Days 145 through 147, Carter Notch to Lake of the Clouds Hut

Day 145, August 25, from Carter Notch hut to Joe Dodge Lodge

Hiked today 5.9 ascent/descent 1680/2950 total hiked 1617

I got up at 6 AM today to pack and took a walk to an area called the Ramparts near the Carter Lodge hut.

This is a picture standing on one of the boulders in the Ramparts looking up toward wildcat mountain.

After eating breakfast at 7, I started my hike at 7:50.  

I’ll be climbing over Wildcat mountain today and I’ve been told that the descent to Joe Dodge Lodge is the steepest mile on the AT.

This is about 2 miles into my hike. It’s my first real view of the day since the clouds finally parted. I believe that may be Mount Washington, but it’s also possible that it is Mount Madison.

The North Wildcat Peak has a viewing platform and an incredible view of Mount Washington on the right and Mount Madison on the left. The second picture is a little more focused on Mount Washington, which is shrouded in clouds.

This is a shot from the top of the Wildcat Ski gondola. It’s looking north back into the Appalachians, away from Mount Washington.

Mount Washington is getting closer and closer. I’ll be climbing that the day after tomorrow.

I believe that is Tuckerman Ravine coming down Mount Washington and at the bottom is Pinkham Notch where I’m staying tonight, still over one and a half miles from where I am now.

I arrived at Pinkham Notch before 1:00PM.  I took advantage of their deli to have a delicious roast beef sandwich, fruit, and coffee for lunch.  They also had a dinner buffet, included with my stay, which was great.

Day 146, August 27, Pinkham Notch to Madison Springs Hut

Hiked today 7.8 ascent/descent  4100/1320 total hiked 1624

After having breakfast at the Pinkham Notch Visitors Center, I started up the trail at 7:20 AM.

Todays hike is only 8 miles but it includes a big climb up Mount Madison.

This is a picture of Mount Washington taken from 2/3 of the way up Mount Madison. If you zoom in you should be able to see the auto road winding up the mountain.

You can see the ridge I have to follow to get to the top of Mount Madison. I think it’s still about 1000 feet up.

I’m near the top of Mount Madison. This picture shows pink notch in the middle the trail up Mount Madison on the left and Mount Washington’s flank on the right.

I’m on top of Mount Madison. The first picture below is looking north from the peak and the second picture is looking south from the peak. The second picture includes Mount Washington.
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I arrived at the hut before 1:30.  My legs were sore!  Going over the top of Mount Madison included about 1.5 miles of challenging rock to rock stepping over a steep alpine boulder field.  My 68 year old knees were hard to control by the end.  I’m happy to be relaxing for the rest of the day.

The hut has bunks for up to 53 people and the AMC staff tells me that there are 48 reservations for tonight.   Dinner for 48 people is served at 6, breakfast at 7AM.

Day 147, August 28, Madison Springs to Lake of the Clouds Hut

Hiked today 7.5 ascent/descent 2540/2340 total hiked 1631

The weather report for today is not good, 50 to 70 MPH winds near the summits with constant drizzle and intermittent rain.  Temperatures are forecast to drop during the day from the low fifties to the low forties.

I left Madison Springs at 8:00 AM.  There was a heavy drizzle and high wind as I left.  I hiked the 6 miles to the top of Mount Washington in four hours and fifteen minutes, arriving at the visitor center on the summit at 12:15.

The wind was howling, water was flying and my phone lens was fogged.

The hike was up rocky terrain in severe conditions.  It was challenging, fun, and traumatic all at the same time!  When I arrived at the visitor center I had a really tough time getting my pack off because my fingers were so weak that I couldn’t squeeze the clasp releases! They were cold and cramping from holding the hiking poles.  I spent 2 hours at the visitor center eating, getting warm and trying to dry out.

It’s about 2:15 PM and I just started down Mount Washington. This is a picture looking up at the side. I was at the summit. It was white out the clouds to allow me to take a picture up.

Still above the cloud on Mount Washington, you can see the cloud tops and the fog moving across.

There’s my path working its way across the alpine slopes of Washington.

There is the  Lake of the Clouds hut where I’ll be staying tonight. Looks beautiful next to the sparkling lake.

I arrived at the hut around 3:15.  The sun is shining and the wind is only blowing about 30 MPH.  It feels great to be sheltered for the evening and I’m looking forward to dinner at 6!