Date: 2021-06-25
From: Webster Cliffs trailhead 

To: Lake of the Clouds Hut
Miles today: 11.1
Weather: clear sky

I said a regretful goodbye to Patricia and Michael this morning as my time with two awesome Trail Angels came to an end. I also said farewell and thank you to my sister and niece when they dropped me at the trail just before 10am. My sister did her best to pamper me all week and let me hike some lower stress miles with little or no pack weight. She also dragged me to the doctor when I probably would have waited another week if I were on my own. My plan today was to hike the eight miles up to the Nauman Tentsite which is the last place to hammock before hitting the Alpine Zone, which lasts for 12 miles. I knew that Iceberg and Quiksilver were a day ahead of their schedule and kinda had the same plan. That would set up a 14 mile day Saturday. up and over the 6200 foot summit of Mt Washington. Standing at the bottom of Webster Cliffs and looking up was a bit intimidating, but hey, it¢s the trail, so you hike it. So, I hiked it. It was a fun challenge and I warmed up quickly. After a week of mostly slack packing I felt like I adjusted pretty quickly to the full pack and the first climb went pretty well. I even passed a few day hikers!  The views all day were just fantastic. The Whites have been just as tough as I had read, but you get rewarded by endless views of the mountains, rushing streams, and sweeping vistas. It¢s not New York with steep climbs with nothing to see. I got texts from Quiksilver and Iceberg, saying they were able to book bunks at the Lake of the Clouds Hut, which would mean four more miles of hiking, but four fewer miles tomorrow. They kindly got me a bunk as well, which would leave about 1.5 miles and 1300 feet of climb to the summit.  Count me in. So with a new target to reach, I recalibrated and gave myself a target of five o¢clock to get up to the hut at 5000 feet.I did remember to stop and eat and take my antibiotic around two, so points for that. Then it was uphill uphill uphill.  Strangely, there were two spots where the AT went around a mountain peak and the blue blaze trail went over. This is not normal AT behavior. The trail required me to skirt Mt Eisenhower (this was tough, I barely had enough fabric to do the job and the Eisenhower complained that the skirt made his butte look big) and then Mt Monroe on the way to the hut.  The hut itself can hold 96 people (once Covid restrictions are lifted) and they provide dinner and breakfast to guests. It¢s not cheap - $150 for one night in a bunk room, but I felt it was worth it for the experience and it makes me a little less nervous for tomorrow¢s hike. There are six of us through hikers here tonight and about 30 other hikers.  We thru¢s are all planning to be on trail by 6 (skipping the breakfast) as the weather prediction for the morning on top of Mt Washington is 45-60 mph winds - and it¢s only going to get worse as the day moves on with gusts to 80 and rain. So we¢re hiking as a group and getting it done. The clouds that sat on the summit all day cleared about five and we got to see the weather stations up there, I doubt we¢ll see anything in the morning. If all goes well, I¢m going to try and hike 15 or so down to a hostel where Iceberg and Quiksilver are staying tomorrow. Really looking forward to the challenge tomorrow, I¢m putting all my gear inside my pack with nothing dangling on the outside. This will be fine.