Date: 2009-08-12
From: Crawford Notch

To: Lakes of the Clouds
Miles today: 11.1
Weather: fog

I awoke with tears in my eyes this morning. Today was going to be a big day for me. I would be climbing the Webster Cliff trail, which Erik and I had hiked the year before, but more than that, I hoped to reach Lakes of the Clouds Hut, where I first spent a night in 2003. Six years ago, the men with long, scraggly beards who were sleeping on the floors of the hut dining rooms were so foreign to me, and the idea of hiking a trail for six months so distant from my world. The fact that I am now one of those people who have hiked all the way from Georgia, and the amount of growth and change that I have demonstrated in the intervening years to accomplish this feat really struck me hard on this day. There would be several moments along my hike today in which I could not stop the tears from welling up in my eyes.    I quietly got up and tried to finish sorting my things. I managed to separate with some of my food, which I left in the hiker box, but couldn¢t manage to throw away the magazine, even though I knew I would not have time to read it. I figured I was, at the most, three days away from Pinkham Notch, and that I could send it back then. I actually ended up acquiring even more weight, as I had found a copy of ¢The Quiet American¢ left behind in the hostel, took a peak at it, and decided I liked the writing. I wished I could have lounged all day reading it. I headed off to the store, which opened at 8, for a breakfast sandwich and coffee. Unfortunately, the lady was not about to start making any sandwiches until the coffee rush was over. So I went back out on the porch and started reading my new book. Finally, I got my breakfast, finished packing and headed off while Veggie Steve still lay sleeping (he planned on spending the day in a nearby town). I went over to the road to try and hitch a ride, but then saw a family coming out of the store. I felt like I didn¢t have time to wait for someone to randomly stop and pick me up, so I asked them if I could ride with them. The man was a little taken aback, but was more accommodating when he found out I only wanted a ride for three miles and that I knew where the trailhead was located. He said I didn¢t look threatening, so the mother hopped into the backseat and I got into the passenger seat.       There were a couple of men getting ready at the trailhead and the father thought they were waiting for me. I had to tell him that no one was waiting. I slung on my extremely heavy pack and started the climb. I quickly closed the distance between the men and myself, but they were very reluctant to let me pass. I think I was bruising their egos. They finally let me by. I knew that the climb to Webster Cliffs had taken us an hour and a half last year, and that it had taken Lady Cluck only one hour. I really wanted to see if I could do it in an hour, as well, on my thru-hike. However, my pack was so heavy, and I was trying so hard, that my stomach began to feel nauseous from pushing myself too hard. I also began to feel light-headed and had to sit down to rest. There were a couple of downed trees, which required me to take off my pack to get underneath. The climb seemed to be getting harder and harder and I realized that I was not going to be able to reach my goal. I was defeated. I did make it in an hour and 15 minutes, but I think the weight of my pack prevented me from going faster. It was just too heavy, and my body was too tired. I took a short break on Webster Cliffs and knew that I was in a much better mood when I hiked this last year- probably because I was fresh then.       I headed up toward Mount Webster and found that this section went by much more quickly then it had last year. It¢s funny how the different parts of the trail can feel so different from one year to the next. Last year, I thought this part was taking forever! It started to rain, so I pulled out my rain jacket and pack cover. By the time I reached Mount Jackson, we had no views at all. There was a couple who were out for the day, sitting on the peak, waiting for the sun to come out. They asked me a few questions about my hike and then I headed off. I started to descend the mountain and ran into two men who asked me where the Jackson trail was. They asked me where I was going and told me that I was headed back to Crawford Notch. I didn¢t believe them, but they said they were the men I had passed (looking different in their raingear). I still didn¢t believe I was going the wrong way, but finally turned around to make sure. When I told them I hoped to get to Lakes of the Clouds that night, one of the men shook his head and rolled his eyes at me, saying that it was a LONG way away, and insinuating that I would never make it. I felt so offended and mad. I think they just couldn¢t deal with the fact that I could hike faster than them, and that I had planned to do more miles than they were capable of hiking.    I returned to the summit to find that I had indeed gone in the wrong direction (I don¢t know why the couple didn¢t point that out to me, as they knew I was headed north!). I quickly headed off to get away from the two insulting men. I made it to Mizpah Spring Hut by 2pm (another hut where the croo members avoided eye contact with the thru-hikers) and enjoyed a rest and snack. I also read through the register and found out that I was not the only thru-hiker who was yelled at at Galehead hut...lots of hikers were, including Braid! Every year, there is one hut to be avoided because of the croo that year. Last year it was Madison and this year it was Galehead. I didn¢t even have the choice of staying at Mizpah since I had arrived too early for work-for-stay. I wasn¢t worried about getting to Lakes at this point. I knew the rest of the way was not very difficult.      I headed up to Mt. Pierce and chatted with a nice woman who was out with her husband and four boys. She had been coming to the Whites every year since her college years. She thought I was brave to be out by myself. I told her it was easier when you have a goal. When she learned that the goal was to get to Maine from Georgia, she was astonished!    I happily continued on to my favorite section in the Whites. Clouds rolled in and out all afternoon, but I could still make out the tower on Mount Washington. I took some pictures of the views and of the alpine wildflowers, and continued on toward the hut. I approached it a little after 6pm- perfect! There was no need to get there any earlier. I went inside and asked Tobin (who knew me from my Galehead stay) if there was space for work-for-stay. He said there was, but I would be the last person, as three other thru-hikers were already there. They were L-train, Spaceship, and Sawman (the hikers that Dan had met). We were allowed to stay inside this hut while the patrons ate their dinner, unlike the other ones that made us wait outside. It felt so relaxing to hang out at the table and write in the hut journal! After the croo finished washing all of the dishes from dinner with incredible speed, we were invited into the kitchen to eat. They were much more generous with their offerings at this hut than at Galehead. It was so nice! They said they wanted two of us to sweep the floors in the morning, one person would scrape out the freezer, and one person would scrub the silverware. I chose sweeping and didn¢t have any duties for the rest of the night! I was free to watch the sun set, read through the past journals, and relax! I felt that it was one of the most relaxing nights I had on the trail! I love this hut and its views so much and really felt that I had returned home.      I set up my sleeping bag at the end of the dining room floor, near the windows after everyone headed off to their rooms at lights out. The other thru-hikers remained near the bathrooms.