Sky, Ghostdog and I drove to the Mill Brook Road in Stark and started up the Unknown Pond Trail at 8:30 am on 9/11/2004. The weather was cool, almost cloudless, and certainly invigorating. As usual, the trail was muddy with standing and running water in places. We stopped at the beautiful Unknown Pond for great views of The Horn, saw a group of 10 camping, and enjoyed the sun shining on the early morning mist carpeting the pond. Ascending The Bulge, we continued on to Mt. Cabot arriving at the comfortable time of 11:15.
When we started to tie the flag to a tree branch, Chris M., a nice gentleman formally from England arrived with his American born son Tobias and provided much appreciated assistance in wrapping our rope around a tall limb. We explained our purpose and engaged in a wonderful conversation of flying the Union Jack and other flags during next year’s remembrance.
As we sat and reflected upon the memories of the attacks, the clouds often blocked out the warm sun causing us to feel the damp chill that hung on the peak. After putting on a few layers of warmer clothing, three more sets of visitors, a total of seven, who bagged the chilly peak, shared brief moments of conversation and returned quickly back down the trail. It was not until we were on our way back down Kilkenny Ridge Trail that we met three men who read of the event on Views From The Top.com and were sorry to have missed us at the summit.
On the return, we climbed to the top of The Horn for a delightful 270 degree panoramic view of the Presidentials, the Mahoosucs and the many other mountains of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont and Quebec. Now it was time to attend the gathering. We had a sensational time at the Mooseland Grill, enjoying food and drink, meeting new and old friends, conversing in each other’s day, and seeing such a large turn out for the event. Wow, a 100 or more hikers covered all 48 summits!
