Date: 2015-07-28
From: Trail angel's house

To: Kinsman Notch 
Miles today: 9.3
Weather: broken clouds

We woke to the sound of thunder. Then, there was lightening; then rain. But, since we were in a trail angel's home, all we had to do was shut the windows. Life was good for us but what about the other hikers? We thought about them. Then, we thought about the mud on the trail. Even when snug and dry, we think about the AT.   We had a good breakfast, homemade coffee cake, scrambled eggs with cheese and a donut. We were ready to hike. What a hike we did. We were taken to the trail head by our trail angels. We were on the trail at 8:00.   Our first issue this morning was crossing a river. There was no bridge over the river, no rocks as the water was too deep. Our trail angels told us about a bridge on a private property. We didn't want Count's feet to get wet. So, we took the bridge. We didn't miss any of the trail. Count was happy, being a purist we don't miss any of the trail. We actually hiked a bit further.   We had a climb today, we had to tackle Mount Moosilauke. We started at 1055 feet and went to 4802. Yes, almost 3750 feet in 5 miles. And, the trail was steep. Well, we did have a bit of road walk, not much, but some. The trail was decent at the beginning. But, that soon ended. And the trail became harder. It was just steep which of course caused us to huff and puff. Then, the trail turned harder, rocks, steep rocks. We made the climb finally reaching South Moosilauke. Soon after South Moosilauke, we were above the treeline. And the trail became easier. What a nice change. Soon enough, we were at Mount Moosilauke! What a view!! It was a perfectly sunny day, few clouds. We could see for miles. Miles upon miles we could see. We had our lunch at the top. It certainly was the best spot we ever had on the trail for lunch. But, soon enough we had to leave and head down. Down, down, down we went. We went down. 2200 feet in 1.8 miles. And the trail - well, it was hard, very hard. The first few 100 feet were fine. It was downhill above the treeline. But, once in the trees, all bets were off. It was rocks, rocks and more rocks. We were walking down streams that were flowing over the rocks. Some of the rocks were SO steep, Lavender actually slide down them on her bum. She felt safer doing the rocks this way. It easier also. Not so good for her backpack. But, hey, what can you say?   We followed a beautiful stream down the mountain. There were so many waterfalls. It would have been easier, maybe not safe, but easier to just inner tube down the stream! There were pieces of 4x4 wood attached to the rocks. These served as steps. But, as with the rocks, they were slippery because of being wet. There was also rebar to be used as hand rails. These did help, but again, it was so steep anything would help.   We made it to the bottom of the notch. At the bottom was a warning sign. It said "This trail is extremely tough. If you lack experience please use another trail." First time we have seen such a sign. And, we certainly do agree with it as the trail was extremely tough.   We walked to the parking lot and were met by our trail angel, Roger. He has followed our journal and offered to host us for the night. Silent Force, another thru-hiker, was going to go to the hostel.   Roger offered to host him also. He gladly accepted as we had also. Roger came with a cooler filled with ice, cold sodas, water, candy bars and Oreos. We indulged in all. It felt so refreshing to have a cold soda after such a hike.   We went to Roger's home in the mountain. What a home. He showed us our rooms and then the bathroom where we each took turns taking a shower. He offered us something cold to drink again as we relaxed in his home and socialized a bit. Then, he barbecued for us and we ate till we were full. We had a good time.