Join us on Saturday to hike the lesser known yet very beautiful backdoor route up the Kinsmans! We will hike on the fast side of moderate, and this is a difficult and long trip (about 10.5 mi, 4k feet elevation gain round-trip). You should be confident in your fitness and ability to hike somewhat quickly all day. Winter hiking newbies are welcome, but you should have experience with similarly-difficult 3-season hiking! This is a great chance to tackle a longer hiking and practice using traction (we'll require microspikes and snowshoes).

Route: We’ll start at the Mt Kinsmans trailhead off of 116 and head up the backside of Kinsman ridge toward North Kinsman, with a stop along the way at the stunning 52-with-a-view summit of Bald Peak. From there we’ll head up to North Kinsman (with views out over the whole range and a likely stop at the idyllic Kinsman Pond), and continue on to South Kinsman with its open summit, 360 degree views, and throne-like cairn. You can view a map here and read more about the route here (note that the AllTrails map only goes to North Kinsman, tack on another 1 mi out to South Kinsman and back!).

Weather: You can check forecasts here and here. Saturday is currently looking pretty cold (10F on summit) and windy (20 mph winds), but for now there's a good chance the skies will be somewhat clear! Weather can always change so we will keep an eye on the weather. We’ll get practice using face coverings for the semi-exposed summits!

Logistics: MANDATORY pre-trip meeting will be at MIT on Thursday January 29. We’ll depart Cambridge early Saturday morning. If you can drive your own car or are willing to drive, please edit the lottery preferences on your profile to show this. This trip will need a couple of cars!

Costs: Please budget for: $5 trip fee, $30-50 carpooling costs, any personal gear rentals (capped at $15), and any food you buy along the way. We intend to use the MIT car cost calculator and share costs equally among participants.