Date: 2015-07-31
From: Camping on Mt Madison

To: Lakes of the Clouds Hut
Miles today: 9.8
Weather: few clouds

Spent the day going around the Great Gulf that separates Mt Madison from Mt Washington. I was passed by Hawk-Eye & met Sparky, 14, PA Trail Runner, Hot Chocolate (Australia), Five, Wild Turkey, Grandma, Retro, Mosey, Chuckles, Little Red, 4, Rabbit-stick, Tver, red a k [Some names get messed up by my Notes app, & I have trouble figuring them out afterwards.], Turbo, Fire Bear, Moosehead, too, Gen. Burnsides, & some other NOBOs. Also Doc, Foreward, Night Terror, & Jazz Hands, SOBOs I'd met before, now going the "wrong" way. I woke to a beautiful DRY morning. All those branches that had been dripping on me & my tent last night had been dried off by the wind. About 3-4:00, it sounded as if it might be too windy to hike above tree-line. But by the time I was ready to go at 7:00, it had decreased. Almost immediately, I started up the 6+ (depending on how you count, could be 12) false summits of Mt Madison. It as still windy enough to fear being knocked off a rock. I would be walking/climbing on boulders all day. About halfway up, I met a 90-pound woman, warning me about the wind & wishing she had brought more water along to weigh her down. For much of the rest of the climb, the wind decreased ¢ until the actual summit, when I also started meeting people coming up from Madison Spring Hut. Then it was down the short side of the Mtn for me ¢ 2 hours up, less than an hour down. I got some very filling tomato soup, loaded with rice & spice, did some additional repairs to my left shoe (Just 2 more days, I hope), tried to dry off my poncho, & left for Mt Washington just after 11:00. On my 3d time around the Great Gulf, things looked pretty familiar, tho I easily get the distances wrong. I met loads of hikers of all kinds, including a woman who said her wooden hiking pole had been stolen back at Mt Washington & she couldn't replace it till she got below tree line. Weather & visibility stayed good, tho Mt. Washington had a little cloud cover all day. I made the distance in 5-1/2 hours, a personal record. Still not enough time to get to Mizpah Hut; so I dawdled for a while at the visitors center, getting something to eat, then headed down to Lakes of the Clouds Hut. Good visibility from the top then, but cooling off fast. I remembered coming up that way 2 years ago ¢ it was nice to see Susan waiting for me then(having braved the auto road for me). Nine of us were accepted for work-for-stay, & 3 of us agreed to do our work in the morning [out by 9:00 they said]. I figured with only 10 miles to go tomorrow I'd have plenty of time.Work-for-stay has its pros & cons. Each hut has its quota, but the cook of the day has some discretion. You have to get there between 4:00 & 5:00 [if there is any competition for the positions], so you miss out on several hours of hiking [& maybe some in the morning too]. If weather is bad, you get a place to stay above tree-line [but this one has a basement room called the Dungeon, where you can stay for $10]. You get supper & breakfast, but you have to wait till the paying guests [$120 now] & the croo have eaten, which means it's cold. There's a lot of waiting while others eat & usually not much light for reading [They use solar power & try to limit usage]. There's some opportunity to get to know other hikers & the guests, but that varies. After lights out, people can still engage in activities that involve headlamps ¢ I was bothered by some hikers playing a noisy game till I recognized that when they were quiet there was still a lot of noise from the bunkroom. You can't sleep in because you are sleeping in the dining area. Anyway, it's sort of fun but not without its negatives. Getting lunches at the huts & planning for other places to sleep probably makes most sense.