Date: 2004-08-18
From: Osgood Tentsite, NH

To: South of Mizpah Hut, NH
Miles today: 19.0
Weather: mist

19 miles todayLegal stealth tenting siteSouth of Mizpah Hut, NHI woke up at 4:40am and went ahead and made coffee and had two bowls of cereal.I got packed up and started hiking at 5:50am. I started right off climbing and I climbed for 3000 feet before going back down about 500 feet to Madison Hut.At about 7am, I popped up above tree line and could see forever. To the east, I saw the Wildcats and Carter Mountains with the sun rising above them. To the west was Madison and Mt. Washington.On the way up the mountain, I ran into a nobo that I estimated to be in his mid sixties. His name was 65 And Alive. We talked for a few minutes and then I hiked on.When I got to Madison Hut, I had a few cups of coffee and signed the register. I talked to a flipflopper by the name of Party Girl. I hiked on out of the hut at 8:30am.I was hiking through the Madison Loop. It was a beautiful day...I could see Mt. Wahington was in and out of a cloud that just covered the summit.When I hiked through this area last year, I saw a guy and girl coming towards me. The guy was wearing pink Danskin tights, a white and red striped shirt that from a distance, also looked pink, knee high white socks and an alpine looking hat with a feather in it. When they got closer, I saw they were friends of mine. I yelled out... "Chief, how the heck are you??" Jan LiteShoe was hiking with him and I got the feeling that she was making sure he didn't get lost or hurt.I remember that Chief was listening to a MP3 player and when he set it down, he forgot to turn it off. He was listening to that Tiny Tim song, Tip Toe Through The Tulips. He was drinking white wine and wore flip-flops.About two miles before I summited Mt. Washington, I ran into a nobo by the name of Giggles.In keeping with an old thru hiker tradition, I was planning on mooning the Cog Train. I envisioned myself waiting until the conductor could see the whites of my eyes looking at him from between my legs. It didn't quite work out that way. The last Cog Train was leaving the mountain as I was getting closer, so I just did a long shot moon. Hey, it still counts as a moon...they just couldn't throw the coal that far.I got up to the summit house on Mt. Washington and went inside and ordered a bowl of chili, a hotdog and a coke. I talked to two nobos by the names of Two Cents and Terrapin. I also sent in my journal entry from the phone up there. I hiked on out at 12:10pm.I had to ask a lady at the information desk where the southbound A.T. trail was. Her response was...Don't you have a map?? Nice lady.It was cold when I left there. The summit was in a cloud again and it was pretty windy. Most of the people were wearing coats and gloves.I stopped at Lake of the Clouds Hut, but didn't stay long because it was pretty busy. I couldn't even find the register.About an hour before I got to Mizpah Hut, I ran into a nobo by the name of Tyson.When I got to Mizpah Hut, I went inside and started signing the register when a hiker came up to me...it was Rainy Jay. He was my best friend hiking down south earlier this year. I was walking too far each day, so I didn't make many friends, but he was one of the hikers that was around me alot. They both have had good bear sighting years. Rainy Jay has seen 10 and his friend Bilbo has seen 18. The most I've ever seen on a hike was 9.Hey Rainy Jay, if you read this and can be in Gorham on the 24th, I'll buy you a dinner. I'll be at the Northern Peaks Motel. Come on, you can slow down a little.I would have liked to have stayed at the hut and talked more, but the huts are very busy right now. I wouldn't get much sleep if I stayed at one because of all the noise all night. I hiked on another hour or so and found this nice stealth tent site. I went back out by the trail and cooked my dinner. I had macaroni cheese noodles and was going to put a small can of salmon into it, but by the time the noodles were done, the salmon was gone. I made some spiced cider afterwards and sat and wrote my journal. I would look up at the beautiful views around me every once in a while. While I was cooking, a nobo by the name of Crash came by. I'm tired tonight because I didn't sleep too well last night on that tent platform. My spot tonight is much softer.I had heard that there was a good chance of rain today, but it only sprinkled once while I was eating dinner. The rest of the day was mostly sunny and cool.Another great day on the A.T.