Mt. Liberty (and Flume) for the 4th of July

A gorgeous view expanding behind me on Mt. Liberty's summit

Fitting, right? I'd been itching to hike my first 4000 footers of the summer and heck, why not Liberty on the 4th of July? The forecast called for mostly clear skies all the way to the top and perfect temps, so I set off to Franconia Notch to wrap up the last 2 peaks along the ridge I hadn't yet done from the ol' list.

Having had a nightmarish experience on the North Tripyramid Slide Trail last summer where I learned just how much I don't like the idea of slipping and careening to my doom, I stayed far away from the Flume Slide Trail on this trip, instead opting to take the Liberty Springs Trail up and back down. I arrived at the hiker parking area just north of the Flume Visitor Center around 7:30 a.m. and was quite shocked by how few cars were there. I guess more people chose staying home and grilling than setting out and grinding their legs up to the beauties of the White Mountains. In the end, I didn't hate the rare solitude all the way up and onto the ridge. I even got Flume to myself for a little bit!

Annnnnyway, the start on the Whitehouse Trail to the bike path and then onto the Liberty Springs Trail (part of the Appalachian Trail, always a bonus!) was an easy warmup with little elevation gain. The trail was still pretty soggy in a several spots from the weekends heavy rains, with the deep, dark, squishy mud resembling smashed chocolate cake in the middle of the trail.

Quite the nice entrance onto the Appalachian Trail

After meeting up with the bike path, it was quick walk to meet up with the Appalachian Trail. The bridge over the Pemigewasset River felt like a grand entrance onto a short section of one of America's most famous trails (so grand I had to stop and take that photo of it). I'm so used to just soldiering on deep in the woods that when I come upon a small moment like this, I like to pause and take it in for a second. Man made beauty fitting seamlessly into nature's beauty is a wonderful thing to see.

After joining up with the Liberty Spring Trail on the other side of the bridge, it started out with the same characteristics as the Whitehouse Trail: easy elevation gain and lots of mud to walk in and around. It wasn't until just after the major brook crossing (the brook was roaring from the rains, so the rock hop was slightly more precarious) that the trail really started to climb. What had started out as mud, mud, and more mud finally gave way to boulders, boulders, and believe me plenty more boulders. The ascent from that point up to the Franconia Ridge was steady, steep, and unforgiving. There were a couple very sparse flatter stretches to catch a break. However, having read up on the trail beforehand, I was prepared and quite frankly looking forward to the challenging climb. Telling myself that I wanted to round the next corner and see another giant rock staircase (which was usually the case) was motivation to just keep burning my quads to the top.

Major brook crossing

The usual view on the slightly steep ascent to the ridge

After finally passing the Liberty Spring Tentsite and getting up on the Franconia Ridge, I knew the views weren't far away. Once on the ridge, it was a quick 0.3 miles to get up to the summit of Liberty where I was met with the amazing 360-degree views of the White Mountains I had been hoping for. I would try and explain what it's like on top of the ridge lines in the mountains, but (prepare for the cliché) there simply aren't words for it. The feeling and the view up there is just something magical. Part looking down at what the heck you just climbed up to get there and part looking out at so many mountains all around you adds up to a special time on the ridge.

Random action shot just below the Liberty summit

Looking at Flume Mtn. from Liberty

From Liberty it was on to Mt. Flume, which lies 1.25 miles further down the Franconia Ridge. The drop off the back of Liberty's summit was the steepest part of the day, which made for a fun quick climb back up on my return trip. After dipping down into the col between the two, the climb up Flume was another steep climb, this time with smaller rocks on slick reddish dirt that resembled hiking up scree rock on a slide trail...minus the whole fearing for your life part.

Gorgeous view to the South and West from Flume

Flume had another great view, and brought me up to 20 out of the NH48, but Liberty took the cake for me on this trip. It was a summit I was sad to leave. Plus, the trek up the Liberty Spring Trail was an enjoyable challenge that made the reward of the views up top that much sweeter. Liberty Spring is a trail I definitely think I'll do again some day. I've now been up on the Franconia Ridge twice, and both times I've wished I could have stayed much longer than I did. Some of the best views in New Hampshire await up there, and I hope to get back soon.

Below are the time breakdowns from this amazing trip:

• Start at hiker parking area for Whitehouse Trail - 7:37 a.m.
• Junction with bike path - 7:57 a.m. (20 min., 0.6 mi.)
• Junction with Liberty Spring Trail/AT - 8:03 a.m. (5 min., 0.2 mi.)
• Junction with Flume Slide Trail - 8:22 a.m. (19 min., 0.6 mi.)
• Liberty Spring Tentsite - 9:46 a.m. (1 hr. 24 min., 2 mi.)
• Junction with Franconia Ridge Trail - 10:01 a.m. (15 min., 0.3 mi.)
• Mt. Liberty Summit - 10:15 a.m. (14 min., 0.3 mi.)

From Liberty to Flume and back:

• Left Liberty Summit - 10:38 a.m.
• Flume Summit - 11:19 a.m. (41 min., 1.25 mi.)
• Left Flume Summit - 11:46 a.m.
• Back at Liberty Summit - 12:28 p.m. (42 min., 1.25 mi.)
• Back down at hiker parking area - 2:44 p.m. (2 hr. 16 min., 3.7 mi.)

I used Steven Smith and Mike Dickerman's insanely thorough guidebook of the 4000 footers to help me plan this trip. You can get a copy for yourself and support the Appalachian Mountain Club by doing so here.