6/30 Day 119 Kinsman Notch to
Franconia Notch – 16.3 miles
We were up early to meet our
arranged shuttle to the trail. After fees were paid, our ride dropped us off
back at the Kinsman Notch parking lot but this time we weren't being pelted by
rain. This time, the weather actually looked promising for the day with a few
rays of sunshine peeking through the early morning clouds. Spirits were high as
we set out, especially once we saw a giant stash of Coke and Mountain Dew at
the base of our first climb. The caloric energy boost got us up and over Mount Wolf where we first started passing several south bounders who were also headed
to Chet's place for the night. Next, we conquered South Kinsman Mountain,
followed by North Kinsman, then back down to the beautiful Lonesome Lake and
its hut. In the White Mountains, there are 10 AMC (Appalachian Mountain Club)
huts spread out along the AT providing shelter, food, and entertainment at a
rather expensive cost for a thru hiker but for a vacation might not be so bad,
I guess. Lonesome Lake Hut was nestled at the base of the mountain, right next
to a beautiful, peaceful looking lake surrounded by trees and rocks and
mountains and….people. We've become spoiled having most of our views all to
ourselves or sharing them with a group of fellow thru hikers; I wanted so badly
to sit on that dock and stare out at the water for a while but the constant
stares and whispers by the hut hoppers made us feel like we were intruding and
so we moved on quickly. The trail was poorly marked as we double checked our
way back to civilization for one more night. Our hitch was easy, though
apparently illegal from the interstate. We then picked up baked spaghetti on
our way back to Chet’s to find his place now crawling with NOBOs, SOBOs,
sectioners, and peakers.
7/1 Day 120 Franconia Notch to
Garfield Ridge Shelter – 11.7 miles
This morning Chet tried to get us
to stay, again, but it was time we moved on, despite the weather forecast. We
stopped by Dunkin Donuts one last time before we attempted our hitch back to the
trail. This hitch was one of our hardest, not a lot of traffic on the road,
until finally a really nice lady decided she could take us two by two. Moose
and I let Guisseppi and HowBout go first. Today involved some tough hiking with
steep climbs over 5000 feet, which was rough, but also held one of my favorite
sections of trail yet—Franconia Ridge. My first view of the ridge wasn't much;
I was cold and wet fighting winds and clouds but when those clouds parted, the views
were spectacular. We ate lunch standing next to a rock with Guisseppi,
Sharpshin, and Kestrel, just hoping for one more glimpse of the ridge and
valley below. We stood in that one spot for a while before we decided it was
time to actually hike the ridge and pray our good weather continued i.e. no
lightening as we would be above tree line for a couple miles. The ridge took us
over Mount Lincoln and Mount Lafayette, where our views weren't as fortunate and
stayed hidden within the clouds. The rain and fog continued all day, making rocks
slick and spirits low. Parts of the trail were straight up rock faces where we
grasped at roots and rocks trying to pull ourselves onward, watchful for camp.
Our intention for the night was to stealth camp around 10 miles for today but
somehow we missed an entire pond, which was our landmark, and ended up hiking
further than anticipated. We ended up climbing Mount Garfield by accident which
led us to the Garfield Ridge Shelter with an overnight fee of $8 per person. The
shelter was crowded so Sharpshin, Kestrel, Moose, and me settled on the back
wall of the porch so as to keep people from having to move. Later that night,
the skies opened up; as it poured the rain, we were very happy to be inside our
3 walled shelter, good and dry.
7/2 Day 121 Garfield Ridge
Shelter to Ripley Falls trail – 16.8 miles
The rain continued to fall hard, all
night, as well as into the morning. We started by putting on our rain gear,
debating whether to wear wet or dry socks for the day. HowBout decided it was
easier to wear wet socks and go stand in a puddle to prepare for his day that way he didn't have to worry about trying to keep his feet dry and could just traipse
right through the water. I wish I had known what lay directly
ahead for I would have done the same thing. Within 0.1 miles of the
shelter, the trail became a steep waterfall decent. Now I’m not talking about the
trail being so flooded that it looked like a waterfall, but the trail actually
joined a preexisting waterfall that happened to be flooded and roaring from the
constant rainfall all night. Slowly we maneuvered our way down, laughing at our
good fortune and drenched feet, when we came across a flood of people heading
towards us and by flood I mean like 10. Breakfast had just let out at the Galehead
Hut and its guests were moving on to the next, hopping from rock to rock trying
to stay dry while we just waded through the middle. Lucky for us, the hut had leftover
pancakes and coffee to give away, which we gladly accepted.
Next, was a steep
climb up South Twin Mountain, at a mere 4,902 feet with a rocky descent. As we were making our way down the mountain, the hut hoppers were
telling us that the brook down below was too dangerous to cross and to turn
back. Discussing our options we decided that we had no choice but to proceed.
No thru hikers had turned back or else we would have passed them, so people
must be crossing somehow. With that decided, we hiked on, hearing the falls get
louder as we got closer. Surprisingly, people weren't exaggerating this time, the
Zealand Falls were indeed gushing. Deciding there was no way to cross where the
trail led, we followed the falls upstream until HowBout found a way he thought
relatively safe. Ditching his pack on the other side, he actually came back for
us and helped stand between me and the falls in case the water should sweep my
feet out from under me; we have an amazing trail family. Thankfully, we all managed to cross safely and
continued our wet hike on to Ethan Pond Shelter where we were supposed to rest
for the night. Unfortunately, the shelter was rather full so we decided to try
for another stealth site we’d heard of at Ripley Falls, so we pushed on until
almost dark only to be disappointed yet again; not even one decent looking
campsite for the 6 of us searching. Not to mention, the falls were 0.5 miles
off trail meaning that we hiked an extra mile out of our way. The falls were
pretty incredible to see though, so it wasn't a total loss. Feeling pretty
tuckered out, as LDK would say, we were feeling a little defeated. Sharpshin
and Kestrel had moved on in search of another supposed stealth site up trail
while the rest of us set up camp right in the middle of the Ripley Falls trail. Technically you aren't supposed to camp on or near the AT but we were
desperate, it was getting dark, and at this point, we didn't care. Lights were
out and it was time for bed.
Love and prayers always,
Wide Load
"Courage is not a man with a gun in his hand. It's knowing you're licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what. You rarely win; but sometimes you do."
Atticus Finch, To Kill a Mocking Bird
"Some people feel the rain, others just get wet." Bob Marley
I love reading about your hike. My family just returned from hiking in New England and we loved our hikes in the White Mountains. The kids were in awe of the thru hikers we saw. Good luck! Can't wait to read more!
ReplyDeleteTricia @ roadtriptheworld.com