Dan and Rocky’s Big Adventure

Days 156 to 164

September 3 to 11

Mizpah Spring Hut to Gentian Pond Shelter

New Hampshire

Day 156

Mizpah Spring Hut to Lakes of the Clouds Hut

Today was cold and windy. It started with mild winds that turned into sustained 30 mph winds with gusts exceeding 60 mph. The hike was basically a moderate and rocky climb from one hut to the next.

The higher I hiked in elevation, the colder it became. The one positive note is that the skies remained mostly clear with spectacular views.

At one point, the wind actually blew me off the trail into some scrub pines. Luckily, I wasn't injured. The wind and rocky trail conditions were impeding my progress so much that it took me 3.5 hours to hike 2.2 miles. Later, I encountered a man and a woman who were both blown off the trail and received superficial cuts and bruises. This plus my slow progress caused me to change today's destination to the Lakes of the Clouds Hut.

Day 156 Trail Profile

I checked in at the hut around 4:00 p.m. I was surprised to hear that there was a helicopter arriving soon to drop off supplies. I figured there was no way that a helicopter could safely maneuver in high winds. Four supply drops were made with the crew quickly moving the delivery into the hut.

At the time dinner was served, 62 people had checked in. More folks continued to trickle in seeking relief from the wind and cold. At 9:00 p.m., the outside temperature was 38 degrees, and the inside temperature was 52 degrees. Did I mention that the hut sleeps 90 and is unheated?

Day 157

Lakes of the Clouds Hut to Madison Spring Hut

I climbed Mt. Washington first thing in the morning. The trail was steep, but it was relatively easy because there were fewer rocks to contend with. Mt. Washington, at 6,288 ft., is the tallest mountain in the Presidential Mountain range. I also passed Mt. Clay (5,522 ft.), Mt. Jefferson (5,712 ft.), and Mt. Adams (5,774 ft.).

I fell and did a face plant on loose rock while climbing near Mt. Adams. I felt and heard a crunch when my forehead hit a sharp rock, resulting in a 3/4-inch cut. Head wounds bleed profusely. I was applying pressure to my head with a folded paper towel when Skinny Yeti (Boujum) stopped to assist me. With all the blood, I'm sure it looked a lot worse than it was.

Boujum took a look at the cut and said, "That's a deep one." He helped me clean the wound and apply steri-strips to close the wound. Then he hiked the last mile to the Madison Spring Hut with me. The crew at the hut further cleaned and dressed the wound.

THANKS, BOUJUM!

On the Mend a Couple of Days Later

When I fell, I also crushed my cell phone. My phone contained my maps, GPS tracking software (FarOut), hiking pictures, and blog entries. This also resulted in my losing photos and data. That was a big loss.

Day 158

Madison Spring Hut to Pinkham Notch

Madison Spring Hut

The hike down to Pinkham Notch was rocky and slow. I was probably being a bit overly cautious, not wanting to repeat my face plant incident. I caught the last shuttle into Gorham and checked into the Barn Hostel.

Days 159-160

Zero Days & Return to Pinkham Notch

Libby House B&B and The Barn Hostel

The phone was delivered the following afternoon. I followed the instructions provided by Verizon but wasn't able to transfer data back from my old phone. I caught a bus back to Verizon for assistance. The technician said that the instructions were crap, and he proceeded to transfer the data.

It was good to have a working phone again. What I didn't realize is that the apps transfer over as a new installation, requiring set-up. Luckily I had recorded all of my passwords in my notes.

I had dinner at Nona's Italian restaurant. Nona greeted me at the door, then sat and talked to me for a while. Nona is a 70ish woman who stands about 5 feet, three inches. She told me about the history of the restaurant, the dishes offered, and which family member was responsible for each recipe. I finally asked her to order for me. I ended up with fried ravioli for the appetizer and homemade pasta with a meatball, sausage, and Italian beef. I also ordered a Crown Royal on the rocks. I couldn't have asked for a better meal.

The next day, I picked up boots at the Post Office, put them on, and shipped the ill-fitting boots home for return to REI.

I hitchhiked back to Pinkham Notch. It was too late to start hiking, so I stayed at the AMC Joe Dodge Lodge. I ordered a bunk in a bunk room. I ended up being the only person in the four-bunk room, so I had a private room. Dinner and breakfast were included, and both were excellent.

AMC Joe Dodge Lodge

Day 161
Pinkham Notch to Carter Notch Hut

I started my hike around 11:30, thinking that I only had six miles to Carter Notch Hut. The Wildcat Mountains were a lot steeper and harder for me than expected. It ended up taking me a little over seven hours to reach my destination, and I was beat.

It was a bit chilly today with a consistent 20 mph wind. The trail was extremely steep with a lot of sharp, loose rocks, going up the mountains as well as going down.

Note the AT White Blaze on Boulder

I had been hearing a strange mechanical noise for quite some time. It sounded like a front loader (tractor) moving rocks. The trail popped out on top of a ridge where I discovered my noise. It was a ski lift that was shuttling people up and down the Wildcat Mountain ski slope. What took me 3.5 hours to climb was a 10-minute ride for them.

Wildcat Mountain Ski Lift

The descent down to the hut was extremely hard for me. It took me almost four hours to navigate this steep boulder and loose rock-covered trail section. I'm starting to think that the AT builders have a sadistic bent, finding the hardest area to build the trail and then placing additional sharp rocks and obstacles on the trail for bad measure.

I was very happy when I reached the Carter Notch Hut. The wind was picking up, the sun had dropped below the horizon, and it was getting colder. I stepped into the warm hut where a lasagna dinner and conversation with fellow hikers awaited me.

Carter Notch Hut

Day 161 Trail Profile

Day 162

Carter Notch Hut to Route 2 Trailhead & Gorham

Carter Notch Hut Interior

My knees were still sore from yesterday's hiking. I decided to find a less challenging route and ended up white (the AT), blue (an alternate trail), and yellow (road walking) blazing. It's amazing how many trails there are in this area and how often they intersect.

After my experience with my dead phone, which contained my electronic maps and tracking software, I purchased some paper maps. It's much easier to plan an alternate route when you can see the whole area.

The AT section was as challenging as ever, but the blue blaze section was less rocky and more enjoyable for me to walk. There were a number of beautiful creeks and waterfalls along the way.

The last mile was on a dirt road. When I got to Route 2, it was almost 5:30 and too late to start up the next mountain. I called The Barn Hostel and reserved a bunk for the night. Then I hitched a ride into Gorham.

A woman picked me up and dropped me off at McDonald's, where I grabbed a quick dinner. Then I walked the 1/4 mile to the hostel. It appears that people in this area are used to seeing thru-hikers looking for a ride to town and are generally willing to give them a ride.

Day 163

Route 2 Trailhead to Trident Col Campsite

There was no shuttle available, so I started walking to the trailhead. After about a mile, a semi-truck pulled over, and the driver offered me a ride. He said that this road was too narrow and dangerous for hitchhiking. He was probably right.

He dropped me off at the trailhead, and I thanked him for giving me a ride and looking out for me.

There is a new hostel in the making near the trailhead called Quantum Vortex. Currently it only offers tentsites, but the owner intends to open a bunkhouse by next year. There were quite a few thru-hikers sitting by a fire talking. I joined them for a cup of coffee and conversation.

I've run into hiker Don Quixote several times on the trail but never saw his signature until today. He was signing a Quantum Vortex trail register with an interesting pictograph of a stick figure hiker holding a staff, walking toward a mountain with an AT-shaped windmill. His is my favorite hiker signature so far.

Don Quixote

I passed by a hydroelectric power plant not far after leaving Quantum Vortex. It's amazing to see the quantity and power of the water as it exits the plant.

Note the Bullet Holes

I crossed the 1900-mile marker today.

Don Quixote and I hiked together for the last few hours of daylight and ended up being the only ones camped at Trident Col Campsite.

Day 164, September 11

Trident Col Campsite to Gentian Pond Shelter

While drinking my coffee this morning, I took a moment to reflect on the 9/11/2001 suicide terrorist attack. I was working at Rocky Flats Department of Energy (DOE) site in Colorado when the attack occurred. I very distinctly remember a total lockdown of the facility. The phone system was shut down and radio scramblers implemented. We had no cell, radio, or TV signal. We were totally cut off from the world. The RF guards were in full military gear as they searched and secured the site.

It was several hours before communications were allowed. Everyone in our complex was glued to TV monitors as they watched the tragedy of a hijacked jetliner crashing into the World Trade Center. We were thinking that this had to be some terrible accident, and then another jet hit the second tower. We watched in horror as the towers burned, crumpled and collapsed. Later we heard about the third jet hitting the Pentagon and a fourth crashing in Pennsylvania when the passengers fought back, causing it to miss its intended target. I'll always remember the terrorist attack on our soil. For me, the world became a bit colder that day.

Today's weather was great. The trail started out moderate and got tougher as the day progressed. There were a lot of bogs in this area. When I tested to see how deep the mud was, my hiking poles sunk in about three feet. Often there are boardwalks crossing the boggy sections. The issue is that many of the boards are just under the top of the mud, rotted out, or missing. Luckily I didn't have any missteps.

There were lots of beautiful ponds along the trail today. I kept expecting to see a moose eating with water lilies in its antlers, but it didn't happen.

The trail turned very rocky and tough to negotiate. There was an exceptionally tough section dropping down to the Gentian Pond Shelter. It was getting dark when I arrived. I hadn't seen a full campsite in months. In fact, I was often the only one at several sites. I was surprised to see that the campsite was full with northbound and southbound hikers. I was able to find a reasonable site just outside of the camp.