11 & 12 of 48. Solo. Started out at 0730 from the Hancock Overlook trailhead. Definitely the prettiest trailhead I have ever parked at.

It was about 40° when I started so I threw on my coat. The first portion of the hike was relatively flat without obstacles. The Cedar Brook trail was (as predicted by the name) a lot of lil stream crossings, and rocky with some boulders, but not terrible in terms of elevation. Heading up to the loop trail after that, I ditched my coat and marveled at how many roots were across the trail! It was pretty incredible looking, if a bit rough on the feet. This was more of a moderate climb.

I opted to head up to Mount Hancock North first, and after yesterday’s long hike, I struggled a bit. The trail was steeeeeeeeep. I stopped about halfway up to eat some clifbloks and chug a Gatorade and managed to drag myself up to the summit where I sat in the sun & enjoyed a nice hazy view from the overlook, where I met two women & another fella out for the day.

Headed back in to complete the loop over to South Hancock after this, it was nearing the high 60’s for temperature and the blue sky was disappearing rapidly.

The loop / col between the two mountains was pretty standard. A bit of a drop, a narrow evergreen trail that varied between mud pits (with nice log bridges), and dirt trail for the most part. Some rocky sections, but no real appreciable gain or loss of elevation.

I scooted up to the very plain summit and opted not to go to the viewpoint as the sky had fully clouded over. I sat and spoke to a guy that I actually had seen posts from on a hiking forum, who’s a very accomplished hiker. We talked for awhile about our various mountain experiences which was very pleasant.

I headed down the .5 from South Hancock down to the junction and it was sort of brutal with how firey my knees and feet are feeling today. Once I got back to the junction I made my way back the way I came, and really sort of zoned out. Didn’t break any speed records today but bagged another 2 for the Whites so I’m satisfied!