11.8 rainy miles today. After a very filling breakfast, I swept the dining area and bunkrooms for an hour and a half. All the guests had departed by the time I was free to go; a handful of them headed toward the next hut — Lakes of the Clouds — but had an hour plus head start. I was feeling great and ended up booking it to Lakes, and I passed all the guests on the way there. It was motivation.
1.5 miles after Lakes was the summit of Mt. Washington @ 6,288′. It’s the last time Ill be above 6k’ this hike. This section through the Whites is known as The Presidentials, as it’s a series of peaks named after presidents. Anyway, the top of Mt Washington is accessible both by car and short line railroad, and there’s a visitor center swarming with bikers and families on vacation. There’s also a little room, maybe 6′ x 8′ with a sign that says “Mt. Washington U.S. Post Office” and another one directly underneath that says “Closed until late June 2008″. So the two days of food I sent myself to that PO were looking hopeless, which would produce a less-than-ideal situation. However, after about 5 phone calls I learned that the package was at the Cog Railway Station at the base of the mountain, and I requested they bring it up on the next train. So after 3 hours, I scored the soggy package from the brakeman.
Mt. Washington supposedly sees “The Worst Weather in the World!” If you look at a weather pattern map, all the systems across the states converge here in the Whites. That mixed with the elevations produces a system of weather that is quite volatile and highly unpredictable.
When I left the mountain, it was drizzling steadily, so the rocks were soaked. I suppose it was foolish, but I couldn’t help speeding along the slippery path. I lose myself as a human, and become 4-legged (including trekking poles), non-thinking, constantly scanning quickly moving creature — it almost becomes a dance with the treacherous rocks, where sometimes a slip or fall reminds me of the real possibility of serious injury. But it doesn’t slow me down.
6/18
13.7 missed-the-thunderstorm miles today. The weather report for every day I’ve been in the Whites is “partly cloudy, chance of thunderstorms in the afternoon,” and I’ve found it to be quite accurate. The weather is the roof over my head now and I can do nothing to change it. I really don’t bother or care with or about the weather report — it seems like the most of the time it’s all lies anyway.
At any rate, I was able to head out early thanks to my completing my work last night. I had a pretty sweet job — give a talk about thru-hiking. It was mostly a question and answer session, but I’m constantly amazed at how interested and impressed people are with thru-hiking. While I was talking, a fox was running around outside. This morning, a weasel was putzin’ about. Lots of wildlife at the Madison Springs Hut!
Thanks to my early start, I arrived at the Pinkham Notch Visitor Center quite literally seconds before the rain started falling. So I ate lunch and took a quick nap, and an hour and a half later the rain had stopped and I set out over Wildcat Ridge — a very steep series of climbs. It was a relief to arrive at the Carter Notch Hut, even though I made it there at about 5:30. They have no guests tonight, so I’m staying without working.
) to wait on him. There’s a nice hostel here that’s letting me do two work-for-stays; painted their front porch yesterday, and cleaning out the laundry room and other odd jobs today.