Man is hindsight 20-20.

I won’t bore the reader with the apologies I have made to my wife, but I’ll share a promise I made. Whole family hikes should enjoy trails according to “book time”, not trying to “crush it”. Success is not measured in how fast you climb something, but how well you climb something, and today I did not climb Chocorua well.

Posted in Hikes, Musings, Trip Reports | Leave a Comment »

Alex’s first 4000 footer! Mount Washington!

July 25, 2013 by David Lottmann

Today was Alex’s biggest adventure to date! Today, at 22 months of age, Alex summited Mount Washington, the highest peak in the Northeast.

It started during last weekends Mount Washington Observatory’s “Seek The Peak” event. Last year Alex was only 10 months old during the annual fundraiser, billed as “The Nation’s Premier Hiking Event”, but I wasn’t ready to bring him above tree-line. I had planned a long solo hike of the Great Gulf and at the last minute discovered I was without a babysitter, so instead we enjoyed a short loop hike below tree-line on the low shoulders of Mount Washington. That trip report can be found here.

This year, after having enjoyed close to 200 miles with Alex on the trail, I felt summitting with Alex was possible if weather conditions were favorable. Plans were made for the scheduled Saturday hike with friends & family. Then, due to forecasted strong winds, large hail, and heavy rain, the MWOBS encouraged hikers to reschedule their summit bid for Sunday. So this past Sunday we started up the Ammonoosuc Ravine Trail with our friend Lara and some visiting family from MA and NJ. Due to a variety of reasons we intended to only take Alex so far, and turned around after Gem Pool. It was a bittersweet day as I later realized continuing on would have been feasible. We decided not to dwell on the hiking day that could of been, and instead looked forward to the next good weather window to which we could attempt a climb. Luckily, we didn’t have to wait long as today’s forecast was stellar!

We returned to the Ammonoosuc Ravine Trail, the shortest trail from the west side of Mount Washington. Leaving the trail-head we made quick time and in just 40 minutes reached “Gem Pool”, where we took a quick 10 minute break for snacks.

Like father like son

Mommy and Alex enjoying some time out of the backpack

Here, the climb really begin’s as stone steps lead up 1,500 feet in elevation in one mile. After the steepest section views back to the east start to open up and multiple cascades and brook crossings make the trail more enjoyable.

One of many scenic falls

Gettin’ steepa’

Quick break 20 minutes from Lakes In The Clouds

Feeling good

Wait… more steps?

Whole family shot, can you tell who is starting to get sleepy?

Within 5 minutes of reaching the AMC Lakes in the Clouds Hut I heard Alex start to snore… a bit more than 2 hours into the hike and right on schedule!

I eat, he sleeps

After another 10 minute break we jumped onto the Crawford Path, the oldest hiking trail in the country BTW, to continue our ascent. Of course we stopped for the obligatory lake shot, which will be gracing this blog header soon.

Classic

As we neared the summit we braced ourselves for the enigma of Mount Washington. It is an amazing and confusing place. One minute you are hiking up one of the most rugged mountains in the country, and moments later you are being gawked at by hundreds of visitors clad in flip-flops and cotton who ascended the mountain by automobile or train. Before anyone thinks I’m about to complain, let me make it clear I LOVE this aspect of Mount Washington. It is a treasure of NH, and the east in general, and I am happy those who can’t hike (or shouldn’t hike) are able to see some of the beauty and raw nature that has had such a profound impact on my life. While some of my die-hard mountain friends may despise the “circus” up there, I feel it has its place here… and for the most part… come winter… the mountain is all mine again…

But I’m getting off the focal point here. Now’s a good spot I think to share our timeline:

9:20 – Left the trail-head at the Marshfield Station.

10:00- Arrived Gem Pool (2.1mi, 950ft gain)

10:10- Left Gem Pool to ascend to Lakes in the Clouds Hut

11:40- Arrived Lakes in the Clouds Hut (1mi, 1550ft gain)

11:55- Left Lakes for Summit

12:50- Arrived Summit, got in line to take picture at summit (1.5mi, 1,300ft gain)

TOTAL: 4.6mi, 3,800ft climb

1:10- Took summit photo (see below)

1:25- boarded Cog

1:30- started descent via Cog

2:15- arrived Marshfield Station

The line to get a summit photo

Alex woke up minutes from the summit

Alex’s 1st 4000 footer, and 6000 footer for that matter…

Some interesting statistics from our hike:

We spent 3 hours and 5 minutes actively hiking to the summit.

We spent 25 minutes “breaking” during 2 breaks, one at Gem Pool and one at Lakes Hut, for a total hike time of 3.5 hours. “Book” estimated time total is 4 hours 10 minutes, so we crushed that by 40 minutes.

Alex slept from just below Lakes to just before the summit (about 1 hour nap).

We spent 15 minutes in line to take out summit photo (no biggie).

Then, due to some serendipity, we were able to grab the last two seats on the Cog Railway train departing the summit right after our summit photo.

Alex LOVED the train ride down, but I need to make any readers aware of some potential issues relying on the train (or road) as a possible easy way off the mountain. First, it’s expensive. Like $45 per person one way. But financial cost is no where near as important as the other reasons to reconsider counting on the train for your descent. Priority is given to round-trip passengers, and most trains come up with a full boat, so you could be stuck for hours on the summit waiting for an open seat. 2nd, the train may cease service at any time due to inclement weather. 3rd, you may get into trouble trying to “push on” thinking the train (or auto-road) will safety get you down the mountain. Quite a few people have perished on the mountain pushing higher thinking of the illusion of nearby safety and the mirage that it is “just right over there”. Just last week a 30 year old from NY lost his life while hiking down a nearby mountain when he apparently succumbed to heat stroke.

DO NOT be lulled into relying on the summit facilities, Cog, or auto road, to provide any margin of safety during a climb of Mount Washington. If at any time in your hike you’re not confident that you could safely turn around and get back down under your own steam then turn around now! Pushing on gets people killed… If we didn’t get a seat on that departing train we had plenty of reserves, evidenced by our quick ascent time, to hike down the Jewell Trail to finish our day. Our only reason for using the train was Alex does not like to spend much more than 3 hours in the backpack. He would definitely get cranky during the descent. While I may be stressing this a bit strongly, I had multiple well intention-ed fathers ask me on the train how they could pull off such a great family hike, and it needs to be clear that everyone needs to Hike Safe, and be self-reliable in the White Mountains.

After getting back to Marshfield Station Alex enjoyed some time running around in the fields, picking flowers, and playing with a little German boy a year older than him.

This has been by far Alex’s greatest adventure to date, and I am thankful I was able to share it as a complete family. We are energized from this success to tick off what other White Mountain peaks we can this season with Alex before winter returns to the high peaks, so if you want to follow along, please follow the blog here or on our new Facebook page. Also “like” and “share” to your hearts content!

Happy trails!

Posted in Hikes, Trip Reports | 7 Comments »

Thomas the Train!

July 14, 2013 by David Lottmann

Today Alex got to visit one of his first recognizable heroes, Thomas the Train! The Conway Scenic Railroad has hosted the well known kid friendly engine from the island of Sodor for 4 years now. They do an amazing job bringing this character to life. Despite some humid temps and Alex feeling a little under the weather we enjoyed a 30 minute train ride with great views of the Saco River valley and The Moat Range, including some nice glimpses of Whitehorse Ledge. Reader tip: Sit on the “river side” of the train for the best views. The town side of this short ride has some less scenic trailer parks to take in…

The man of the hour

All aboard!

After the ride we checked out the mini-village of events. Most would be perfect for kiddos slightly older than Alex, say 3-6 years old. We did stop in the model museum, a must hit not only for the air-conditioning but the amazing detail of the railroad model itself!

A tired Thomas fan

Amazing indoor train model

Rock climbers behind Berlin

On our way out we visited the new Farmer’s Market over by the Conway Recreational Center. Alex was a bit too tired to let us linger here but that market is certainly another great addition to our town.

Thomas is only here through next weekend, so if you are interested, or know someone that might be, you can get details on tickets and what-not at this link:

http://conwayscenic.com/events/event/day-out-with-thomas/

Posted in Trip Reports | Leave a Comment »

Bugs & Babies

July 8, 2013 by David Lottmann

Tis the season of flying biting things, and this family has a hard time staying inside no matter what Mother Nature is throwing at us. If that adversity is of the stinging blood sucking kind, it’s good to have the right equipment to keep you and the little ones as comfortable as can be. Below I share my personal strategies for keeping baby and family relatively bite free.

1) Timing. Mosquitoes are most active from dusk to dawn (night), so I have the best luck in New Hampshire hiking in the morning or early afternoon. Late afternoon hikes run the risk being chased back to the car by a black cloud of culicidae.

2) Location. Many hikes start in low lying sheltered areas. Often the mosquitoes are worse right at the trail-head. I dislike wearing ANY repentant, natural or otherwise, when it isn’t needed. I’ve watched many families soak their children in “Off” when stepping out of the car, regardless to the presence (or lack of) any biting insects. So my advice is to get out of the car and start hiking. Get away from the damp low lying campground and moving along the trail. If the climb isn’t steep a 3 mph gait can really keep the fliers away.

3) Clothing. Even during the hottest months babies/toddlers being carried will be most comfortable wearing light weight long pants and long-sleeved shirts. This reduces the amount of bug repellent that must be applied when feed time begins.

4) Skin Repellent. If the presence of biter’s is apparent, and feeding time seems imminent (not Alex’s feeding time), then I bust out the repellent. For him I like All Terrain’s Kids’ Herbal Armor Repellant Spray. Legs, arms, and the back of his neck/ears get the most attention. I’ll use this myself when hiking with him, but I also carry a 30% Deet Spray for dealing with crazy swarms. If the bug situation has escalated to need DEET, I apply it away from him. No skin repellent beats the effectiveness of DEET, and if I am carrying him on my back while wearing it I feel we both have a bit of a protective bubble around us.

5) Gear Repellent. I treat our kid carrier with AMK BEN’S CLOTHING AND GEAR REPELLENT. This “Permethrin” formula is something I used for years in some of the most bug infested jungles in the world while serving as a US Marine. It really works against just about everything. This is not to be applied to skin, or even clothing while you are wearing it. Once it absorbs into clothing or gear and has dried it can not leech back into our skin. I can set the kid carrier down in a tick infested field and I won’t find one tick on him or the carrier. During tick season treating the outside of your shoes and the bottoms of your favorite hiking pants will do wonders.

I plan on adding a head net now that Alex is entering toddler hood. I’d be nervous about putting a head net on an infant, especially if hiking solo, due to possible strangulation, but if one is used just exercise extreme caution! There are also some great clothes and items like bandanas pre-treated with permethrin. You can see them, along with some other bug combat tools at this link.

What do you do to fight the bitey’s? Any products you would recommend to those hiking with kids?

Posted in Gear Reviews, How To | Leave a Comment »

NH Audubon Hoyt Wildlife Sanctuary

July 1, 2013 by David Lottmann

Yesterday the whole family got out for a morning hike and our good friends and neighbor’s, the Ouellette’s, joined us. Alex was excited to have his little buddy Declan along for the ride, along with two canine companions, Rocky and Apollo. We hit the trail at about 10:30am. Two weeks ago Alex and I had explored some of the trails at Purity Spring Resort on the west side of Eaton Road, climbing up to the scenic Bald Ledge. Today we opted for some of the more mellow trails on the east side which would bring us through most of the NH Audubon Hoyt Wildlife Sanctuary. After crossing a small footbridge at the outlet of Purity Lake and close to the Purity Lake Dam we skirted the east side of the lake for a short distance before moving through some rich wetlands.

Some beautiful pine forest

An inflatable rock climbing wall in the swimming area of the resort (guests only)

Cruzing

Not long after this shot we heard a rather large animal down a small drainage to our right. As much as Randy and I scanned we couldn’t spot it. My guess was we had startled a moose. This wetland area is perfect for them, and while they can make a racket when being roused from a comfy spot they can just as quickly move away as stealthy as a ninja. Ninja moose, LOL, I like it. Other than the small flying biting type of wildlife we didn’t see anything else except for occasional beaver dams.

Alex has mastered drinking from the CamelBak

About halfway around the loop

Size-able Beaver Dam

Small footbridge near the end

Great company

The Route

It was a leisurely 90 minute 1.9 mile loop when all was said and done. We grabbed some shade at a picnic table near “The Mill” and let the little guys stretch their legs. Declan seemed to enjoy his first backpack ride and Alex made the whole loop without needing to get out of the pack. Lots of guests were cooling off in the private swimming area, but we were ready to head home for some lunch and a dip at our local beach. This family owned resort is a little gem and I still want to explore it more so expect to hear about it again at some point.

Web articles coming up this week:

Bugs & Infants: How to stay outside in the thickest of bug conditions

If you enjoyed please Follow & Share! (The “Follow” Link is back at the top right of the website)

Posted in Hikes, Trip Reports | Tagged hiking in NH, hiking with family, hiking with kids, purity lake, purity spring resort | Leave a Comment »

Adventure With Alex now on Facebook!

June 27, 2013 by David Lottmann

Just created a Facebook page for Adventure With Alex and will be switching my settings here to link new blog posts to that fan page instead of my personal Facebook page. So if you are not a “follower” through the link top right but occasionally read my posts through our connection on Facebook please either follow the blog by entering your email above, and/or stop by the new Facebook Page and click “Like”:

https://www.facebook.com/AdventureWithAlex

Some upcoming posts:

More hikes, of course.

Stand-up Paddle-boarding with Toddlers

Rock climbing before you are 2

More bike rides, along with a post on the pedal-less Stryder Bikes

And a few Product Reviews.

Hope to see you subscribe and/or “Like” us on the new Facebook page.

Adventure on!

Posted in Trip Reports | Leave a Comment »

Hiking around Purity Springs Resort

June 22, 2013 by David Lottmann

Last Thursday Alex and I had a couple hours to hike and I decided to head south through Madison to Purity Springs Resort. I’d driven by this resort a few times and had heard they had some nice hiking trails so I was excited to finally check some of them out. Particularly, I wanted to check out Bald Ledge, a cool looking bluff I had seen from further south on Route 153.

Around 9:30 we stopped into the “Millbrook” front office where the receptionist provided us with a couple maps of the grounds. Seeing I was carrying Alex the suggestion was made for some of the shorter flatter hikes but we planned to tick off the longer climb in the area, Bald Ledge, about 3 miles roundtrip with about 800ft of climbing.

A hand drawn map of the trails

A nice watercolor of the grounds

We took the Tower Trail, which was a gentle climb for the most part, and very well marked. Outside of a family friendly resort such as this one might find the amount of trail markings on such an obvious path a bit intrusive, with plastic arrow markers nailed to trees almost every 40 feet, but it didn’t impede on the geologic beauty of the area as we reached an interesting tower with restricted views to the southeast.

Plenty of signage on the lower trails

About 45 minutes into the hike we reached the Bill Sexton Shelter, which was perfect timing as Alex had been asking “eat?” for the last 10 minutes. We unloaded and took a nice 15 minute break to explore the rustic cabin, complete with wood stove and outdoor fire-ring, snack a little, and change a rare trail dirty diaper (2nd dirty diaper in about 175 trail miles).

Bill Sexton Shelter

A view towards Bald Ledge from the Bill Sexton Shelter

We continued on towards Bald Ledge at a quicker clip now that the angle had lessoned and views south towards Ossipee Lake started to appear. Open slabs with plenty of blueberry bushes (not in season) allowed a great pace.

Open slabs near Bald Ledge

Mandatory self portraits

Soon after this shot as I neared the end of the Bald Ledge trail I heard small snores from behind my head as Alex succumbed to the fresh air and rhythm of being carried… I caught his water bottle as he released it but unfortunately lost his ball cap at some point without noticing… I need to look for an attachment to keep a fallen cap with us.

The view from the end of the trail was decent, and I could see the section of Rt 153 I had slowed down on to eyeball these ledges a few months ago. I retraced my steps back to the shelter, and back to a small side trail, the “Panther” trail according to the map, in order to get a small loop in on our return. Alex slept for about 40 minutes, and as we got close to the tower he awoke quite happy. We shared a couple versus of “The Bear Went Over the Mountain” before reaching the resort.

Our Route

Almost 2 hours exactly round-trip, and just over 3 miles, with the 800 feet of climbing. We stopped back into the office to thank them for the maps and get some PR info. I’d like to revisit soon to explore the rest of their trail network and perhaps write a more substantial review of their resort. A quick stop over at their fitness center and pool was informative as Nancy gave me and Alex a short tour of “The Mill” and a brief history of this 100+ year family resort which is currently run by a 5th generation owner! I’ll link back to that review here when it posts, but if you’re interested why not just follow the blog so you don’t miss it? My wife and want to check out their “Traditions” restaurant, and their outdoor summer lobster bakes, and I’ll definitely post that info up when it’s available.

In the meantime, if you’re looking for a family friendly resort for an active family with small kids, this place looks awesome. Please check them out at http://www.purityspring.com/.

Posted in Hikes, Trip Reports | 3 Comments »

White Ledge Trail, Albany, NH 6/13/2013

June 13, 2013 by David Lottmann

Seeing a break from the recent rain appear we made for the 4.1 mile loop hike a few miles from our house. I hiked this trail counter-clockwise years ago before Alex, and made a couple rock climbing trips to the cliffs last Fall, so I decided to hit the loop with Alex clockwise today. We parked in the White Ledge Campground off Route 16 at about 10:20am. A small parking lot towards the back is signed for “picnicker’s and non-camper’s”. Alex seemed excited to be out and even hiked for himself a 100 yards before asking “up”.

Alex felt quite a bit heavier than he did a few weeks ago on our last hike, but it was probably the 100 oz of water I was toting that made the difference. He’s just over 25 lbs now, and the additional 15 pounds of pack-weight, gear & water, had me climbing at a snails pace for the first hour.

Here we go

Slowly climbing up to White’s Ledge

After about 40 minutes of slow climbing Alex seemed to loose interest judging by the occasional snores I would hear behind my head. Things started to level off a bit as we neared the top.

Nice stretch of trail…

That was a lot of work huh buddy?

Alex woke as I tried to get him back on my back so we decided to break for some leg-stretching time and a snack. He was pretty excited to see some familiar letters on the ground. “MEIA”. I gave it to him.

Some leg stretching back restin’ time…

We saddled back up and began a gentle descent on the opposite side of the loop.

Interesting view of the elusive “Crag Y”

A slick bit of trail

Greatest trail shoes ever! REVIEW FORTHCOMING!

2 hours in Alex was starting to whine a bit but that was easily quelled with a dozen verse’s of “A Bear Went over the Mountain”, and coincidentally that bear saw every person Alex knows by name. We reached the car just after 1pm.

Red Line Complete!

This hike was 4.1 miles, which is coincidentally the same distance I’ll be hiking to summit Mount Washington this July with Alex for the annual Seek The Peak event. If you would like to support my climb and the Mount Washington Observatory please check out my sponsorship page here. Even a $5 donation would help me reach my goal!

Thanks for reading, lots of product reviews in the works, stay tuned!

Posted in Hikes, Trip Reports | Tagged hiking, hiking with kids, loop hike, nature, outdoors, white mountains | Leave a Comment »

Burley Bee Bike Trailer Review

June 6, 2013 by David Lottmann

Last Fall I purchased a Burley Bee Bike Trailer from EMS North Conway. Last October we took it out for Alex’s first bike ride on a 5.26 mile loop, and while it performed great I wanted to get some more mileage on it before posting a more detailed review. This Spring the trailer is seeing some use, and after a half dozen rides including the Maine Mountain Division Trail in Fryeburg, ME and our longest ride yet a few days ago, 18 miles round-trip, I’m ready to share my thoughts.

The Good:

Cost/Value: Definitely the most affordable trailer in its class, the sticker price on this one is a huge relief after discovering many bike trailers can cost 3-4 times as much. Despite the modest price it feels incredibly well built. The nylon canvas is thick and well stitched, the UV blocking side windows are top quality, and the hitching system is simple to use.

The Best:

Convenience! This trailer only weighs 18.5lbs! Weight is important for two reasons. Obviously you don’t want to pull more weight than you have to up hill or into a headwind, but this trailer is so light you can forget it is there on the flats. In addition, after breaking it down for storage, which BTW is so amazingly fast and simple I think NASA had a part in the design of this thing, it is easy to lift the collapsed trailer to toss in the back of the car. Collapsed, it easily fits in the cargo area of my Toyota Matrix (all seats up)… that was unexpected.

The Bad:

Well, not exactly bad, but this is where some of the more expensive models might suit you. Almost all the other models have the option to convert to strollers/joggers and sometimes ski trailers. There are no converting options with this model, it is a bike trailer only. So we are stuck with packing our jogger alongside for road trips, or going without a jogger and just packing our kid carrier. Not the end of the world, but an important consideration. If you are in the market for a jogger + a bike trailer, you could save some money, and storage space, by upgrading to the Burley Encore so you have that option.

Last thoughts:

One of the best family purchases for those with infant/toddlers. Riding is an awesome way to get exercise and these trailers keep the kiddos quite comfortable in varying weather conditions. I plan on ordering an extra hitch piece for my wife’s bike so we don’t need to transfer that small piece every time we switch who the hauler is.

Some related video reviews that show assembly:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HgFnSYgBDfE

This one show’s the similar model, the Encore, being folded:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qPDJABD7UNE

Hope you found this helpful, and thanks for reading!

Posted in Gear Reviews | Tagged gear reviews | 2 Comments »

« Newer Posts - Older Posts »

Adventure with Alex

A Father Son Online Journal

Alex’s first rock climb shared with cousin Jessica!

Champney Falls Trail, Mount Chocorua, and a lesson in ego.

Alex’s first 4000 footer! Mount Washington!

Thomas the Train!

Bugs & Babies

NH Audubon Hoyt Wildlife Sanctuary

Adventure With Alex now on Facebook!

Hiking around Purity Springs Resort

White Ledge Trail, Albany, NH 6/13/2013

Burley Bee Bike Trailer Review

Follow Blog via Email

Recent Posts

Like us on Facebook!

A Father Son Online Journal

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Follow Blog via Email

Recent Posts