Wilderness Heals

Thank you for visiting the Wilderness Heals blog. Wilderness Heals is an all-women, three-day annual pledge hike that benefits the Elizabeth Stone House (ESH), a Boston-based emergency shelter, transitional housing program, and therapeutic community that provides services to women and children who are escaping violence and overcoming trauma. By encouraging hikers to set challenging physical, emotional, and financial goals, Wilderness Heals mirrors the experiences of hundreds of women who have sought help from the Stone House. Committing to hike is a way to grow personally while simultaneously standing in solidarity with women of the Stone House and women everywhere who are working to overcome the effects of violence in their lives.
Wilderness Heals 2011 will take place July 15-17, 2011. Registration materials may be downloaded here.
Go here to view the 2011 routes, and visit our Who's Who page to meet this year's team leaders and Recruitment Committee members.
Want to learn more? Visit our list of Frequently Asked Questions.
Still have questions? Contact Erika Whyte, Wilderness Heals event coordinator, at 781-726-0551 or ewhyte@elizabethstone.org.

Monday, June 15, 2009

Three Mountains, Nine Miles, Ten Hours

It was slow-going for the eight women who took part in Saturday's Lincoln-Lafayette training hike, but they made it back to the trailhead before dark! Many Wilderness Heals hikers cite this classic 9-mile loop over the 5,089-foot Mount Lincoln and the 5,260-foot Mount Lafayette as their favorite hike. It features multiple stream crossings, waterfalls, rare alpine vegetation, three peaks, gorgeous views, a ridgewalk, and a stop at Greenleaf Hut. Above: Debbie, Nika, Eileen, Wendy, Karen, Jenn, Vicky, and Mary take a short rest atop Little Haystack before continuing on to Mount Lincoln.

The group stopped at Shining Rock for lunch. Above: Jenn, Eileen, Mary, Debbie, Wendy, Karen, and Nika.

Shining Rock is accessed by a short spur off of the Falling Waters Trail. It gets its name from the water that constantly trickles down its steep cliffs. The cliffs can be seen glistening from the highway far below.

The first peak that the group summited was the 4,780-foot Little Haystack. The mountain is not included in the New Hampshire 4,000-footers list because of its lack of vertical prominence.

Jenn and Vicky get ready to tackle Mount Lincoln.

Mount Washington can be seen from the summit of Mount Lincoln.

Karen (far right) consults a map while Debbie and Mary rest.

Nika and Eileen take a break atop Mount Lincoln.

The group begins its ascent up Mount Lafayette.

The ridge is seen from the Old Bridal Path.

After more than ten hours, Debbie, Vicky, Nika, Karen, Wendy, Jenn, Mary, and Eileen arrive back at the trailhead.

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