Date: 2005-08-22
From: Crawford Notch/US 302

To: AMC Lakes of Clouds Hut
Miles today: 11.2

The morning was busy since our shuttle was supposed to pick us up at 6:30 and we had not yet packed. Amazingly enough, we were in the lobby and ready to go on time, but there was no shuttle to be seen. Last night, the shuttle driver called Pathfinder and Gray Walrus's room and they told them they no longer needed a shuttle since they had decided to stay another day. The problem was that the shuttle driver didn't bother to check any of the other rooms.We didn't want to call his house super early, so we all headed to the family diner down the street for a big breakfast before hitting the trail. We finally got going on the trail around 9:30ish and headed out in a larger group: Revdr Dan, Pumpkin, 49er, Clean, Jr., Florida, Rabbit, Bug and myself. The climb up to Mt. Webster was long and steep, but well worth the effort. The views from the cliffs were incredible and the sky was as clear as a bell. We spotted quite a few lovely stealth spots in this area too!In the mile or so, just before Mizpah Hut, we had to walk across many bog bridges (one of my favorite things out here, because they are so easy on the feet). Bug was hiking behind Clean, Jr. and apparently got too close on his tail, so Clean steps off the bog bridge to let him pass....BIG mistake! Sometimes these bridges are put in place in perfectly dry places, but here the mud went far and deep. When he stepped off the bridge he sank to nearly his knee and when he went to save himself on his trekking pole it soon followed suit! Bug had to literally give Clean a hand by pulling him out.Soon we arrived at Mizpah, a beautiful hut. They had yummy potato dill soup with fresh baked goods in which we took part for lunch. We hung out for a bit and chatted while reading the register. It seems they have a resident 3-legged fox which we never did see.We journeyed on and continued our trek through the Presidentials. The day has been incredible, although the higher we climbed the cooler and cloudier it got. I found that I absolutely love hiking above treeline. The moment you step out of the protection of the trees, you feel as if you are on top of the world! As we rounded Mt. Eisenhower, there were 4 teenagers out hiking who asked if we were doing the whole thing. When I replied yes, they asked where we started and I told them Georgia. To this statement I got an astounded look. Apparently, they were asking if we were doing all the Presidentials and couldn't even fathom someone walking from Georgia to Maine.When we arrived at Lakes of the Clouds, the temperatures had begun to drop, the wind was whipping and we were pleased to be where we could go inside out of the weather. The hutmaster agreed to give us all work-for-stay and we settled in and changed into more comfortable clothing. The first thing we noticed were the 3 walls of windows overlooking the White Mountains and up to Mount Washington. It was socked in when we arrived, but we realized very quickly that Snowbunny and Hairball were here. We were pretty excited about that, because we figured they had gotten ahead when we took 2 days in Twin Mountains. We wasted the evening away chatting, playing cribbage, and writing correspondence. We just finished dinner and are putting our things out for the night. People are beginning to settle in. We had some great views of the Mt. Washington before it socked in completely and the sunset was incredible! Now we are unable to see a thing. On to Mount Washington tomorrow, the world's worst weather!