hiking mount major!

Days on the boat are lovely, but it’s nice having your feet on land and getting out of the sun for a bit. Not to mention, being away as much as we have for the last few weeks, I haven’t been getting my normal workout in (and have been missing it way more than I thought I would). Strap a 20+ lb. baby to your back, and climb to the top of a (fairly small, even tiny in the grand scheme) mountain and let’s go. (I wore Anders in the Beco, but someone on my Instagram pointed out that I’d be well-suited to get this one. I think that’s next on the list; we saw someone on the trail with this stand-up carrier. They loved it but I wasn’t sold.)Last week when we were at Lake Winnipesaukee, we took a day to hike Mount Major. This is a repeat hike for us and one of our favorites. It’s not too hard (but not too easy, either) and has a reward at the top: stellar lake views! Remember what I said about not knowing how much Parker could hike, and how when they’re too big for carriers, it’s sort of a risky move to do a legit hike? Well, this hike was more real than any hike he’s ever done, and we were crossing our fingers he’d do the whole thing without demanding a ride on Steve’s back. It starts as a rocky trail (above), but then about halfway through, you find yourself on huge rock faces, with a pretty steep incline. All told, the hike is probably an hour and a half at a steady clip, a little more or less depending on your pace. With enough encouragement and praise, Parker was like, “I got this.” The hike fell right at nap time, and I was so hoping Anders would fall asleep instead of angry-scream-cry at me for the whole hike. And look! He fell asleep and stayed asleep for at least 45 minutes. I packed a fig bar in my pocket so that if the latter happened, I could bribe him to the top (or bottom) with little bites of bar. It was necessary on the way down, and it did work (until, well… it didn’t).The day before we took this hike, there was an insane heat wave. The kind where you’re simply sitting and sweating profusely. I love heat, but I don’t like that kind. Then, it turned overnight, and we woke up to a cool 60 degree morning. Perfect day for it.This is Parker’s, “I made it to the top!” face. We were really impressed. Once we summited (just so you know, I’m laughing at myself as I write that.), we took in the views all around. Clouds were rolling in and out and sometimes you could see the lake down below. Seconds later the fog would surround again.  We packed peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and water and had ourselves a little lunch. Any other time and that lunch would have me pretty bored (never mind I do eat it fairly often!) but after the hike it hit the spot. Steve doesn’t look particularly happy here (why, Steve? Is it because you just climbed a mountain and now, instead of relaxing at the top, you have to walk around with a baby on your back so he doesn’t run right off the top of it? Is that it?)Don’t you love when strangers offer to take you a picture and seem like they really know what they’re doing with your giant camera then you look at the picture and it’s in focus?! I could’ve hugged the man. Also, how do you feel about husbands and wives who have matching shoes? Good? Great. This day ended up being one of my very favorites of the whole trip. Before we do these sort of things, I sometimes lack the motivation to decide to do it, then I’m so happy I did. I highly suggest Mount Major if you’re in the Winnipesaukee/White Mountains. It’s beautiful.