A Quick Retrofit and a Long Hike

Today my husband and I hiked Mt. Flume via the Osseo Trail, 11.2 miles from the car to the summit and back.  Before leaving, I needed to retrofit my lighter, smaller backpack so that it could accommodate the tube of my Camelback hydration system.  I wanted to use the smaller backpack because now that it is summer I don't need my larger one to carry a complete change of clothes and accessories and extra gear like microspikes, crampons and snowshoes like I do in the winter.  I really only needed food, water, a jacket and a few other small things. 

To be able to put the tubing for the Camelback through the backpack and leave the water reservoir inside, I put an extra large eyelet in the top of the backpack.  This took only a few minutes and it worked perfectly.  The tubing comes up through the eyelet:

Inside the pack is a 3L water reservoir to which the tubing is attached:

The hike itself was really good, with many easier sections.  There was a middle section that was steeper, ascending with switchbacks and eventually staircases in the really steep sections:

In the section with the staircases, there were many trilliums:

We're almost at the top here, you can see my husband on the right ready to ascend this rocky section:

At the top, we took a nice break and some photos:

This only peak on the East side of Franconia Notch, along the Franconia Ridge that we hadn't climbed yet.  At  one point or other we have been on at least once (from the left to right) Mt. Liberty on the far left, Little Haystack, Mt. Lincoln and in the very back and far right, Mt. Lafayette.

Parting Shot:  Together.  Here's a photo of my husband and I at the summit of Mt. Flume, overlooking Franconia Notch.  No, we are not the same height.  I'm standing on a rock.  It isn't often that we get to hike together as we usually have to find someone to take care of the children.  My MIL was kind enough to come over and watch the children today so that we could hike.