Date: 2008-08-20
From: Stealth site past Imp Campsites

To:  Rt 2, Gorham
Miles today: 8.0
Weather: few clouds

Holy Toledo! For a twenty something mile, 3 day toot, that was a doozie.As I mentioned, last night we tucked ourselves into a series of old stealth sites a few tenths of a mile above Imp shelter. The spruce were raggedy and thick, and the ground cover was soft, almost mushy, with a centuries old build up of duff.   V8 and I found a spot we thought would fit the tent, and I argued vehemently for placing it one way, while she firmly stated the wisdom of orienting it differently. She was right. The slight cupping of the site made the air mats feel like real mattresses, and I slept very well, despite unremitting gusts of wind and rather low temps for the gear I had.    I woke to 43 degrees around 6 am, and some sun was slanting through the boughs around us. The clouds were still careening across the sky, so sunny breaks were a treat when they appeared today. We were on the trail just before 8, and heading for Mt. Moriah, about 2 miles north. This was a beautiful hike, with many rocky outcroppings and vistas all around. We had to do more than the usual sort of duck walking up huge slanted rock faces, and there was a lot of wind, but after the freight train like surges up on Mt Hight yesterday, this all seemed comparatively safe.   I was happy when we headed down the other side, towards Rattle River shelter, as we had time around 10 for a coffee break. I had a filter basket and ground coffee, with sugar and creamer mix for each of us. In less than half an hour we all had a decent cup of coffee while we sat around with packs off in a mossy nook, tucked under a huge boulder. It was restful and made the next lengthy downhill section feel a bit less daunting.    By this time, I was feeling the cumulative effects of the last two days in my legs and feet. Nothing acute or major, just a sense of fatigued muscles and stressed joints. Knowing we were headed out and back to town felt pretty good! The lower part of the trail followed the Rattle River, through hemlock groves and maple trees, on an old woods road bed. Nice hiking, it was the first time in this trip where I could stretch out and stride.    We met a few hikers today, including the SOBO Hotpants from Texas, and before her SOBO Blitz from Austin. There was a fellow in his late 50's bagging 4000' peaks as part of a loosely formed consortium of hobbiests who like doing, as well as talking about,(at length!)that sort of thing.   It was lovely to run into a section hiker from Jackman, ME, to whom we had given a ride when we first arrived in town. At times a second encounter with a fellow hiker can form a substantial bond of connection in this funny little traveling village.   By 3 pm we had arrived at Rt 2 in Gorham, where Karen soon came to pick us up. Another car drove in then, delivering the 5 fellows we had met our first day while hiking up the grueling Carter Notch trail. I asked to take their picture and they said their group name was SASH, for Six Atlanta Section Hikers. They had been at the Imp campsite when we came in to get water last night, and had been a bit surprised when we said we were hiking on. (Imp was on the windy side of the mountain, and we needed more protection from the wind than we could get there).    Now its after 8:30 pm, and V8 and I are settled in at the motel, eager to get some sleep. We had a lively dinner at the adjoining restaurant with Certain and Incessant. We were probably one of the few tables of adult women who didn't ask for doggie bags, as we mowed through all our meals and thoroughly enjoyed dessert and coffee. Hiking is definitely hard physical work, especially here in the eastern part of the White Mountains.    In the next entry, you might find the preparatory events for the coming hike into the great state of Maine. See you soon,Auntie Mame------------------------------