Walking Home

Day 137 through Day 140 – Cold River Road to Velvet Rocks Shelter: mile 1691 to mile 1753.6

After Amy returned to Rochester, I resumed my hike with full pack and had to immediately cross over Mt. Killington. To get to the peak of Killington, you have to take a steep side trail for a quarter mile or so. Amy and I did a day hike to the summit along this side trail and remembering how steep it was, I decided to skip it and continue to my day’s destination. During the hike, I did pass the sign that told me I had “only” 500 miles to go and shortly after that, I crossed the 1700 mile marker. I ended my day at Gifford Woods State Park, where I paid $6.00 for a hiker campsite that came with its own picnic table and fireplace.

Two more full days of hiking brought me to West Hartford, VT where I was picked up by my son, Doug. I spent the night at his apartment. The last half of this day included some heavy rain and I was pretty wet by the time I got to our rendezvous in the parking lot of the town’s public library. Doug and I had plans to meet his friend, Sarah, for dinner before going to his apartment, so I asked the librarian if I could use their bathroom to change into dry clothes. Once I got into dry clothes, we picked up Sarah and had dinner at Molly’s in Hanover, NH. We have been to this establishment a few times and I wanted to return to have a piece of the carrot cake, a serving that is normally big enough for 2 or 3 to share. I knew with my hiker hunger I’d be able to consume a piece on my own. I was right.

After a nice night’s sleep at Doug’s place and getting my cloths washed and dried, he took me back to West Hartford’s public library to resume my hike. After 3 days of roughly 17 miles each, I was only planning about 11 miles to a shelter less than a mile on the other side of Hanover, NH. After crossing the Connecticut River and entering into the second to last state of my journey, I went to Ramunto’s pizza where thru hikers get a free slice of pizza. I had a couple more slices and a beer to wash them down before getting some resupply and heading the mile up the trail to the Velvet Rocks Shelter. The trail is about to get much harder.

Day 141 through Day 143 – Velvet Rocks Shelter to Hikers Welcome Hostel: mile 1753.6 to mile 1795.4

Last summer Amy, Doug, and I did an overnight hike to check out our gear. That hike went south along the section of trail that I was about to go north through. I can say without a doubt that southbound through this section was a lot easier than north. I hiked past the Moose Mountain Shelter where we spent the night last year. From there to Holt’s Ledges was a very difficult uphill climb. Once over the top, the short hike downhill to the Trapper John Shelter was not too difficult but I was glad for the day to be over.

Potentially severe thunder storms were in the forecast for the afternoon of the next day so I planned a relatively short 12 mile day, ending at Hexacuba Shelter. I arrived at the shelter around 1:30 pm and decided to stay in the shelter instead of pitching my tent. A few other hikers showed up as the afternoon progressed and we had lots of loud thunder but no real rain. That all changed in the early evening as another wave came through and it poured for about an hour, making us all glad we were in the shelter and not in our tents.

As the afternoon progressed, I began to have severe back pain like I’ve experienced before. Bending over to tie my shoes was excruciating and attempting to roll over in bed during the night also brought pain. Whenever I was awake, which was often, I attempted a variety of stretches in the hopes of improving my situation. In the past, when this has occurred, just walking was painful. I was very worried that I’d have to get off trail for awhile and let it heal, assuming I could actually get off trail. Much to my shock and pleasant surprise, when I woke in the morning my back was much better and there was hardly a hint of the pain from overnight. You have no idea how relieved I was!

With my back feeling much better, I set out on the 15 mile hike that would take me to the Hikers Welcome Hostel. The hostel is a short 300 yard hike from the trail and I arrived in the mid afternoon.

Day 144 through Day 146 – Hikers Welcome Hostel to Notch Hostel: mile 1795.4 to mile 1821.3

My original plan was to stay at Hikers Welcome Hostel and take advantage of their slack packing option for Mount Moosilauke. I had sworn I would not take any slack packing option that required me to hike the trail SOBO (southbound) but after reading about the severe grade of the north side of Moosilauke, I decided to break that oath for this section. Steep rocky down sections are not my favorite and one that covers over 3000 feet in just over 3 miles did not sound like fun. Believe it or not, I’d much rather do that up instead of down.

When staying at the Hexacuba Shelter the night before, another hiker informed me of the Notch Hostel in North Woodstock. He said it was a much nicer hostel than Hikers Welcome and they offered a free slack packing option for the Kinsmans. The slack pack over Moosilauke was 9.5 miles and the Kinsmans slack pack was around 17 miles. I initially thought I’d suck it up and hike Moosilauke normally and then land at Notch Hostel. Upon further thought, I decided to go ahead, slack pack both and pay for a shuttle ride from Hikers Welcome to Notch Hostel after I finished the Mount Moosilauke SOBO hike. Even though it ended up costing me $60 for the ride, I was happy with my decision.

The hike up the north side of Moosilauke follows a stream that tumbles down the mountain. This means that there are waterfalls and cascades in abundance as you toil up the 3000 feet of elevation gain. The views at the top of the mountain were breathtaking and to think this was my first of 16 4,000+ foot peaks in New Hampshire means there is a lot more to come. I had booked my shuttle ride for 3:00 PM and I made it back to the hostel at just after 2:00 pm, just enough time to repack my backpack and grab a drink or two.

The Notch Hostel was indeed much nicer than the Hikers Welcome Hostel. I originally booked 2 nights at the hostel so that I could slack pack over South and North Kinsman peaks. This section of the trail goes from Kinsman Notch to Franconia Notch and the hostel is ideally located such that it is a 10 minute drive to either notch. The hike up to South Kinsman peak was not too difficult and I managed to get there within a few hours. The hostel had scheduled pickup times at the hikes end for either 4:30 or 7:20 PM. I hustled early in hopes of making the 4:30 pickup time but it quickly became evident that it wasn’t going to happen. Luckily for me, I met a day hiker that was parked in the parking lot where the hostel did its pickup and he agreed to give me a ride back to the hostel. We arrived at his car around 5:15 pm and I was back at the hostel well before 6:00 PM.

The weather forecast showed a high probability of rain for the day after the hike over the Kinsmans so I decided to add another night to my reservation and take a zero while the rains came in. The next hike after the Kinsmans would be Franconia Ridge and the views from the ridge are supposed to be some of the best on the trail so I really wanted decent weather for that section of the hike. I was glad I added the extra day as it rained quite heavily over night and continued to rain on and off throughout the day. The extra rest also did me some good seeing how this was my first zero since June 22 at Mosey’s Place in New Jersey. An added bonus was that a young hiker from Canada that hiked with Amy and me during our first week on the trail was staying at the hostel as well. I had come across Grits a couple of times since resuming the hike after Amy’s injury and it was good to see her again.

Day 147 through Day 149 – Franconia Notch to Mizpah Spring Hut: mile 1821.3 to mile 1855.3

Catching the first shuttle from the hostel on Tuesday, July 26, I got to the trailhead for the hike up and across Franconia Ridge at around 7:30 am. The hike up to the ridge line was not too bad and I was soon reaching the peak of Little Haystack. From there I would walk across the exposed ridge above the tree line to Mount Lincoln and eventually to Mount Lafayette, both over 5000 feet. The views along this ridge were indeed spectacular with mostly cloudy skies and occasional sun. There were quite a few people up there and I can only imagine how crowded it must be on a weekend day.

After descending off Lafayette and returning below the tree line for a few miles, I eventually summited Mount Garfield at 4500 feet. On the other side of Garfield is the Garfield Ridge Campsite, where I would spend the night.

The next day I hiked over a few more 4,000 footers. These included Galehead Mountain, South Twin Mountain and Zealand Mountain. I ended the day at Ethan Pond Shelter. During the day’s hike, I was able to stop and rest at two of the huts that are run by the AMC (Appalachian Mountain Club). First was Galehead Hut where I joined a couple of other hikers and did work for breakfast. We swept the bunk rooms and sterilized the bunk mattresses and then had our fill of eggs, oatmeal and sausage. Getting the extra calories was worth the 20 minutes of time spent cleaning.

Later in the afternoon I came to Zealand Falls Hut. I got a bowl of soup and some bread to go the my peanut butter sandwich I had packed. From there it was a 4.8 mile hike to the Ethan Pond Shelter where I pitched my tent for the night.

I had just 9.3 miles planned for the third night of this leg of the hike. I was aiming to make it to Mizpah Spring Hut where I was thinking I might try and get a bunk for the night. The accommodations at the huts are expensive but do include all you can eat dinner and breakfast. After the difficult climb up Mt Webster, I gave the AMC a call to see if there were bunks available and was informed there were and that they could take care of me at the hut.

During the steep climb up Mt Jackson and a little under 2 miles from my destination I snapped one of my hiking poles in two places. This was not a happy experience. I have been hiking with poles the whole time and I was very uncomfortable with only one pole for the remainder of the day’s hike. When I finally made it to the hut and walked in to state my intentions of spending the night, I noticed they had some new Leki brand hiking poles for sale. I picked up a new pair and paid for a night’s accommodations for a total of $270. The poles were only $99.95, which is $30 less than the going price at local outfitters. This was a pleasant surprise as I expected them to be marked up significantly. I was just happy that I didn’t have to go over Mount Washington and the rest of the presidential range with only one pole.

Dinner was lentil soup, kale salad, and lasagna with tollhouse squares for dessert. I ate as much as I could and took an extra square for the hike the following day. I had a nice chat with a couple of section hikers that were my age during dinner. They were fascinated by the concept of thru hiking the trail.

My bunk room had 5 bunk beds but I was the only one assigned to the room. This was a pleasant surprise and much appreciated. I got up early to get as early a start as possible for a very difficult day ahead. As a result, I did not get breakfast that was served at 7:00 AM. I started hiking shortly after 5:00 AM, working my way up to the summit of Mount Washington.

Day 150 – Mizpah Spring Hut to Pinkham Notch: mile 1855.3 to mile 1874.9

I had a big day planned for the day highlighted by getting over Mount Washington. I started my hike early and the fog was pretty thick with visibility only 20 – 30 feet. This isn’t really a problem when your hiking on rocky terrain because your eyes are generally on the 3-5 feet in front of you. Just a little over 4 miles into the hike was Lakes of the Clouds Hut, the most popular of the AMC huts. This hut is used by many as a base to summit Mt Washington. The climb from Mizpah Spring Hut to the Lakes of the Clouds Hut was not too difficult and at one point I thought to myself that I should be getting to it very soon. Shortly after this thought, it materialized right in front of me! The low visibility allowed me to get within 20-30 yards before I could actually see it.

After a short rest and the purchase and consumption of some baked good, I was ready for the big moment of getting to the summit. Another 1.4 miles and 1200 feet up and I was at the very windy and chilly summit of Mt Washington. The wind was so strong at times that you worried about being blown over. I got my picture by the summit sign and then sought shelter in the visitor’s center where I got a snack and rested with some fellow hikers.

Knowing I still had a long day ahead of me, I left before most of the hikers I was with. They all planned to stop at the campsite after descending Mount Madison where I was planning to hike another 4.8 miles to get to the Pinkham Notch Visitors Center on Route 16 in New Hampshire. My sister and brother-in-law, Becky and Joe, were picking me up there to take me to their place for a day of rest.

As soon as I started down the mountain, the clouds started to show signs of clearing and I got some very interesting views. I could see some of the valleys below lit by the sun with clouds swirling just a couple hundred feet above my head. The trail down parallels the cog railway that brings visitors to the peak the easy way and I got a nice video of one cog train car appearing out of the fog.

It’s about 6 miles from the summit to Madison Spring Hut at the base of Mount Madison. As you approach the descent to the hut, the mountain behind the hut looks impressive. After a brief stop in the hut for some bread and soup, I began the climb to the summit of Mount Madison. This mountain is covered in rocks of a variety of sizes, making for the need to hike cautiously. The ascent was not too bad but the descent was long and very slow.

Climbing down off Mount Madison is easily my least favorite part of the entire hike so far. It was slow and arduous and I’m already a very slow downhill hiker. Once I made it back down below the tree line and eventually got to the campground that most hikers were staying at, I thought the terrain would be easier and I’d get to the visitor’s center by my ETA of 8:30 pm. I didn’t want my sister to worry too much by being much later than that. Much to my chagrin, the trail was not as flat and obstacle free as I had hoped and I did not approach the parking lot at the Pinkham Notch Visitor’s Center until 8:40 PM. As I got close I could see some flashlights pointing in my direction as I hiked with my headlamp on. Soon I was giving my sister a hug as they had walked a short ways up the trail to greet me. What a relief it was to end this very long day and I was looking forward to relaxing a day before attempting another long hike.

Day 151 through Day 153 – Pinkham Notch Visitor’s Center to US Route 2: mile 1874.9 to mile 1896.0

Sandwiched between two days of rest, I successfully completed an arduous 21 mile slack packing hike. I got the idea of attempting this feat while at the Notch Hostel in North Woodstock, NH. After five and a half hours of hiking and only 6 miles done, I was beginning to question my wisdom in taking on the challenge. Luckily the most difficult part of the hike was over but I still had some significant elevation change to get through before making my way to US Route 2.

The weather was very clear early in the hike and once I had gained some elevation, I got some nice views back to the presidential range. I used the app called PeakFinder to get the various peaks of the range labelled. It didn’t feel like Madison was as far away from Mt Washington as it looks in the picture.

The climb up to the peaks of Wildcat Mountain was very steep and contained lots of rock climbing. Shortly after reaching the peak the trail plunges 1200 feet to Carter Notch and then turns around and climbs back up 1600 feet to Carter Dome. From Carter Dome out to Rte 2 was much more reasonable but still quite tough. By the time I got within a mile of the end, it was dark and I needed my headlamp again to finish the hike after 8:30 PM. Time for another day of rest before the 3-day, 2-night hike from Route 2 to Grafton Notch.

Day 154 through Day 156 – US Route 2 to Grafton Notch: mile 1896.0 to mile 1927.1

As Amy left Rochester to move to Becky and Joe’s for the rest of the summer, I headed back into the woods for three days of hiking. As I left the parking lot and started the short walk along route 2, I recognized 2 hikers in front of me. I quickly caught up with Timex and Paws and hiked a bit with them. The first few miles of the hike were pleasant and then it got quite difficult. The goal for the day was to reach Gentian Pond Shelter, roughly 12 miles for the day. I set my tent up on a platform with Timex and Paws just as it began to rain. The rain was short lived and the evening was breezy so everything was dry by morning.

Shortly after we got setup for the night, a group of girl scouts came in and setup in the clearing near our tenting platform. They were excited and loud for a good part of the early evening but had quieted down by 8:30 pm and I got a good nights sleep.

This section of trail from Route 2 to Grafton notch contains two very difficult sections of the trail. The Mahoosuc Notch is the trail’s most difficult and, to some, fun mile of the trail. The notch is sided by steep cliffs and is riddled with large rocks that need to be navigated to get through. Each section of the notch has multiple options and you can choose to either go over the rocks or climb under them through small caverns. I hiked the mile with a hiker I just met called McLovin’. We took about an hour and forty minutes to get through the mile, which is about average from what I’ve heard. It was 6:00 PM when we were done and we spent the night at a tent site just 0.2 miles past the end of the notch.

In the morning, I had 7 miles remaining to get to Grafton Notch where Amy, Becky, Joe, and our son, Doug would be setup doing trail magic. The first 1.4 miles of this involved climbing the Mahoosuc Arm, the steepest mile on the trail with a 1500 feet of elevation change in just 1 mile. I took my time making the climb as I wanted my family to have time to provide trail magic to a good number of hikers. It took me 2 hours to make the climb and soon I was passing Speck Pond and the Speck Pond Shelter, less than 5 miles from the parking lot.

As I made my descent, McLovin’ passed me and said he was looking forward to the trail magic I had told him about the night before. I told him to tell everyone I was on my way and would be there soon. I got to the parking lot around 12:30 pm and enjoyed a breakfast sandwich made by my family. McLovin’ was still there hanging out so I grabbed a selfie with him and thanked him again for hanging with me through the notch.

I consider my arrival at Grafton Notch to be “home”, as it is the closest major parking area to where I grew up and had been here many times doing hikes in the area. I am spending a week or more at my sister’s place and slack packing roughly 50 miles of the trail while taking time off to celebrate my 60th birthday with the family. Once this cushy time is over, I’ll have about 200 miles left and should complete the trail and summit Katahdin in late August.

Daily Data

Day	Miles	Total Asc	Total Desc	Steps
137	16.9	4110	3874	50337
138	16.7	4826	4478	48785
139	17.2	4662	6187	53736
140	11.2	2549	1952	31950
141	15.2	4225	3841	44994
142	12.0	3920	3044	33870
143	14.6	3280	4412	44042
144	9.5	3159	3927	29840
145	16.4	5121	5643	49905
146	0	0	0	1773
147	10.1	5652	2995	33520
148	14.6	3221	4376	41380
149	9.3	3454	2506	28549
150	19.6	5797	7601	53631
151	0	0	0	4492
152	21.1	6987	8215	55238
153	0	0	0	4520
154	11.8	4192	2785	33819
155	12.3	4589	4566	34490
156	7.0	2488	3142	19385