Date: 2014-07-17
From: NH 302, AMC Highland Center

To: Nauman Campsite at Mizpah Hut
Miles today: 6.4

Day 127-July 17, NH 302 Crawford Notch to Mizpah Hut/Nauman Campsite, 6.4 miles. Back on the trail and heading north! We left camp at 5:30 this morning, hopefully without waking Tucker and Alison. Our drive back to Glen, NH took 4.5 hours, a good deal less than when we drove to camp on Tuesday-less traffic and no stops for groceries. After returning the car we then had to hitch a ride, a 17 mile hitch, to get back to the trail. After about 20 minutes a guy pulled over and said he was going about 5 miles up the road. We decided to go with him and then hitch again, but after talking to him for a few minutes he said he would take us all the way! A Trail Angel! So we were hiking by 11:15, after eating a roadside lunch. Today we started our ascent of Mt. Washington. For an hour and a half we had a steep climb from the road, then we reached a ridge line and spent the last few miles going up a bit and then down a little. Our total elevation gain was about 2500 feet-we'll do another 2500 feet tomorrow to get to the Mt. Washington summit. Frequently today I let my hiking sticks dangle from my wrists so I could use my hands to help me get up and over some of the larger rocks. That really works well and I feel so much more secure when my hands are supporting me rather than my poles. Also I can use more of my upper body strength to haul this sorry body up over the boulders. We had some short, but steep, rocky downhill spots today and I used those spots to try some various techniques for descending and to gain some confidence. The weather was perfect for hiking today. The sun was in and out of scattered clouds and the temps were in the low 60's. We had great views, especially on the climb up when we reached a section called Webster Cliffs where we were able to look down onto the road and railroad tracks that bisect the Crawford Notch and look across the notch to the mountains in the distance. It is interesting to see the slide areas on the steep mountain slopes as well as the slender waterfalls that start near the tops of the mountains and gather volume and momentum as they tumble down. We also had a couple of views of Mt. Washington which is the high point of tomorrow's hike. The forecast is for more partly sunny/partly cloudy weather so we should have a good traverse of Mt. Washington and the rest of the Presidential Range on the AT. Now, about our dinner tonight: we have been lucky enough to find some seasoned beef crumbles in a pouch, similar to how tuna is packaged. This stuff is so good, especially when mixed with the Beef flavored Pasta Sides noodles (don't try this at home, it may disappoint unless you are really hungry!). So far we've only found these beef crumbles in the Rutland Price Chopper but we will continue to look for them when we resupply. When we arrived at this hut/campsite we went into the hut and discovered Peppa, a hiker we haven't seen in about 1000 miles! We sat at the tables in the hut and caught up with her. What a nice way to spend an hour! Peppa moved on, planning to stay at Lake of the Clouds Hut tonight. Mizpah Hut is the only hut that has campsites by it and we have our tent set up on a nice wooden platform, to minimize the impact of tents on the ground. Our youngest son, Corey is driving to camp as I write this to spend a long weekend with Tucker and Alison. My parents will arrive on Friday so we know we are missing a great family gathering at camp, but we also know that we need to finish this trail and that doesn't happen by sitting on the dock drinking beer! In closing, Jim congratulated me on my first day in the Whites with no tears! Tomorrow I'll go for two in a row, but no promises!All is well