Date: 2005-07-21
From: Mizpah Hut

To: Madison Spring Hut
Miles today: 11.8
Weather: broken clouds

Miles hiked today : 11.8I woke up this morning at 6:00 a.m., packed up, and waited for Michael to finish packing. Opa and Sean had to stay to perform their morning work for stay, so I hiked out with Michael at 7:05 a.m. 15 minutes later, I was at the summit of Mount Clinton, a.k.a. Mount Pierce. The data book had a notation stating that the next 12.7 miles north would mostly be above treeline, which would be dangerous in an electrical storm. Thankfully, the skies were clear and the sun was shining brightly. Hiking on, I passed Mount Eisenhower and Mount Franklin and am at a loss for words to describe the views. I'd been told that the Presidentials would be phenomenal and I wasn't disappointed. I reached the Lakes of the Clouds Hut at 9:20 a.m. and went inside to inquire about breakfast leftovers. I was offered coffee cake and scrambled eggs and split them with Michael. At 9:45 a.m., I set out for Mount Washington, 1.4 miles away.Mount Washington is the first peak in excess of 6,000 feet since Roan Mountain in Virginia. I arrived at the 6,288 foot summit at 10:40 a.m. and found it crawling with people. There is a road leading to the summit, as well as a cog railway, the oldest of its type in the world, which cost $49 per round trip. I stopped for a 1 hour, 45 minute break in the summit house, had a soda, sent e-mail, and had Michael take my picture at the summit sign. I may be mistaken, but Mount Washington is the last time I'll exceed an elevation of 6,000 feet on this hike. While at the summit house, I was approached by a gentleman from Indiana, Slow Toe, who had thru-hiked in 1979. He asked whether I needed food to make it to Gorham, though I was fine. Michael, however, took him up on his offer and I also ended up taking some snacks.I had 5.9 miles to cover to the Madison Spring Hut and set out at 12:25 p.m. As I hiked down the hill, I crossed the cog railway tracks and further down the trail, Michael and I, along with a SOBO hiker, took part in the tradition of exposing our backsides to the passengers in the cog cars. Amusingly, the first time the passengers waved to us. The second time, we waved first and waited for them to wave back, then bared skin. Nobody waved back that time.Continuing on, I passed Mount Clay, Mount Jefferson, and Mount Adams, all the while enjoying the far reaching vistas. I arrived at Madison Spring Hut at 3:35 p.m. and went inside to inquire about work for stay. Michael had already secured one work for stay position and I was granted the last. 2 SOBO hikers had also been granted work for stay, which meant that Opa and Sean were out of luck. Michael and I weren't sure what they would opt to do, as the fee to stay is $77 per night, or $45 to stay without meals. There is also a free campsite 0.6 mile off the AT, so they may opt to go there.We were called inside at 5:00 p.m. to clean and set the tables, which only took about 15 minutes. Once finished, we were told that we would be allowed to eat between 7:30 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. after the Croo was finished cleaning up. In the meantime, we were advised to hang out outside or in the bunkroom until it was time for us to eat. I went outside to journal and by the time that dinner was served was served at 6:00 p.m., Opa and Sean had yet to show up.Michael and I sat around, chatting with various guests. Opa and Sean arrived shortly after 7:00 p.m. and chose different courses of action. Sean chose to cook dinner and hike on while Opa opted to pay $45 to sleep on a table in the dining. I thought that the price was rather steep, especially considering that he wasn't allowed to eat dinner, despite the fact that there were leftovers.At 7:45 p.m., Michael, the 2 SOBOs, and I were called in for dinner. As with last night, I ate well and perhaps a little too much. After dinner, all I wanted to do was go to sleep, though we had to wait for the dining room to clear at 9:30 p.m. Unlike last night, we don't have a utility room with bunks and will be sleeping on tables. I suppose that is a better situation than moving 3.0 miles further down the trail after a long day.Bedtime at 10:10 p.m.