.June 16, 2006
I've been looking forward to today for sometime. Larry Pierce, who works in the pharmacy at the hospital where I work, has invited me along for an overnight traverse of the Presidential Range. I have already completed the AT section north of "Lakes of the Clouds" as well as the 4,000 footers in that area. As a result, day 1 will be a repeat of what I have already done, but day 2 will be unexplored territory for me. We have had nothing but rain for the last 5 or 6 weekends but the forecast ahead looks perfect. From the group I will be hiking with, Larry is the only one that I know, so I hope to make some new friends.
Shortly after I arrived at the Appalachia Parking Lot. Larry showed up and I met Nick and Bill. The rest of our hikers will be joining us later. We headed up the Valley Way Trail
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After a couple of miles, we went off the Valley Way Trail and got on the Watson Path. We were only on it for a minute or two when we came across this beautiful waterfall.
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Just before the waterfall, Larry had a close call. He slipped on one of the wet, moss covered rocks. He slipped off, caught his balance, and landed between two other rocks. His quick reflexes saved him from what could have been a very nasty fall. After the waterfall the trail rises quickly. It was time for our stairmaster workout. Then we reached a sign stating we were entering the alpine zone. There was also a warning that the area ahead often has some of the worst weather in America.
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Within a few more minutes we were above treeline.
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Then on to the top of Mount Madison at 5367'. This was my 3rd time on Madison. We got a great view of the mountains we were about to climb. There were still traces of some snow patches in the 'Great Gulf'. We met a thru hiker named Robin's Nest. She started the AT on February 14th and was hoping to finish around July 8th.
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We made the steep half mile descent down to the Madison Hut where we met two more hikers that would be joining us. Nancy and Trish had hiked up the very steep Madison Gulf Trail the day before and had spent the night at the hut.
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We took a brief break at the hut before the six of us headed off towards Mount Adams. Within no time, we were looking back at the hut with Mount Madison behind it.
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Larry, Bill, Nick, and I decided to make a slight detour and hit Mount Quincy Adams. It is not an offical 4,000 footer, and there is no trail to the top. Getting to the top was no problem however seeing we were above treeline. Here is a picture of me at the 5,410 foot summit.
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We met back up with Nancy and Trish and continued up to Mount Adams at 5774'. This was my 2nd time on Mt Adams. The picture below is looking back towards Madison.
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Looking ahead to Mount Washington
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We began the descent down Adams. Nick took a fall and scrapped his elbow pretty good. Fortunately he had nice soft rocks to break his fall. Above treeline is a tricky place to hike with the trails being so rocky. I had forgotten how far it was between Mt Adams and Mt Jefferson. Here's a look back at Mt Adams.
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We stopped at the base of Mount Jefferson to give everyone a chance to catch up and take a break. Then another steep climb up to the summit. Like many of the other peaks, Mt Jefferson is a big pile of rocks. Larry is at the top. I think Nick is with him, but I'm not sure.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Mt Jefferson is just a little lower than Mt Adams at 5,712 feet. It was my third time summiting Jefferson. Time to go down again and then up to Mt Clay. I had missed the turn for the summit and heard Nancy yelling behind me that I had missed it. Bill was with me so I had led him astray. The trail we were on still led to Mount Washington, it just bypassed Mount Clay. Bill decided to head on to Washington. I had been on Clay before. It is kind of neat and I wanted to see it again. I didn't head back to where I missed the turn but bushwacked it up to Clay. Bushwacking is a term for creating your own path. It seems funny calling it bushwacking since it is just a pile of rocks. Just passed the summit of Clay (5,533') there is a neat section of the mountain that looks like it was carved out by a giant bulldozer. Although most of the mountain is rocks, there is a section inbetween two peaks that is relatively smooth and grassy. I also knew I was getting close to the cog railway. I could hear it and you can see black smoke in the picture below.
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Mount Washington was getting closer with a view into the Great Gulf.
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Nick caught up to me and we decided to take a break. Nancy was right behind followed by Larry and Trish. Trish has been a real trooper considering she has been fighting with some nasty blisters. While the group rested a few more minutes, I decided to head on to Washington and to see if I could catch Bill on the way. It was unlikely since he had quite a lead by now. I reached the cog railway. This wouldn't be a good place to get your foot stuck.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ I waited a couple of minutes so I could get a picture of the engine with the passenger car. It is a little expensive to get to Mount Washington this way. I believe it is $55 round trip, but I bet it is fun.
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The summit of Mount Washington was within reach now.
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I made it to the 6,288 foot summit. This was my fifth ascent of Mount Washington. Here is a picture of the Tip Top House. It is the oldest structure on the summit.
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I did my best to combine two photos of the peaks we have summited so far. Mount Madison was the first mountain we climbed today and it was now far, far away.
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Inside the Sherman Adams Summit Building there was a wall with current weather conditions. It was windy on Washington with gusts near 40 mph. I had overheard someone saying there were 60 mph gusts that morning. The highest wind speed ever record was recorded on Mount Washington at 231 mph. In the picture below, notice the temperature difference between the summit and the base.
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As I walked inside, I met Bill. The rest of the gang was not far behind. We stopped in the cafeteria. There was a limited selection of food since the grill had closed for the day. I felt bad for Nick who had been talking about getting a cheeseburger once he reached the top.
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Bill and I were the first to leave. Bill took my picture at the summit of Mount Washington.
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This was the final push of the day. The Lakes of the Clouds Hut came into view with Mount Monroe to the left of it.
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I had been to the hut twice before, but this would be my first time when it wasn't fogged in. I turned to get a picture of Mount Washington behind me. Bill is in the foreground.
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Since I was taking pictures, I was going at a slow pace. The rest of the group caught up to me. They were probably going at the fastest pace of the day. It was about 5:40. Supper at the hut is served promptly at 6:00. They were on a mission. The hut wasn't far now.
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Here's a shot of one of the lakes.
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We reached the hut, picked out our bunks, and got things settled. Now it is supper time. I usually try to stick to a vegetarian diet, but I have heard how great the meals are at the White Mountain Huts, so for tonight, all diets are off. The 'croo' as they are called rather than 'crew', put on quite a spread especially considering all the food had to be carried down from Mount Washington. We had homemade turkey soup with fresh baked bread. Next came fresh, crisp salad followed by corn and rice. The main course was chicken pot pie with a light, flaky crust. I usually pass on dessert but they had what is probably my favorite dessert, carrot cake with cream cheese frosting. I helped myself to the biggest piece they had. I was stuffed. Here is a picture of the dining room filled with hikers who were no longer hungry.
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There was still a couple of hours of daylight left. There was still plenty to do. You could go on an alpine flower tour with one of the 'croo'. I believe another 'croo' member brought a group on some sort of geological tour. I still had a mission to accomplish. Tomorrow was new territory for me. First up would be Mount Monroe. The problem was the AT went around it. Seeing I wouldn't be able to go in both directions tomorrow, I decided to hit it tonight. It wasn't far from the hut, only about .3 miles to the top, but it was a steep .3 miles.
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I reached the summit at 5,372 feet. My 5th official 4,000 footer of the day, but more importantly, the first one today that I hadn't done before. It is my 23rd on my list of 48. From here I could look down and see the Appalachian Trail that went around the summit. Considering the rocky area where we were in the trail looked quite smooth so I decided to do it tonight. I went .4 miles over the other side of Monroe and met up with the AT. It would be 1 mile back to the hut. This was the easiest mile of the day and the trail had beautiful alpine flowers all around. I believe these flowers are only able to bloom one week out of the year because of the climate, so I hit it just right.
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Once back at the hut I enjoyed a beautiful sunset.
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When I went back inside, I found most of the group at one of the tables. Larry had a poor night sleep the night before so he went to bed early. Nick and Bill both had taken a quick dip in one of the ice cold lakes. The group agreed I was a glutton for punishment having done an additional 1.7 miles. Lights go out at 9:30 in the huts, so we hit the sack. Sleeping quarters are tight, but the hut provides a bunk, pillow, and three wool blankets. Good Night.
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