We just completed the White Mountain National Forest, aka the Whites, yesterday (8/25)!! It was without question the most difficult and most amazing section of the trail thus far.
We cross the state line into Maine today. With just over 20 planned days on the trail left, we've begun making preparations for our return to civilization. We've purchased plane tickets for Sept 17th, already found a rental house, have movers scheduled to move all of our stuff out of storage and I've (Mike) begun the process to return to work. All of these thoughts and plans about returning home has made us excited and anxious about returning home.
In a post a few weeks ago you may recall that we were photographed for a possible photo book of AT thru hikers. We recieved a few of those photos a few days ago. Here they are...
She's a natural model
This is Jessica's "patiently" waiting on me face.
This is how I look whenever we stop.
This post only covers through 8/21. We typically update the blog on a zero day but we haven't taken one since the 14th. Also, even though our mileage per day has decreased the last several days, the time hiking has been just as long, not to mention the Whites have kicked our butts!!
We don't have another zero planned in the near future but we expect to take at least one more before we finish. Hopefully we'll be able to get the blog up to date then.
Day 126 (8/10)
Start: Sherburn Trail Killington, VT 1698.9
End: Winturri Shelter, 1716.9
Total: 18
We had a great breakfast at the Inn at Long Trail before getting on the trail. The Inn ranked as my favorite place to eat and to hang out off the trail so far. It was full of character, the people were extremely friendly, the food was great, it had a very laid back atmosphere and it was clean. Typically, we've found that cleanliness and hiker friendliness are negatively correlated, so to find a place with both is a treat.
Once we were on the trail we were greeted with a little trail magic of sodas and Little Debbie's.
Jessica had a small breakthrough today. As we walked by a lake we saw Crop Duster (Nobo thru-hiker) sitting in a chair reading a book in front of the lake. Jessica commented how she could never just stop to read a book like that because it would cause her anxious about not making progress. We continued to talk about this for the next hour or so and we decided to make it a point to stop and take in more sights from here on out. (I'm having déjàvu from a blog post a couple of months ago.)
Not even twenty minutes after this conversation, we had our first opportunity to take a side trail to a waterfall. Granted the side trail was only a tenth of a mile, it was still off the trail. Jessica stuck to her word and we spent a little time at the waterfall.
Happily pointing out the blue blaze on the side trail. I was very proud of her.
Day 127 (8/11)
Start: Winturri Shelter, 1716.9
End: Happy Hill Shelter 1737.3
Total: 20.4
Around lunch time today we found two coolers of trail magic. One was of Long Trail Ale beer, still on ice, the other had homemade cookies and banana. Having an ice cold beer was tempting but I let my better judgment prevail. It was fairly warm, we still had ten miles ahead of us, and there was a big climb that afternoon. As good as that beer would have tasted with lunch, I think it would cut the second day in half.
As we were approaching White River, we heard someone ringing a bell and waiving us over. It was was a couple named Randy and Laura who they allow hikers to hang out on their porch and they also allow them to tent in the backyard. We hung out there for about thirty minutes with Hot Sauce, Fairy Queen and Sock Fat. We were the only ones who stayed at the shelter that night. Most of the hikers stayed at Randy's.
Given we'll be in New Hampshire where the hills return in earnest this was most likely our last 20 mile day for a while.
Day 128 (8/12)
Start: Happy Hill Shelter 1737.3
End: Hanover, NH 1743.2
Total: 5.9
We're in New Hampshire!! It's hard to believe we only have two states left.
Given Hanover is home to Dartmouth College, we weren't expecting the town to be very hiker friendly. We were very wrong. There are about two miles of road walking into town and as soon as we left the woods and got onto the road, we ran into two separate trail magics. The first had slices of watermelon and homemade banana bread, the second had cookies and soda. It also contained what was essentially a hiker welcome packet with an extensive list of trail angels in town that would provide a place to stay, shuttle or both. We hadn't heard of all the trail angels coming into town so we had booked a hotel room for the night.
The trail runs on Main St, in the heart of town, so they're accustomed to seeing hikers frequently. Main St is very quaint with several nice restaurants and stores that stretches about five blocks. Lou's, a restaurant/bakery and local institution also offers thru hikers a free donut.
Day 129 & 130 (8/13-14)
Total Miles: Zero
Our original plan was to stay one night in Hanover and hike out the next morning. These plans changed when we learned the forecast called for 100% of heavy rain the majority of the day. We ended up extending our reservation another night.
We enjoyed a warm, dry and relaxing day in the hotel room.
The next morning Jessica woke up with a very bad migraine. She gets one or two a year and today happened to be the day. Given how bad she felt, we decided to stay at the hotel another night.
Day 131 (8/15)
Starting: Hanover, NH 1743.2
End: "Stealth" Campsite 1761
Total: 17.8
Today was the first full day of hiking in New Hampshire. The weather had turned for the better and it was chilly during the day. It was nice hiking with a chill in the air, it reminded us when we first started the hike in April.
We planned on staying the night at Bill Ackley's house. Bill is a retired Harvard professor turned trail angel. He lets hikers hang out on his porch and offers free ice cream and soda, he also has a croquet field set up in his backyard.
"His ice cream brings all the hikers to his yard, his water tastes better than yours, damn right his croquet game is better than yours, it's all free yeah there is no charge."
We arrived at his house around six, unfortunately, he wasn't home. We hung out for about forty-five minutes and he still hadn't returned home. We didn't feel comfortable pitching a tent without his permission so we decided to cook dinner on his porch and head up the trail. Once we were finished with dinner we headed out to find a campsite. It was too late to make it to the next shelter so we were in search of the first flat open piece of ground we could find. Thankfully, we spotted a flat spot about a half mile up the trail.
It was a nice site but shortly after nightfall we heard a loud constant shrill. After having slept out in the woods as long as we have, most noises don't keep us up at night but this one noise was unique.
We guess it was a fisher cat. These cats were introduced into the mountains to minimize the porcupine population. This didn't quite go according to plan. The cats quickly learned that a rabbit was much easier prey than a porcupine. There's now an overpopulation of fisher cats. We eventually were able to fall asleep despite the loud shrill.
Day 132 (8/16)
Starting: "Stealth" Campsite 1761
Ending: Ore Hill Campsite 1779.3
Total: 18.3
The terrain is getting noticeably more rocky and difficult as seen in the picture below.
We're also noticing and meeting many more southbound thru hikers (Sobo's). It was the first day we've came across more Sobo's than Nobo's.
We'll hit the southern portion of the Whites tomorrow. We're both excited and anxious about this. The Whites are infamous for being one of the hardest sections of the trail. In the southern mountain ranges, the trail ascends and descends on switchbacks which makes the grade of climbing much easier. In the north, the trail goes mostly straight up and straight down. Also, the terrain is filled with large boulders.
Day 133 (8/17)
Starting: Ore Hill Campsite 1779.3
Ending: Beaver Brook Shelter 1794.4
Total: 15.1
Today was our first day in the Whites and it kicked our butts. We averaged less than one mile per hour the entire day.
It rained the night before and that morning so the rocks were very slick.
We climbed over Mt. Moosilauke which is 4,802 ft. On top of the moutian it was cloudy, windy and cold. The wind gusts were up to 70 mph.
The trail on Mt Moosilauke
There was a hilarious "medivial" themed privy at the campsite where stayed last night. It was outfitted with a throne and a dungeon.
Day 134 (8/18)
Starting: Beaver Brook Shelter 1794.4
Ending: Kinsman Pond Shelter 1807.4
Total: 13
The conditions today were very similar to yesterday, wet, rocky, slick and slow. If we hike this slow through the rest of the Whites it's going to take us two weeks to cover the hundred or so miles of this portion.
The Appalachian Mountain Club runs a system of several huts through the Whites. Although they're called huts they're more like lodges with a large cafeteria style dining area and rooms with bunks. They house anywhere from 50-100 people and are used primarily by section hikers. They also allow a couple of thru hikers a night to do work for stays. The work is usually menial tasks and they're allowed to eat leftover dinner and breakfast and sleep on the floor. They also allow thru hikers who get to the huts around 9AM or 10AM to eat leftover breakfast as they have to pack out all waste.
We climbed over South (4358 ft) and North Kinsman (4293 ft) today. We had good views off South Kinsman but by the time we hiked the 7/10ths off a mile to North Kinsman the clouds rolled in and visibility was reduced to about 50ft.
We've learned the chipmunks in NH are very bold. If any food is left out near or in a shelter, regardless of how close it is to a person, a chipmunk is sure to be near.
One of the bold chipmunks in NH.
Day 135 (8/19)
Starting: Kinsman Pond Shelter 1807.4
Ending: Franconia Notch 1812.2
Total: 4.8
We woke up to sunshine and blue skies, a welcome sight given the overcast weather we've had for the last few days. We made it to our first hut today, Lonesome Lake around 11:00AM. We went in to check it out and to our surprise they had a large pan full of leftover pancakes for us to eat. We happily ate seveveral each. As we were stuffing our face a fellow thru-hiker came in. We haven't seen him since Duncannon, PA. Then Keep Walking came in soon after, we haven't seen him since Hot Springs, North Carolina. It turned out to be a reunion of sorts.
We ended up going into North Woodstock, NH to resupply, do laundry and shower. We stayed at the Woodstock Inn that had a restaurant and micro brewery attached. We got into town around lunchtime and ate at the restaurant at the Inn. We had lunch with Fairy Queen and Keep Walking.
We ran our errands and enjoyed a warm soft bed.
Day 136 (8/20)
Starting: Franconia Notch 1812.2
Ending: Garfield Ridge Shelter 1822.5
Total: 10.3
Today was incredible! We had beautiful weather and several miles of ridge walking above the tree line along the Franconion Ridge. The views were the best we've had so far. It was amazing!!
It's hard to belive our journey is soon coming to an end. We'll do our best to provide updates on our progress.
Thanks for reading!
Happy Trails,
Z and Gia
The Bill Ackerly sign is the best! Sorry about your migraine, Gia...hopefully that means you won't have anymore this year. Good luck on the rest of your journey; you're so close!
ReplyDeleteThose views from the ridge are spectacular! We're eager for your return! Enjoy these final weeks!
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