.June 24, 2006
Today I will be crewing myself. How do you crew yourself? It's not easy. I made the two hour drive from my house over to the Flume Visitor Center. There is no AT parking on either I-93 or Route 3. There is a paved biking/walking path that leads from the Flume Parking Lot up to the AT. This is where I will end my hike. I got my bike out from the back of my pickup and biked 11.3 miles to the AT parking lot at Kinsman Notch. I had left home at 5:30 this morning and after finishing my bike ride I reached the trailhead just before 9:00. After hiding my bike in the bushes and switching to my hiking boots, I started out on the trail at 9:05. I was shooting for 9:00, so I'm only 5 minutes behind schedule. It took me three and a half hours just to get to the trailhead. I was feeling half whipped already and I still had a monster of a hike to complete. Self-crewing myself worked fairly well with one mistake. I left my hiking pole in my truck. I would definitely miss it today.
This is an incredibly difficult section of the AT. On Day 117 of 'Runtrails' journal, she describes it as being designed by the Devil. I would have to agree, although I was fortunate to hit the last few miles with the sun shining. The last section would not be too bad and it had some beautiful views. I am taking the advice that 'Runtrails' gives in her journal and I am doing this section from south to north. So I headed out on the Kinsman Ridge Trail which is the AT.
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This section of the AT is an incredible obstacle course. There are rocks to climb up and around. Most of them are carefully placed so that you don't have good footing . The trail was overgrown in many areas. The weather was still overcast but the rain had stopped, but with the bushes being wet and the trail overgrown, I was soaked within minutes. The roots were gnarly and twisting in every conceivable way. It seemed as if the roots had hands reaching out trying to trip me. With the overgrown trail many rocks and roots I couldn't see until I tripped over them. This course was definitely designed by the Devil himself. Here are a few pictures of his handywork.
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A couple of hours into my hike. I heard a sound that sounded like a hiking pole hitting a rock. I looked ahead for hikers coming from the other direction. I saw no one. I guess it was a broken limb falling from a tree. A few minutes later I heard it again. Again I saw no one ahead of me. I turned and noticed someone coming from behind. I thought I was going at a reasonable clip and was surprised to find someone gaining on me. With my pride at stake, I put it into high gear but the sound became louder and louder. I managed to stay ahead of him for about a half an hour but he was gaining. I realized if I didn't step off the trail I would be slowing him down. I tried to come up with an excuse of why he caught up to me, but I had to swallow my pride and admit that he was just in better shape than me, so I stepped out of the way. Just as he was passing me, a southbound hiking came from the other way. He was a section hiker named Larry from Tennessee. The hiker who was passing me was 'Chestnut.' Both hikers commented on how frustrating and annoying this section of the trail was. 'Chestnut' also mentioned that there were several more thru hikers right behind him that were hiking about the same speed. He was right. About 30 minutes later another hiker passed me, then another, and then another. This sure made me feel like I was going slow. I then came to a clearing where a set of powerlines cut through the mountains.
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Three of the four hikers that passed me had stopped to eat their lunch. I decided to offer them some trail magic, and they each gladly accepted a fresh peach from me. Fresh fruit is definitely a treat for hikers who have been on the trail for a while. I headed out before them, but I am sure they would passed me. A little while later I got to Eliza Brook. I headed up the short side trail to check out the shelter.
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While I was here the three hikers passed me once again. I got back on the AT and crossed Eliza Brook
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ The trail became steeper here. It followed the cascading brook which had several small waterfalls with pools off water.
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This pool was fairly deep so I decided to cool off. My boots were completely soaked from the wet trail so I didn't either bother taking them off. The cold water was waist deep and very refreshing. I continued up the mountain and entered a bog area with adequate bridging. I saw Harrington Pond to my left.
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The obstacle course continued as I negotiated through these rocks.
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The trail became even steeper going up to South Kinsman with a lot of scrambling involved. I was fortunate, the sun just came out and these rocks were exposed to it so they quickly dried. 'Runtrails' had come down this way in the rain. That had to be extremely difficult and dangerous. Although the trail was strenuous, at least the rocks were dry and I was going up. I turned and got a view of Mount Moosilauke to my south.
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I finally neared the summit of South Kinsman.
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I reached the summit of 4358 feet. This is my 27th NH 4,000 footer. There was a large cairn marking the top but no sign. Onward to North Kinsman. Lo and behold, a smooth section of trail
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The smooth trail didn't last long and it went back to roots and rocks although the ridge between the two Kinsman peaks wasn't too bad. Then I reached the 4293 foot summit of North Kinsman. (my 28th NH 4,000 footer) There was an incredible view of Franconia Ridge with Mount Lafayette on the left and Mount Lincoln on the right, both over 5,000 feet.
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Any northbound thru hikers in this area would be tackling this tomorrow. I completed that section of the trail about a month ago. I took an extra long overdue break here and enjoyed the view. I got a phone signal here so I gave Lynn a call to give her an update of my progress. I got back on the trail and began the steep descent. I reached a sidetrail for the Kinsman Pond and Shelter. It was just a tenth of a mile so I decided to check it out. Here's the pond with North Kinsman in the background.
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The AT stops following the Kinsman Ridge Trail here and follows the Fishin' Jimmy Trail instead. This section of trail was still tough but it had a lot more aids such as this bog bridging.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ These wooden steps attached to the rock slabs were very helpful.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Although easier this section still had its share of nasty roots.
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I finally came out at the Lonesome Lake Hut.
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This hut is different from the other White Mountain huts. The dining room and bunkrooms were actually in separate buildings. I only went into the hut for a few seconds. It was 5:30 and extremely busy. Supper for the overnight guests is served promptly at 6:00. It smelled delicious. I was tempted to stay and see if I could buy supper, but with the terrific spread they put on I figured I would stuff myself and wouldn't be able to get down the mountain. I hopped back on the Fishin' Jimmy Trail.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Lonesome Lake was just another minute or two down the trail. Here it is with Franconia Ridge in the background.
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Here's a picture looking up to Cannon Mountain, a 4,000 footer that I will have to come back for.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Lonesome Lake is a beautiful spot. I hope to return here, but I will definitely come in another way. The 3 miles of trail that remain to get off the mountain are not too bad. There is also the Lonesome Lake trail. If you take that trail, you can reach the lake and hut with only about 3 miles of hiking round trip.
The AT now follows the Cascade Brook Trail which was a much nicer trail although it still had its moments. More roots ...
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I hopped off the trail for this photo of the brook.
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Next I crossed the brook on this convenient bridge.
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As I reached the bottom of the mountain and neared I-93, I got a view of Mount Liberty.
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Next I went under the bridges for I-93 and Route 3.
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I finally reached the Whitehouse Bridge to complete the AT portion of my hike. Now I had to get off the AT and follow the bike path for a mile. Now this trail is more like it. Too bad it's not the AT.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Although this trail couldn't have been nicer, I was exhausted and it seemed to drag. But I made it back to my truck by 7:30. Before I drove home, I had to drive back around to the other side of the trail and pick up my bike. Fortunately, it was still hidden in the bushes. I made it home about 10:30. Between driving, biking, and hiking, this was a 17 hour day. I will sleep well tonight.
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