Date: 2009-08-11
From: Galehead Hut

To: Crawford Notch
Miles today: 14.7
Weather: moderate rain

We had to rouse ourselves off the floor as the first patrons came into the dining room, even though we were still exhausted. We had to clear our belongings out of the room to allow the croo to set up for breakfast. As we sat outside, I wondered if I should wait around for breakfast or get going. MudD and Giddy-Up didn¢t stick around, but it¢s always hard for me to pass up real food. When everyone finished their breakfast, one of the croo workers asked me if I would sweep the hallway floor, as well as the dining room. Then, I could have my breakfast. It was a bit difficult to sweep the dining room with so many people still in it, but I did the best I could. No one gave me a dustpan, so I figured I would just sweep the dirt back outside. A couple of the patrons joked with me that they wouldn¢t tell anyone. Apparently, that was the wrong thing to do, however! Unbeknownst to me, I was being watched by the mean hut worker, who had yelled at me the night before. She scolded me again and ordered me to sweep underneath the tables again, and to use a dustpan this time. I was so exhausted, that I now felt like crying! Again, I did what I was told. Some of the people couldn¢t believe that I still had not had any breakfast yet. Finally, one of the workers invited me into the kitchen where I was allowed some cold oatmeal and cold egg casserole. I regretted waiting around so long. It just wasn¢t worth it. I wasn¢t allowed a bagel because they were saving them for themselves.       I went into the bathroom to finish getting ready and a nice woman asked me if I liked M+Ms! I do! As a matter of fact, I had just finished the ones Andrew had given to me. She told me to wait a minute and then presented me with a ziplock bag of mixed peanut and plain M+Ms! How nice! She said she was carrying them especially to give to a thru-hiker. She was also finishing up the 4000+ mountains in New England, and said her son planned on thru-hiking next year. She hoped he would encounter nice people who would take care of him, and that¢s why she was doing the same. She also inquired about how I thought the trail had changed me and what I learned from it. These are my favorite kinds of questions. She really brightened my morning and gave me a nice hug.   I was the last hiker to leave the hut that morning to start the steep climb up South Twin Mountain. It was an extremely humid morning, and again I dripped with sweat. I passed most of the dayhikers ahead of me, and as I approached the top of the mountain, I saw a man sitting on a rock, looking out into the fog. He asked me how I was. ¢Tired... and sweaty¢, I responded. He thought that I had made good time with the climb, but I didn¢t think so. I decided to take a little break and chat with him. He wanted to know about my experience on the trail, as well. He had met L-train and Sawman earlier (who I had never met) and was so scared about all of the tick stories L-train had told him, that he was convinced he had one, too. He asked me if I knew what they looked like and if I could take a look at his leg. I determined it was just a scab, told him that there were no ticks in New Hampshire, and that he need not worry about that.      A little while later, he caught up to me and offered me some dried mango slices. I think he was a little offended when I declined, so I ended up trying one. It was good! I found out he was from Canada (which explained why he was so friendly!) and was out here by himself for a few days. He had a reservation at Zealand Hut, but kind of wanted to get back to the Highland Center and head home in the morning. I had to get to the Highland Center to pick up my next maildrop, so he offered to bring me back to the trail the following day, if I was still around.   He let me go ahead, as he didn¢t want to hold me up. After we came out of the wooded section we were in, the landscape opened up to some incredible views! It was spectacular! I could see other trails extending over the green mountains, and the sky had turned a pretty blue. I really enjoyed this section around Mt. Guyot. Eventually, the trail took us back into the woods. At one point, a boy heading south and I scared each other. We came upon one another too suddenly, and he thought I was a bear! A little while later, another young man offered me his hand, as I stepped down a large rock. I declined, but if I had accepted, I would have felt like a princess!   I started to feel more and more tired, and had to sit down on a rock to eat a power bar. I felt like I had no energy left. I didn¢t even want to take the sidepath marked ¢view¢. I needed all of my energy just to get to the shelter. I almost slipped on the slick smooth rocks next to a brook as I got close to Zealand Hut. Just when I saw the building, the rain started coming down! I couldn¢t believe my luck again! It poured and poured and I hunkered down inside. I wondered how long the rain would last and if I should ask for work-for-stay, but the hut manager did not seem friendly at all. A lot of the croo workers seem to avoid eye contact with the thru-hikers. Eventually, the rain stopped, and I decided I better get moving. Dan (the Canadian) came in as I was about to leave, and he seemed pretty down. He had trouble finding a bunk to his liking (even though there were so many choices available), and I told him he must be tired, too! Part of him still wanted to get to Highland Center, but he ended up staying. Again, he offered to take me to the trailhead if I wanted to sleep in the next morning and wait for him. He was super nice! Both he and Sandy (who gave me the M+Ms) really made my day.   I headed off, first going back the way I came, as I thought the trail branched off before the hut. However, I was wrong, and had to come back to the hut before finding the right way. Luckily, the next several miles were anomalously flat for the White Mountains. This section of the trail used to be a railway bed, although I didn¢t understand how such large rocks could be on such a path. I encountered one southbounder in this section. My energy was low, but I plodded along and finally began the long descent down to Crawford Notch. It began to sprinkle again, but the rain remained light. After I crossed the traintracks, I wasn¢t sure where exactly to go, but I followed my instincts and came out on a wide gravel road. As I walked down it, a car on its way in pulled over and asked if I needed a ride anywhere. He said he would meet me at the end of the gravel road, which made me happy, as I wouldn¢t be skipping any of the trail! He was an employee at the Highland Center, and was headed there himself!    Unfortunately, the place was full, and the only rooms available were over $200! Despite the man¢s attempts to find me a cheaper option, the counter help were unwilling to bend the rules. So I decided to stay at the Crawford Notch campground, 3 miles past the trailhead in the other direction. After retrieving my maildrop, the nice man volunteered to drive me down there. The package I received was huge and heavy and I wondered what in the world Erik had sent me! I had only asked for a couple of days food! It worried me, as I had some of the toughest hiking ahead of me, and I needed my pack to be light!   It turns out that there was only one other person in the bunkroom at the campground. I wondered who it could be. I thanked the man for all of his help, and headed off to the bunkroom. No one was there when I arrived, but as I looked out the window, I saw Veggie Steve walking over! Veggie Steve... Oh, my! It was just the two of us for the evening. I went back to the store to get something to eat, and listened to Veggie Steve¢s latest stories. He gave me three quarters so I could take a ¢luxurious¢ 9 minute shower! How nice of him! It was my first coin-operated shower! At this point in the hike, I had been having some problems with the tendons in my forearm seizing and locking up (I think from the tension I was using to hold my poles). It happened again in the bathroom and took quite some time to unlock and become functional again.   I headed back to the bunkroom, where Veggie Steve was lighting some candles, using his old beer bottles as candle holders. I unpacked my maildrop and found a magazine and an entire bag of chips, among other things. I have such a hard time throwing things out, but knew I couldn¢t possibly carry this all- especially into the Whites! I decided to go to bed and figure out what to leave in the morning.