I recently met a fellow hiker who shared my enthusiasm for the 4000-footers, but we had a difference of opinion on two of them. Namely, Adams and Jefferson. He expressed a little disenchantment with Adams, whereas I’ve always enjoyed it. I like it whether I’m summiting or if I’m just planning to wrap my way around it via Star Lake. Jefferson, on the other hand, has always given me fits.
To be fair, I’ve only made one direct ascent of Jefferson without incorporating any of the other Presidential Range peaks. That experience was a long time ago, when my wife and I were hoping to climb Adams, but we made a misstep and ended up on Jefferson instead. This was mainly because fog enveloped the trail above the treeline, and this was long before all of the GPS devices and map tools available to us now. Jefferson gave us no views, which annoyed me because I really wanted to find our way to Adams too, but the fog made it an unnecessary risk. I’ve always liked the actual President Adams better than the actual President Jefferson, feeling that history unfairly assessed Adams in comparison to his successor. This climb only solidified my issues with Jefferson.
On the Presidential Traverse
After that viewless summit, my later ascents of Jefferson have been part of longer slogs where I’ve taken in Adams, Madison, and the rest of the high-minded pinnacles. Regardless of what direction I came from, when I arrived at Jefferson, I was usually gassed, and the heap of rocks at its summit always looked ugly to me. Consequently, I never lingered long there.
But I’ve been told that I’ve got Jefferson wrong. That I need to hike it from the Jefferson Ravine side, and if I do, I’ll find some of the best views there are in the White Mountains. Seeing that I haven’t gone that way, I’m remaining open to the idea. Maybe I’ll try it soon. If for no other reason, to use it as an excuse to see Adams again.
Jefferson and Adams along the Presidential Ridge
Even Mountains Deserve a Second Chance
But it’s funny how one mountain looks great to one person and dull to another. Days and circumstances affect everything. Same goes for the events we experience in life, or when we meet new people. Some days a person you might actually like, rubs you the wrong way, and so you close yourself off from giving that person a chance in the future. I suppose I’ve been treating Jefferson that way and need to give him another chance. Hopefully he doesn’t screw it up.