Date: 2016-07-12
From: Kinsman Notch, NH

To: Eliza Brook Shelter, NH
Miles today: 7.5

Day 797.5 miles in 7 hours Kinsman Notch (1799.8) to Eliza Brook Campsite (1807.3)Weather: Cooler, partly cloudy, 60sDinner: Creamy Rosa PastaHikers: Lots of NOBOs and SOBOs, Riser, Zoe and Leprechaun passed me slackpacking, Purples, two section hikers, Ryan and Not Bob, plus a youth group are here at the shelterA second thunderstorm rolled through last night, starting when I had been taking a second shower before bed¢in the outdoor shower¢which was kind of eerie. The sky was lighting up over my head while warm water fell¢from the shower head.What the two storms did insure last night was for a very wet trail today. In the Allagash Wilderness Waterway, there is a portage called ¢The Mud Pond Carry.¢ For almost two miles the path alternates between a shallow two- to three-foot wide stream to sandal sucking muck. It would appear that the Kinsman Ridge Trail the AT follows is a longer version of The Mud Pond Carry. At least today. My shuttle from the hostel didn't get me back to the trail head until after 9 a.m. I left the hostel with dry feet. A sinking bog bridge was met within the first 10 minutes. I think every hiker attempts to keep their feet dry for as long as possible, which is why you often see the-not-so-great practice of alternate routes circumventing wet or muddy areas. I managed to keep my feet mostly dry crossing the submerged planks. But the trail didn't get any better. For most of the day it was basically a sluice for the runoff. When it wasn't straight muck. I finally gave up once my right foot sank calf-deep while attempting to place it on what I assumed to be a solid branch. That actually made it more fun. Instead of worrying about avoidance, I just plowed ahead¢at my heady one mile per hour pace of mine.I am still playing it cautiously. The pitch is steep in places, the rocks slippery and my joints not so bendy. So I was more than a little peeved when I finally realized I really was only going one mile per hour. Earlier in the day I was thinking I make a shelter just over 12 miles up the trail¢a respectable distance for me. After all, with the exception of Mt. Moosilauke, this first section is White Mountains Lite Version 1.0. I arrived at the Eliza Brooks Shelter at 3:45. Normally, another four miles would be possible this late in the day, but the next three miles climb another 2,000 feet. So, yeah. No. Plus this is one of the few four-star sites I've pitched my tent. I'm hearing and looking at the cascading Eliza Brook as I write, because, you know. I arrived here in camp super early and there is still plenty of light left in the day. Small boulders edge individual paths to each tent site, to the water and to the bearbox¢the only place in mind my that boulders are meant to be found. Only the state of the privy knocks a star off of my review¢and you really don't want to know why. A high school group is here and drying out from camping in last night¢s storms. They were cute¢asked me if it was okay to set up their tents nearby because they expected to be noisy teenagers. After today's hike I'll be surprised if they will be able to raise any kind of din over the white noise of the rushing water. But wait¢there is a full moon tonight¢¦It also is really cold tonight. Great hiking weather, but I'm now all bundled up in the long johns. Glad my bounce box with the down jacket was successfully delivered to the hostel. And Purples is here. I spent one night with Dysfengshunal and her¢way back in New Jersey sharing the bounty bestowed upon us by the beer angels. She had been ahead of me, but foot issues took her off trail for a month. She told me that she is slowing down through the Whites and only did a lousy 10 miles today. We talk some more over dinner and then I wished her well as I joked this will likely be our last night together. Also likely¢it wasn't a joke. Musings: Janel and Soft G ended their section hike today, a week earlier than they had planned due to an injury. Like many people I'm meeting on the trail, we friended each other on FaceBook in order to keep in touch about the Katahdin-bound migration; sending trail news and photos and of course learning more about each other's quirky off-trail personalities. It got me thinking about the friend requests I ignore on FaceBook¢primarily from old school chums. One of the biggest reasons I tend to ignore them is due to the way FaceBook immediately starts filling your feed with posts from your ¢new¢ friends. This is all great when you have ¢liked¢ a new group or are keeping in touch with people sharing the same interests at the same time, but I don't necessarily need to see photos of grandchildren of people I hung around with 35 years ago, let alone any political diatribes, when we haven't been in communication pre-FaceBook. Maybe I'm being heartless and missing out on potentially fulfilling reconnections or maybe I'm just saving myself from yet more funny cat videos.