Training Log Archive: dlevine

Madison Springs Hut to Mizpah Springs Hut. 12.8 miles.

Apparently nobody else at the hut is doing a "double". Everyone else who is southbound is staying at Lakes of the Clouds tonight. We started off with several groups, but we were alone before we knew it and when we looked back while climbing Jefferson we couldn't see anyone coming. By the time we made the Sphinx Col, we were beginning to see lots of northbounders and by the time we cleared Mt. Clay, there was a veritable traffic jam of hikers descending Washington. We climbed the cone, waving to the cog railway (and not bothering to moon the tourists as some folks consider customary), and even beat the upward train to its station. We split a chili and a tuna sandwich at the summit snack bar before beginning the descent to Lakes. Got to Lakes a bit before 2 and surprised the Croo when we said we were going one hut more. He pointed out that their time estimate to Mizpah was 3:30, but that that was for "fresh" hikers. We pointed out that we were motivated and that what was coming up was much easier than what we had done and we set off. The morning's spectacular views continued until we were descending Mt. Franklin when a squall started to spit on us. We skirted Eisenhower and descended to the col. Climbed Mt. Clinton/Pierce (when will this name controversy die? The change was officially made in 1913!) and descended to the hut by 4:40, beating the time estimate by fifty minutes. Had a great chat with the one thru-hiker who had done the same stretch that day.

Pinkham Notch to Madison Springs Hut. 7.8 miles.

After shuttling cars, we got a latish start (9:15), but my pack weighs about twenty pounds less (no tent, no stove, no fuel, no cookware, no food, no mattress pads). Theresa is just wearing my CamelBak. Hike on Old Jackson Road has more climb than I recalled and the heat index was up once again. Despite my light pack I was sweating profusely. Lunch at the Osgood Tent Site before the steep ascent of Mt. Madison. We made the ascent better than anticipated and were pleasantly cool by the time we passed treeline. Enjoyed hiking the fell field as we crossed all of the false summits of Madison. By the descent to the hut, we were a bit tired, but we made it by 4:30. Had time to explore "The Parapet" before dinner and enjoy views of Mt. Washington that I had never seen before.

Carter Notch Hut to Pinkham Notch. 6.4 miles.

It poured last night. Good night to be indoors. Dubious morning to be ascending the Wildcats. Actually, the climb up Wildcat A wasn't so bad. It was wet, but we've done worse. We sure were glad we were going up instead of down, though! It was surprisingly wet along the ridge and we kept slipping and sliding and getting more than our share of bumps and contusions. We made it to the gondola, though and got some spectacular views of the Presidentials. Descending Wildcat E, however, was a real pain with our full packs. People complain about Mahoosuc Arm, but I think this was worse. At least there are things to grab onto during the descent of Mahoosuc Arm. And then, to add to the pain, there is a silly mile hike back to the Notch parking lot once you're done. This was a very challenging day. At least we got to get cleaned up and do laundry and sleep well at the Green Granite Inn in North Conway!

Imp Shelter to Carter Notch Hut. 7.0 miles.

Afternoon storms predicted and the descent to the hut is tricky so we got a reasonably early start (left camp at 7 a.m.). Climbing North Carter was "fun", but the ridge was very pleasant. Heat/humidity kicking in made the ascent of South Carter (normally a walk in the park) a bit of a challenge. Theresa blitzed up the trail to the summit of Mt. Hight, beating me by five minutes. Great views, but you could tell that they weren't going to last. By the time we made Carter Dome, it was pretty socked in. The descent to the hut was long and a bit tricky, but we made it in good stead. Our bunkroom slept four, but we somehow got to bunk with two people who were even smellier than we were.

Rattle River Shelter to Imp Shelter. 6.0 miles

The first four miles today were uphill, ascending Mt. Moriah. I've climbed all of the 4000 footers in NH, but my more amazing feat is that I've had views (or as good as one can in the case of wooded summits) from all but two of them. Today was my chance to reduce that to one (Garfield). Theresa bonked early, hating everything about the climb. We really did alright except that the bugs were very efficient early on. We dropped packs and did the last 0.1 miles to the summit of Moriah and had lunch there with a surprising number of day hikers. While descending we got caught in a (non-thunder) shower on the ledges and had to go slow. By the time we hit the cutoff to the shelter, Theresa was done in mentally. We got in at 2 and just hung out for a bit. One of the kids in the shelter was reading the new Harry Potter book. Okay, not the whole thing, just the 120 pages left behind by some hiker (pp. 125-245). Amazing. The book's been out five days and pieces of it are already in the shelters!

Gentian Pond Shelter to Rattle River Shelter. 14.0 miles.

A reasonably easy day other than the distance and the heat and humidity. We made a total water stop just shy of Mt. Hayes and ended up drinking seven liters of water each while on the trail. Thankfully, the last three miles were easy, including one mile on roads to and from the bridge over the Androscoggin and the last two miles to the shelter - which traveled slightly uphill along an old logging road. Shelter was dubious so we broke out the tent. Also bathed ourselves and some clothing in the nearby Rattle River. Brutal day, but a nice ending.

Full Goose Shelter to Gentian Pond Shelter. 9.6 miles

This stretch was much more rugged than I expected. The climb out of Full Goose sure got our blood pumping, but the scramble heading south right after the side trail to Carlo Col Shelter was one of the most impressive of all that we have seen on the AT in Maine. (And at that point, we had seen all but the last half mile!) This was also a hot day and I bonked while climbing Mt. Success. The hike down from there was thus very long and we ran out of water for a while until we crossed a stream about one mile from the shelter.

Speck Pond Campsite to Full Goose Shelter. 5.1 miles.

Trip down Mahoosuc Arm was steep, but we did it mostly with John and Mary Lou, a couple with whom we shared the shelter last night. We snacked at a stream with them just before entering the notch, but didn't see them again until that evening. The notch was tricky, especially with full pack. Theresa had lots of problems and I had some. She mistakenly followed the arrows into one cave and had trouble extricating herself. The ***light (fill in "high" or "low" according to taste) of the trip was the dead moose in the notch about 90% of the way through. A young bull (spike, but no full antlers) had broken a leg or two and died on the trail at a point where the notch is only about twenty-five feet wide. I went by - through a cloud of flies - but Theresa went around. Total time through the notch: 2:45. How people do it in one hour is beyond me; we didn't do as much viewing as I would have liked, but the heat and humidity was getting to us. Finally, we cleared the notch and climbed Fulling Mills Mt. On the southern peak, we stopped and enjoyed great views and blueberries before descending to the shelter.

Backpacking on the AT.

Grafton Notch to Speck Pond Campsite. 4.8 miles.

Late start. Steep climb out of the notch in hot and humid weather. Cooled as we approached the summit of Old Speck and approached the clouds. Dropped packs and ran to the top of Old Speck (0.3 mi) and started to climb tower. Got halfway before confirming that visibility would be essentially zero. Went back to packs and descended to campsite, getting in around 5.

Hamstrings still sore from Tuesday's cramps. Could barely climb out of bed, but things got better as I walked around. I blew off the swim, but went to watercize and then kicked in therapy pool afterwards.

From village to the Allegany trail and back to the village with some side trips along the woods paths and the gas line.

Sure felt like I was moving pretty well. I think I may have slipped one (or two!) extra laps in...

Includes time in middle of class spent stretching out cramped hamstrings. Where did those come from?