Date: 2015-07-31
From: Stony Brook Trail from North

To: Stony Brook Trail,from South - Gorham
Miles today: 13.8
Weather: few clouds

7/31, White Mountain Hostel - Gorham, 13.8Yesterday was such a long day I am writing this Monday evening, before I write about today. Our plan was to finish the remainder of the trail from Pinkham Notch to the Stony Brook Trail, using the Stony Brook to exit the woods. Total miles on the AT would be 13.8, with an additional 4.8 to hike out of the woods making a total day of 18.6 miles. After breakfast our shuttle to Pinkham Notch was immediate, but took 30 minutes so by the time we started hiking it was already 8:45. We were immediately faced with a long climb to get into the Wildcats eventually gaining 2400 feet in elevation. It was warm and humid, but the forecast was for a partly cloudy and rain free day. Climbing in the humidity left me soaked with sweat very quickly in spite of the fact I have lost 40 lbs. I guess I am just destined to sweat to try and stay cool. We really struggled to make time today as the climbs were very steep and rocky often requiring us to strap our poles onto our packs and use our hands to climb. We stopped to rest and have snacks finally making it to Carter Notch Hut around 1:00 pm. We stopped into the hut for a snack and a drink but the cook there was not as good as previous huts so the peanut butter cookies were burnt, and the nut bread was over baked and dry. As thru hikers we are not real picky about such things, but we still notice. There was no lemonade here so I opted for a not so tasty electrolyte mix. While there we noticed the hut was celebrating 101 years in existence and in speaking with the staff learned they are rarely full. This hut is older, but is in a nice location with lots of hiking around but is not as popular as Lake of the Clouds, right next to Mt Washington. We continued our hike up and down rolling along Wild at ridge. The trail never did let up with rocks to climb on and over and soon our knees were all getting pretty sore. We finally reached the top of the Stony Brook trail and headed down the last 5 miles. It was 6 pm, and it took us 2 hours to descend yesterday so we figured we would finally reach the road around 8. We in fact walked onto the road at 8:10 where I dialed he hostel for our shuttle as IB lifted a thumb. The very first vehicle to motor up, stopped and within minutes we were headed into town where our hostel shuttle could pick us up at the local convenience store. The driver even begged us to take the fresh picked Roma tomatoes from the pickup because he had hundreds more at home and I have go say they were the best tasting tomatoes I have had in a long while. . Back at the hostel I ordered pizza and set about some equipment repairs. The last 1500 miles had taken their toll on my hiking poles, and the carbide tips were gone and the nylon was worn down to the aluminum below. I was able to buy new tips at the Notch visitor center in the morning but needed to heat the old ones to get them off. I borrowed a pot and with a little boiling water to soak the tips and a few moments later they popped off with a little help from a pliers. By this time it was 10:00 pm and we were planning to hike out from the hostel in the morning, so everything needed to be repacked. We decided to do most of it in the morning since our plan Monday was just 11 miles. After a quick call home and a few stretches to keep my legs from cramping and I was ready for a good night sleep. Silverback