Date: 2014-09-04
From: Eliza Brook Shelter

To: Glencliff, NH
Miles today: 16.8
Weather: scattered clouds

I hiked all morning and reach Rt 112 just before noon. I had met a retired couple a few days back that told me about a tourist attraction, the Lost River Gorge, located less than 1/2 mile off the trail on Rt 112, so I followed their directions (turn left) and went to check it out.I wasn't particularly interested in taking a tour of the Gorge - I think they had caves to visit - but I was interested in the snack bar. Any food that you didn't have to carry is usually worth the detour. They had a variety of snacks and some refrigerated meals that could be heated up. I chose the hamburger, and though it may not have been the best burger ever, it was great to have something warm for lunch that I couldn't have packed. I also bought ice cream for the walk back, and the distance to the trail was probably not more than 3 or 4 tenths of a mile.I began hiking Mt Moosilauke at about 1pm and it took just 2 hrs and 5 min to reach the summit. This mountain was one that people warn you about due to the steep climb. The ascent from the north, where I was coming from, is alongside a beautiful cascading waterfall. Unfortunately, the trail is nearly vertical over large slick rocks which have 6x6 block stairs bolted to the rock face. With the addition of the stairs, it is an easy climb, but I was glad to be going up and not down. It would have been nearly treacherous if one of the blocks was missing or gave way, but I had no trouble.Several people also warned that the trail was not well marked at the top and I heard a store of one unlucky fellow who made it all the to the bottom before realizing he had taken the wrong path down. I checked the sign and made it about 25 yards before I heard someone call from the top and ask if I was hiking the Appalachian Trail. I replied "yes", and he pointed the other direction and told me the trail was that way. Oops.I thanked him for stopping me and pulled out my guide again just to try and figure out where I had gone wrong. It turns out the original sign had broken and the temporary replacement didn't directly say "AT", but used the local trail name, which was different from my book. My guide said "Gorge Brook Trail" and the sign said "Carriage Road Trail". There was another trail (not the AT) also listed on the sign and it started with the letter "G" and I had took that thinking it was Gorge Brook.At the bottom I ran into the same couple I had seen on the Kinsmans and at Gorham and walked together for a while. We came to the first road to find a very nervous woman carrying a cell phone looking for her husband. He was out day-hiking and was a few hours overdue for pickup. She asked if we'd seen him and we hadn't. We tried to assure her that there was probably a reasonable explanation, such as the trail mix-up we had all seen. We suggested leaving a note telling her husband to wait right there as she went around to check the other trailheads and would return. As she was walking back to her car for pen/paper, we started downhill on the road, driving up was "Miss Janet" in her van. Miss Janet is a Trail Angel that drives a very decorated van northbound during the hiking season giving rides and assistance to thru-hikers. She can usually be found near "the bubble" - the biggest group of northbound hikers that naturally clusters together and moves at a moderate pace.This time, Miss Janet had scooped up a passenger who'd accidentally hiked down the wrong trail - the husband of the woman we had just seen. They had a quick reunion and his wife seemed very much relieved.We hiked on to the hostel which had the option of staying in the bunk room or tenting outside. It was a modest place - the carport/garage had been converted to a hiker room and there was a covered pavilion outside that had plumbing and included the bathroom and showers, all fenced/tarped around for privacy. The yard was well-maintained and I heard the bunk room was not and someone was staying up there with a dog, so I elected to tent outside. The tenting area was padded with grass clippings and was quite comfortable.Myself and one other hiker took a shuttle for resupply and ordered a pizza to-go from a the local restaurant. While we were waiting for our pizza, two guys were attempting the "Moosilauke Challenge" - two people and an 8 pound pizza in one hour (or 1 1/2 hrs - I don't remember). Miss Janet had given them a ride there and they were about 1/3 of they way through their pizza when we left...we weren't that interested to stick around and see how they fared.The pizza I split with the other hiker was very good and I reorganized my food bag with my resupply items (which included dill pickle-flavored potato chips just for fun!) and went to bed.