Monday was really my only window for getting to the high peaks this winter with my boys (on their school break), and I worried a lot about the weather! But Monday was beautiful (to my surprise), the sun and stillness made hiking conditions ideal even at those temperatures. We left the Garden at 10:40, wearing a number of layers. Found we needed to shed a few after reaching the top of the first Brother. My younger guy (11) was seriously amused by the cloud of steam his shirt gave off when he removed his fleece. We had microspikes/trail crampons, and the trail was packed pretty hard all the way, good traction and we avoided postholing. Every once in a while a pole would go off trail, sometimes up to the hilt in snow - good, if surprising, reminder not to stray. We met two super-pleasant women on their way down from enjoying the views on the Brothers (and btw, chatting with people on the trail is the BEST, partly because it feels so good to stop moving for a minute 
Otherwise, I think we were the only ones on the trail. We got to the summit in 3.5 hours, and boiled up some water and Gatorade for a hot drink, although we weren't feeling chilled - there wasn't even a breeze at the top. It was beautiful to sit in the sun and stare at the view. It was younger guy's second High Peak and older guy's first; and my hope was to give us all a challenging hike that wasn't biting off more than we could chew. The successful summit, the good weather, the snacks and the stunning views made up for any low points. And there were a few. Younger guy had intermittent complaints and pretty steady are-we-there-yets, which got turned up to full-jet on that last steep section before the top. All smiles after that, though. Older guy was strong physically through the finish, but was clearly fighting an epic battle with his own teenaged impatience for the last mile. That parking lot was just not materializing fast enough. Ok, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't happy to see the car too. They were troupers at least 75% of the time, pretty good rate. Good news, we had pizza and pasta afterwards in Lake Placid, and successfully replaced every last calorie we lost on the hike.
Otherwise, I think we were the only ones on the trail. We got to the summit in 3.5 hours, and boiled up some water and Gatorade for a hot drink, although we weren't feeling chilled - there wasn't even a breeze at the top. It was beautiful to sit in the sun and stare at the view. It was younger guy's second High Peak and older guy's first; and my hope was to give us all a challenging hike that wasn't biting off more than we could chew. The successful summit, the good weather, the snacks and the stunning views made up for any low points. And there were a few. Younger guy had intermittent complaints and pretty steady are-we-there-yets, which got turned up to full-jet on that last steep section before the top. All smiles after that, though. Older guy was strong physically through the finish, but was clearly fighting an epic battle with his own teenaged impatience for the last mile. That parking lot was just not materializing fast enough. Ok, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't happy to see the car too. They were troupers at least 75% of the time, pretty good rate. Good news, we had pizza and pasta afterwards in Lake Placid, and successfully replaced every last calorie we lost on the hike.
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