Mount Willard

Author's Comments

The math of this hike is unusually generous. Less than a mile and a half of moderate climbing on what used to be a carriage road, and then the trees part and the floor falls away. Crawford Notch opens straight ahead in that perfect glacial U, the ridges on either side falling toward the valley floor in long parallel lines, and the view runs as far as the haze will allow. I have stood at this edge in three seasons now and morning is when it earns its reputation. The notch faces roughly south, which means early light comes in from the side and the eastern ridge lights up while the western wall is still in shadow. That asymmetry is the photograph. Wait too long and the light flattens. Arrive at the summit by seven in summer, eight in fall, and you will have maybe an hour of the good stuff before the contrast goes neutral. The cliff has no railing. I mention this not to be cautious for its own sake but because the temptation to step closer for a cleaner foreground is real, and in winter the ledges glaze over in ways that are not always visible. A wide lens does most of the work here. The notch is the subject and it wants room to breathe. Fall is the obvious season and fall is crowded for good reason. But I have come to prefer late October after the peak has passed, when the color has gone rust and bronze and the crowds have moved on to the next thing. The notch reads quieter then. More like itself.

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