Date: 2011-07-17
From: Imp Campsite, NH

To: Carter Notch Hut, NH
Miles today: 7.2
Weather: scattered clouds

Start Imp Campsite, NH, mile 1875.1Stop Carter Notch Hut, NH, mile 1867.5Hiked 7.2 miles SouthboundSleep bed in hutCell none Old Goat's notes:Another day of hard climbs in the White Mountains. We started the day climbing North Carter Mountatin, it was a hard climb with a lot of rock climbing, once on top we walked the ridge between three peaks on that mountain. The map profile makes it look like it's a flat walk. We had many ups and downs that kept us working hard. From Carter Mountain we dropped into Zeta Pass, this is a low place between two mountains, it's probably too small to be called a notch. The AT takes a half mile climb up to a plateau called The Height. This is a flat bald top with excellent views all around. When we were on Mt Washington we couldn't see Mt Washington but today we saw it from miles away. From The Height we walked a ridge and went up Carter Dome. There were remnants of a fire tower at the top, it would have been a great view. While we were on the top a northbound hiker went by. He told us the trail would be brutal, it took a while to get to that part but he was right. There was a fantastic view of this notch from up on the mountain, we could see the hut and all the area around it. Huge boulders that fell off the mountain formed the area around the hut and created a pond next to the hut. It was nice to see from up there and even nicer to be down here resting. Check 6's notes:It's frustrating to only be able to do about 1 mph in these mountains. It took us 7 hours to hike the 7.5 miles today. There were some hard ascents and one long hard descent. Those slow us down tremendously. I hope the terrain gets easier after we finish these mountains. OG tells me there still are mountains in Maine, but they aren't as difficult, nor as close together as these White mountains are. We're at the Carter Notch Hut tonight. Just finished supper (a delicious supper! Stuffed shells.). As we were eating, some hikers stopped and asked if they could stay here and have dinner. They were turned away. After dinner we asked the hut master about that. I respect his answer. There are 2 thru-hikers waiting for dinner because they came early enough to work for stay. The crew (they call themselves "Croo") had prepared food for the number of paying guests they knew about. There is plenty of food for paying guests who had made reservations ahead of time. Thru-hikers are required to work 2 hours to be able to eat left overs and sleep on the floor in the dining room (after all paying guests have gone to bed...some stay up late with flashlights or headlamps after the lights are turned out St 9:30 pm). Since there already were 2 thru-hikers awaiting dinner, there would not be enough food for the hikers who showed up as we were eating. The hut master explained the policy to the hikers and told them where the closest camping area is. Another interesting hut practice we've observed. It's amazing how many people carry wine with them to the huts. Especially those who carry full bottles! They have to carry their bottles back out with them. Some bring wine in collapsable containers (no, not the big boxes of wine!). We chatted with the Imp Campsite caretaker for a while last evening. He has convinced us to do the next section Northbound. Tomorrow we hike 5.6 miles. Looking at the terrain it will take us at least 5 hours to hike probably, but that will still leave us time to position the cars for the next day's hike. We were thinking of hiking it Southbound because the car at the North end will be an hour's drive from the car at the South end of the section. When we finish the next 5 days of hiking we'll be going home for 2 or 3 weeks. We have some doctor appointments, then a family wedding (SO looking forward to Tim and Robyn's wedding!!), and then our 5th grandchild is due to be born on Aug 6th. (SO excited about our new granddaughter!!) We hope to be at our son's house before the baby us born so we can be with the older boys while mom and dad are at the hospital. A few days after the baby is born we'll return home to finalize things to go back to the trail where we left off. When we return to the trail we plan to hike to the end in one shot (should take about a month maybe). Just thought I'd give you a heads up because we won't be doing journal entries when we're not on the trail. Sent from my iPhone