Date: 2015-08-17
From: Liberty Springs Campsite

To: Garfield Ridge Shelter/Campsite
Miles today: 7.6

I was up and packed early. I decided to wait and have my breakfast above treeline. Initially the trail was not too bad, but gradually it grew steeper and steeper. There were plenty of rocks, but it never got crazy or scary. Before I knew it I was above treeline. The view was absolutely amazing. Josh and Cleo came up right after me. I found a nice rock and enjoyed my breakfast as the first of many day hikers began to arrive. There are other trail besides the AT up to Franconia Ridge, and day hikers were coming up all of them.The Ridge goes from one mountain peak to another. The closest thing I can compare it to is the Great Wall of China. I hiked from Little Haystack Mountain to Mt. Lincoln, then Mt. Lafayette.   According to the AT guide the trail is above treeline for 2 miles, but it seemed to be much further. I stopped several times to take breaks, take pictures, and to just take it all in. It was the perfect day to be there - hot and humid, but clear with a slight breeze. With no tree cover, there was full sun exposure. And the beautiful views were 360°.Unfortunately because the trails up are somewhat easy, the Ridge was full of day hikers who litter, leave tissues, bring dogs, leave dog poop, and sing off key at the top of their lungs. One young woman was hiking with a beautiful yellow lab which was severely overheating. There is no water on the ridge. If I had extra water I would have given it to the dog, not the owner. Despite my fear of heights I lingered on the ridge for almost 4 hours. This is why I am still on the AT. Like life in general, on the AT there are good days and there are bad days. This day was one of the very best, and I would have missed it if I had quit when I was cold, tired, wet, dirty, stinky, hungry, scared of climbing up or down steep wet rocks, tired of setting up or taking down my tent, afraid of bears or rattlesnakes, or tired of doing this alone. I have stuck it out, and this is one of my rewards.But like all good things, it had to come to an end. I needed to get down the trail and to the shelter before dark. Fortunately the AT trail down was not too bad. It was only somewhat steep, nothing crazy or scary. And the rocks thankfully were DRY! Once below treeline I still had to make it up and over Mt. Garfield. The up was not too bad, but the down was very steep and rocky. On the way down I ran into 2 day hiking older ladies. They were hiking from hut to hut. They spent the night at Greenleaf and were trying to make their way to Galehead, but it was clear they were not going to make it in time for dinner, before dark, or at all. They were moving extremely slowly - which says a lot because I move very slowly over the rocks with a heavy pack.I hiked with the slowest one for a few minutes to try to figure out what was going on and how I could help. Their plan was to stay at the shelter, but they had no tent, pads, sleeping bags, water filters, or food. Since they were still moving, I went on to the shelter. The caretaker was not at the shelter. So I quickly set up my tent, asked Josh, who was in the shelter with Cleo, to save 2 spots for the ladies, and I headed back down the trail with my water filter. I filtered plenty of water for both ladies. I also carried the slowest one's pack to the shelter for her. By then the caretaker was there and I let him know what was going on. He made sure they had sleeping bags and food. He also thanked me profusely for jumping in to help and waived the $8 fee for my stay - my first work-for-stay gig! I was glad I was able to use my Wilderness First Responder Training to help out.I shared a tent platform with a nice young couple who arrived late. They were very considerate, but there was still noise and platform shaking as they wete setting up their tent and finishing dinner when I should have been asleep. The guy on my pad, and the next pad over, both snored. Night 3 with little sleep.The AT is calling. Please give me more amazing days like today!