There is not another road crossing for 20 miles, so I plan on camping out tonight and meet him tomorrow at the next road crossing to resupply before I head back into the woods. Getting supported is quite a luxury, and I'm so thankful that he is doing this for me. Town chores like grocery shopping and doing laundry takes precious hours out of time that I could be hiking or just relaxing in camp after a long day of hiking.
It's fairly humid this morning after yesterday's rain and the temperatures are in the mid 60s in the valley. It's overcast and there is a small chance of rain in the mountains today. I start sweating even though I'm not working very hard.
Packing up takes a little while because my stuff is spread out in various containers in his truck. I have ziplocs in one container with cleaning supplies and food in another, with blocks of cheese In the cooler. I leave my dirty hiking clothes from yesterday with him and he'll launder them And bring then back to the trail for me tomorrow to have clean clothes to change into.
I'm packed up and he deposits me on the trail at 7 A.M after a quick fast food stop for breakfast. I say goodbye and he says he will follow me on my Inreach website, that shows my live track as long as I have my device turned on, which I always do when on the trail.
I head up 19-Mile Brook Trail which is the continuation of the detour for the Appalachian Trail. The first mile or so is a slight incline on a nice easy pine duff path. I gain a few hundred feet while going upstream against 19-Mile Creek. The water level is a little low in the creek but there's still some really nice small cascades and waterfalls along the way.
About the two mile mark the trail starts to get noticeably more rocky and a little steeper. I stop to take a short break at the trail crossing for Carter Dome and a man walks up with a day pack. He is moving fast and sweating profusely. He stops and we chat for a few minutes. He is a teacher and has to go back to school next week so he is enjoying his last week of vacation by hiking In the mountains. He gives me a high five before he heads up the trail. I shoulder my pack, getting ready for the steep ascent to the Carter Notch Hut, where the detour ends and I will rejoin the Appalachian Trail.
The trail continues uphill for the next two miles. I stop to take a break on a nice and big flat rock, where I can keep my pack on and lean back for a chair of sorts. A tall young man walks up and we chat for a while. I joke about how I am having a leisurely day on the trail, and he gives me a fist bump when we depart and says "God bless you. " I'm not sure if it was simply a parting goodbye, or a prayer for divine intervention because he thinks I need someone to watch over me, haha.
The trail merges with the AT just above gorgeous lake dotted with water lilies sitting in the shadow of the Wildcats. I could sit here all day, but I have only hiked one-third of my miles and I want to stop at the hut.
I take the blue-blazed trail to the Carter Notch Hut. I leave my pack outside and go in to grab a baked good, which are always delicious. There are no guests and the Croo is chatting amiably in the small dining area.
Their packboards are on the tables, packed with boxes to be carried down the trail to Punkham Notch. I then realize it's Wednesday, which is resupply day for all the huts. The Croo will take non-compostable refuse down the mountain and each return with 50 pounds of food and supplies.
A young woman is on the floor trying to stuff all of her things into a huge backpack that is already bursting at the seams. From their conversation I make out that she is leaving her position In the hut, her summer with the Croo coming to an end. Many of the Croo are students, and with school starting soon they will be switching out staff for the fall season.
I refill my water bladder and select a piece of coconut cake from a baking sheet. It is amazingly good but falling apart so I take it outside in order to not make a mess; there are no napkins or paper towels in the huts.
With my water replenished and my hunger satiated for the moment, I shoulder my pack and start down the trail. As I reach the Appalachian Trail the Croo walks by with their packboards, singing in merriment and shouts of "Goodbye Carter Notch Hut" echoing around the small lake.
Leaving the hut, I prepare myself for the the hard day ahead. I still have to summit five peaks over the next five miles, three of which are 4,000' feet. Additionally, there is no water on the ridge, so I'm carrying an extra seven pounds of water.
The ascent up to Carter Dome is very steep, and like all the trails In the Whites thus far is rocky, requiring huge steps up the boulders, difficult with a pack weighing almost 30 pounds. I have to Work hard to keep my Balance so that my heavy pack doesn't pull me backwards up the steep incline.
The good thing about steep climbs is that I gain altitude quickly, climbing almost 1,600 feet over 1.2 miles, with most of the gain in the first half mile.
A rock ledge looks out over Carter Notch and the mountains to the south and east. Wildcat is to the south and I can see the hut far below next to the lake. Wildcat is a great visual reference, asI know that Carter Dome is 400 feet higher than Wildcat, so it gives me a good idea of what the rest of my hike will look like, and I can see that I still have a lot more climbing to do.
Another half hour and I am finally above Wildcat. I can see Mount Washington behind it, although the peak is obscured by clouds. Now that I am above Wildcat, I'm getting some lovely cool breezes. The wind is coming from that direction and the mountain was blocking the breeze until now. I'm at 4,500 feet altitude and the humidity has finally evaporated.
I get to the summit of Carter Dome and there is no view from the top but a rather large cairn. I follow the trail to the site of an old fire tower that was dismantled some time ago. There are many cool little campsites tucked into the trees up here.
I follow the white blazes and see a viewing area right off the trail. There's a really cool view of the north, and the wind is howling from that direction. Within seconds I'm shivering, my clothes wet from the exertion of the climb, so I return back into the shelter of the thick spruce forest.
One mile later I summit the second peak of the day when I reach Mount Hight. The view from this mountain has everything that Carter Dome does not. It's absolutely gorgeous, with commanding views in all directions. I can see the entire Presidential Range from Jackson to Washington to Madison. To the north I see the next two mountains, and I see I still have quite a bit of climbing to do. I've done 3,700 feet already, and my legs are still feeling the strain of the 6,000 foot descent of yesterday.
The descent from Mount Hight is a doozie! It's extremely steep and I have to throw my poles down several times so I can sit and boot scoot down some of the boulders. At least it's short. I get to the bottom and take a break at a trail junction before I start climbing again toward South Carter.
The 500 feet climb up South Carter is not so bad, but I'm losing steam from all the climbs. I pause on the way up to drink some more electrolytes and I need another snack, even though I just ate.
At the top of South Carter the trees are too high for a decent view, but I can just make out Carter Dome and Mount Hight to the south.
As soon as I go start to descend the short distance from South Carter, I get a glimpse of the sky to the north. It is very dark, and looks ominous. I'm not really sure if I should hunker down and put out my tarp or continue on.
I decide to go for it and keep walking. Just because the sky is dark doesn't mean I'm going to get dumped on; mountain weather is so fickle. It ended up being the perfect decision because all I get are a few sprinkles as I summit Middle Carter, where there aren't any views.
The view is the same for North Carter. I'm getting really tired of all these Carters, which require a lot of work for no view at the end.
I then start straight down the most harrowing and difficult descent of my life.
Indeed, the elevation profile on FarOut does show this being straight down for the next half mile, with 400 feet of altitude loss. I didn't look at the comments for this peak before now; there are too many waypoints along the trail to read up on each one. But as I sit here on a rock, I flip through the comments to see a whole lotta hate for the AMC for this section.
The rocks are extremely steep, and in some places 10 to 20 feet straight down. At one particularly confounding 30-foot scramble I toss my poles down and they start clattering and rolling the entire 30 feet, without any rebar for handholds or steps.
I am really glad I purchased my Hike Safe card; the $25 cost funds the New Hampshire Fish and Game department, who are the people who conduct backcountry rescue operations. The card is insurance so the rescued doesn't get charged for a rescue endeavor, which can run into the tens of thousands of dollars.
Hoping against any injury, I go to use my poles for one small section and the tip breaks clean off at the shaft. It's no surprise since I had them wedged in between rocks frequently when coming down Madison yesterday. I'm actually surprised it took this long for one to break, but now I'm going to be even slower descending with just one pole. It looks like I will just have to crawl down most of this.
After what seems like an eternity, but in actuality about an hour, the trail levels out into a mile of a series of bog bridges. I have a few new scratches and scrapes on my arms and legs, one of them bleeding.
The bog bridges run through the muddy marsh for over a mile when I reach the turn off for the Imp Campsite. It's three-tenths of a mile off the trail but I really have no choice but stop here; the next water source is four and a half miles away. It's a good place to stop for the night anyway; I am worn out from today. I did 5,000 feet of elevation gain and that ridiculous decent. And my body was already tired from the hike down from Washington yesterday.
I make my way down the rocky side trail to the campsite. I check in at the caretaker's cabin and he introduces himself his Yogi and when I tell him that I have a hammock, he tells me that he has a great secluded spot. He can't tell me where it is because it's difficult to describe so he slips on his shoes and walks me past the privy and group tent platform and up a hill through the woods. It's a beautiful and big spot hidden in the trees with no widowmakers overhead. This is going to be perfect place to camp tonight!
The campsites have very strict rules on where you are allowed to camp and eat. There is no cooking anywhere but in the kitchen area. I set up camp and grab my things and head that direction. First I have to get water which is but a trickle. Filtering three liters of water takes me quite some time I'm starving.
I head over to the kitchen area, which sounds much nicer than some logs set in a square underneath a tarp, and hydrate my dinner, which is chicken pasta Alfredo whkle talking to a man who is doing an overnight of Mount Moriah. The campsite kitchen is on the edge of the mountain and faces northwest. The trees are cleared out in front and there is a bench with an amazing silhouette of the mountain ridges. It's very hazy, but I watch the sun set behind the ridge.
After the sun sets, I deposit my bear canister in the bear box and go straight to my hammock and right to bed. I am positively beat.
Today's Stats: 9.7 miles, 4,723 feet gain, 2,670 feet loss
Trail Stats: 1,891 miles, 383K feet gain
No comments :
Post a Comment