To the summit of Mont Dore

Distance: 7.3 km.  Elevation low/high/total: 61/731/699 m.
Difficulty: 7.2/10.  Scenic: 9/10

A medium difficulty solo hike to the summit of Mont Dore - click pic for album
Two geotracks - one with elevation, one with enroute pics

As the end of the holiday break was nearing (work resumes Monday), I was still feeling a need for more hiking.  Unfortunately, the usual hiking suspects were in various forms of physical discomfort or already hiked-out so I took off early Saturday morning for my first solo hike in some time.  I wanted to see if I could make it to the top of Mont Dore, the brooding mountain dominating the skyline east of Noumea.  The hike wasn't as taxing as the one to the top of Mt. Mou, but it was a good workout nonetheless.  The views were spectacular and the weather could not have been more perfect - mid 20s C (mid 70s F) and a constant breeze of 20-30 knots.