It was cold. It was freezing. We bundled up the kids, four of them in all, packed up the car, and headed to the hills. We being my brother, his wife, their three kids, my aunt, my daughter and myself. It was a cold Saturday morning. Did I say it was cold? Okay, I am sure that I did, so let’s move along!

So we bundled up the kids and headed to Chauncey Peak, for a brisk early morning climb. Honestly I’ve never heard of that Peak before, although it was literally just about few minutes away from where I lived. It would be a totally new experience and I was a bit apprehensive.

I have been hiking in tropical rain forests for most of my life. Each time I hike in cold weather though it’s different. I am still adjusting to hiking in below freezing temperatures or snow on the ground in the US. Anywho…let me tell you a bit about the Peak.

Chauncey Peak

Chauncey Peak is 688 feet high, rocky steep trail that represents a part of the New England Trail in the US. The actual hiking trail to Chauncey Peak is located in Guiffrida Park. Guiffrida Park is a 598 acre park that encloses the Bradley Hubbard Reservoir, and lots of pine trees. There are several trails throughout the park.

Back to the hike…

Once we parked our vehicle, we started off on what seemed like a fairly straightforward trail. We were following the blue trail. To get to the blue trail we needed to cross the eye catching stone faced reservoir or dam. In the pictures you will see that part of the dam is frozen. And yet when you look at the dam itself, with the mountain backdrop, it was the truly was a very beautiful sight to behold.

Once we started the blue trail it was a pretty straight forward trek upwards. Unlike other trails that I have been on, this one was pretty narrow and steadily got steeper and steeper with a couple of plateaus. We encountered lots of rocks and stones, until we eventually got to the top of the mountain.

At the top of the mountain or peak itself, there were more huge rocks.  The rocks themselves would have been inconspicuous had they not been at the end of the trail itself. The views however, were totally breathtaking!

We could see the frozen waterways below from our vantage point and also lots of forests, snaking river courses, a golf course and more. Even in winter the greenery was evident everywhere!  While we waited for everyone to get to the rocks, it was breezy and terribly cold.

So after having climbed to the top of the peak, rested a while, we descended. The descent was pretty straight forward and far easier than our ascent of course!

Overall, in spite of the extreme cold, there was no need to fear at all! This was a fairly simple straightforward hike. The trail is quite doable for novices and experienced hikers. It is a short hike. Probably 40 minutes in total.  The actual hike up the trail was more like maybe 20-25 minutes up one way and another 20-25 minutes down for the most part.

If you have problems with your knees, and joints, the steepness of the trail can make this simple trail somewhat difficult.  So just be mindful that it even though it is a short trail, it is also one that’s pretty narrow and steep almost throughout the entire journey. You will be done in less than an hour. The next time I think we will  try the white trail or follow the actual roadway instead. Happy hiking!

Scripture of Encouragement

So Jesus said to them, “Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you (Matthew 17:20).