Date: 2007-09-26
From: Carter Notch Hut, NH

To: Imp Shelter, NH
Miles today: 7.3

Woke up late and everyone was already moving around when I went to do my chores. The pilots made me some pancakes and Avery let me have some of her coffee. After I did my chores, I had to eat several bowls of soup and several servings of bread. My hiker hunger has really kicked in and as my old Canadian buddy Dave McCluskey(that's Mick not Mac[as he would say], AKA "Sanduchy") used to say when he was driving the Middle Tennessee girls crazy: "I am all cock and ribs" now. I got going and was trying to beat the rain. I could see it raining on Mt Washington and several other places. The climb out of the notch of course just made me a sopping wet mess. When I climb now: because it is still so warm (80+) and I do all of these climbs in one athletic event; I pull my hair back and put it in a hair tie(may hair is totally out of control now, I have not cut it in a year and only trimmed it twice in 3); take off my dew rag; take off my shirt; and when it's dry, take off my gaiters and climb to the top wearing only my shorts, pack, and boots. When I get to the top, I take off the wet shorts and put on another pair. Anyway, I climb all of the freakin' Carter Mtns: The dome, the South, the Middle, & the North. I fianlly get down to a spring above the Imp Shelter trail and cook a good meal. I was hoping to eat and get on down past the road that goes into Gorham. As I was just about finished and had my pack contents spread out: I saw the clouds getting darker, then I smelled the rain, the I heard it miles off; so, I quickly packed up and moved fast down to the shelter. Getting in, just as it started raining. There was a thru hiker there named "half step" who said, "what timing!" I was hoping to break my tradition of not hiking in the rain; but, once it started raining and the temp dropped about 15 degrees, I called it a day. It was cool, though. Half Step and I talked for hours. He was in his early 20's and from Concord, NH. He had Flip flopped up to Kathadin and walked back. He said it was the toughest decision of his life and it still tears him up. He had to as he says it: he never treated any water and would drink pond water and finally got sick in Vermont(Not very smart drinking pondwater, folks) It defintely made me feel good about not doing so. Also, I could not imagine flipping and then coming back and doing THe Whites in late October, whooh! As we talked, we both said how wore out we were and how we would never talk anyone into doing the trail. Now, we said we have loved it and do everyday; but, to do it is such a personal sacrifice and personal constitutional endeavor that everyone must make their own fated decision. Yes, we would do the hike we were doing again; but, never another one as a repeat; maybe a week or less section hike; but, that would be it! Alright, one final Half Step story: Him and another thru hiker were hiking and ran into "Runway(SOBO CHIC)" and his hiking buddy said, after she left, "I love her!" A few days later they ran into her again and his friend stopped and passionately said to her, "I love you". He said Runway looked stunned and a little scared and said, "OK....let me have your e-mail and wrote it down in her guidebook." That poor girl, she cant even hike the trail without men freaking out on her; or being putty in her hands; or should I say a "tool", maybe?