Date: 2009-08-12
From: Lakes of the Clouds Hut

To: Madison Hut
Miles today: 7.1

Tmax here... What a beautiful morning as we started out from the hut and up to the summit of Mt. Washington. There was a lot of undercast but you could see the tops of the mountains. We made pretty good time up to the summit and then Topofgothics filled up on icecream and mailed out a bunch of postcards from the post office up there so they would bear the Mt. Washington postmark! Shortly after dropping off the summit, the rain started. We got soaked pretty quickly and the winds made it chilly, but the winds were mild which was good. Walking along this long route above treeline is very challenging and beats the hell out of most hikers. You're stepping from rock to rock, boulder to boulder, never getting a rythym or feeling like you have solid footing. Add to that wet and slippery rocks, and well, it was a tough day. We took a side trail up to the summit of Jefferson to no views. I was quite disappointed as I was really looking forward to sharing all the amazing views from this hike with Topofgothics. I have logged many many hours on this ridge and wanted to share it with him. Oh well, you get what you get! So off we went to Adams. At the very large cairn at Thunderstorm Junction (aptly named!) we dropped packs and took the non-AT spur trail to the summit. It had stopped raining but when we were just below the summit it started again. No views from the summit and now a slippery walk down dampened the mood. We made the trek over to Madison Hut and got there as the guests were eating dinner. We were welcomed to do a work for stay as there were no other thru-hikers there. At Madison Hut (and Lakes of the Clouds Hut) they can't turn away hikers because there's no-where to go. So if they use up all the work for stay, they let thru-hikers pay $10 to sleep on the floor and eat leftovers. Shortly after we settled in to wait for food, two SoBo's came in. They were chatting away about having gotten lost trying to find the hut. They were a little odd, but rumor has it lots of SoBo's are odd! (Only kidding!!) After dinner, my chore was to clean out the double frig and chop out all the built up ice. I had needed to take a pain pill earlier after a slip on the injured foot and it worked well enough that I didn't find the chore tedious at all! Topofgothics got to wash dishes. He slept on a table while I put together two benches next to him. Today's AT miles = 7.1 but total miles were 9. ****Why were those guests sleeping in the aisle, and it is a good thing that I did not step on his head. And what was up with all those people (including myself) using the restroom extensively during the night. It was something in the lasagna I bet! Morning was great, a rainbow and a few clouds, and they were below us. We also had a trio playing morning music to jumpstart everyone¢s day. By the time we reached the summit of Terri¢s favorite peak, we were bogged in. Looks like Nature was going to whiff on three pitches. I donned Longhaul¢s bunny ears for a shot of me on the summit. Since he had to go off trail (losing body parts is a very acceptable reason for going off trail) I asked for a piece of him to take with me, and preferably on that was never alive. Walking over to Madison was no fun either, with both of us failing to adorn ourselves with raincoats on this almost warm day. We got drenched. At least TMax enjoyed her leftovers, a great vegan meal cooked last night by the croo. For some reason they thought I might like one also, and made two, which worked out well because it meant more for her. The day never got any better, though views down into the gorge were fantastic when they were to be had. The climb up wet Adams in the rain was a little silly. Then again, we are both a little silly at times. Shortly after I saw Terri stumble in that particular way and give out a groan. It was not good. For the first time this trip she had really turned her bad foot, and the pain was obvious. Just above the hut she took another stumble, and I hoped no one was looking out the window at that time. This was the only night she had to take anything stronger than Vitamin-I, and she really seemed to enjoy cleaning the freezer for some reason. The highlight of the night was one of those southbounders falling off a table in the middle of the night. I felt the thump (wearing earplugs, of course) and reached down to make sure she was still there. Reassured, I went back to sleep and left the others to their own devices.