Very nice report, Brian.
First, thanks for letting me tag along with you guys. Sorry I was late at the trailhead, it won’t happen again….maybe!
Second, thanks for the privilege of raising our Flag over South Kinsman.
As I made my way over to South, it was already after 12:00 PM, so I unfurled the flag Brian had given me and let it wave as I trotted to South K. After arriving on the summit at about 12:25, I duct taped the flag to one of my hiking poles and placed the “rig” on top of the summit cairn.
After few minutes by myself, a SOBO thru hiker, Trampoline, came by. He asked if he could hang out, and the company was welcome. Shortly thereafter, I saw coming through the fog a man running, wearing a floppy white hat…it was Mats Roing! More people arrived, one gentleman silently saluted the Flag as he passed by. I got the occasional glimpse of the Flag on North K through the clouds, but couldn’t see any other peaks.
By 2:00 PM, it was me and two other hikers. I lowered the Flag, leaving it unfurled and taped to the pole, and attached it to my pack. I got back to North K, meeting up with the rest of the crew, and we began the hike out.
It was great to hike with Brian and Bob again, and it was nice to meet Russ, Laurie, Marcus and Pucknuts.
Huge thanks to Bob and Geri for hosting the after-party. It as nice to see some old faces and meet some new folks.
Congrats to all who participated in this great event.
Bobby
