What's in a name?

mo-nad' nock /mo-nad' nok/ 1. n. Phys. Geog. Native
American term meaning a mountain that stands alone, rising
high above the surrounding plain. 2. n. Prominent isolated
hard rock remnants of a prolonged period of erosion. 3. n.
Mt. Monadnock - A granite mountain in Jaffrey, N.H., thought
to be named centuries ago by North America's Algonquin tribe;
Height: 3,165 feet. 4. n. Monadnock Research - A firm that
stands alone in quality of publications and insight into the
management and IT consulting sectors.

The exact number of annual Monadnock trekkers will likely never be known given its 40+ mile labyrinth of marked and unmarked ascent routes from all approaches, throughout its 6,817 protected acres. The 2003 Monadnock State Park Master Plan set the annual number at around 95,000, compared to Fuji's 200,000. Monadnock also represents one of America's earliest conservation efforts. Jaffrey, the New Hampshire town that is home to the mountain, first acquired 200 acres near the summit in 1883 to preserve it for public use.

The U.S. states of New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Maine, and New York are all visible from Mt. Monadnock's granite summit on a clear day, like Columbus Day 2010, captured by a Monadnock Research staffer in the photos above and below.