Date: 2008-09-11
From: N of Franconia Notch, NH

To: N of Zealand Falls Hut, NH
Miles today: 19.9

I woke up at 4:40am and stuck my stove out the tent door and brewed up over 24 ounces of coffee and ate four powdered donuts for breakfast. I heard a moose last night just before dark. I got out of my tent to see if I could spot him, but it had already left the area. Those buggers can move fast when they want to. :-) I read a couple chapters of Tom Sawyer while I enjoyed my coffee, then packed up and was walking north on the Appalachian Trail at 6:35am. I had over 2,000 feet to climb to Liberty Spring Tentsite. I just walked slowly and enjoyed the cool, crisp morning. It was in the upper 30's...my kind of temperatures! I got to the spring near the tentsite and stopped to drink a little water and top off a bottle for the climb to Lafayette. I was really excited about today's walk because I was going over Little Haystack Mtn, Mt Lincoln, Mt Lafayette, Mt Garfield, South Twin Mtn and Zeacliff. :-) Franconia RidgeI was glad I was wearing a long sleeved shirt today. I rolled the sleeves up when I was climbing and that helped cool me off, but it would feel chilly when I was walking downhill, so I would roll the sleeves down and that was just enough to keep me feeling comfortable. I was walking along the flat area just past Liberty Springs Tentsite and I heard a guy walking up pretty fast. I stepped to the side like I've done all year and let him by....but this guy gave me a smug look, like don't you wish you could walk like me. I kept walking and let the guy get about 40 yards in front of me and I was thinking about that smug look. I'm not competitive out here backpacking, but that look...well, I just didn't like the way he looked at me, so I picked my pace up to the way I normally walk and I caught up to the guy just as we started climbing Little Haystack. Little Haystack was only about an 800 foot climb. I stayed back about 20 feet behind the guy while we were climbing. He kept giving little looks when he when he could. I could hear him starting to suck in more air. Finally, about half way up the mountain he unstrapped his pack and sat down. He didn't say a word as I walked by. :-) I finished climbing that mountain, then on up to Mt Lincoln. I turned and saw the guy just summiting Little Haystack when I was on the top of Mt Lincoln. That was fun! :-) I was the only one on Lafayette when I got there. The sun was shining and there was a good breeze...I had to eat lunch even though it was only 10am. This was only the second time I've ever had Lafayette all to myself...the first time was in a cold, nasty rainstorm. I was done and packed up and ready to walk when that guy came walking up. He put his pack down and never even looked at me. :-) I got out to the North Peak of Lafayette, then started a fairly steep descent of about 1,500 feet. I walked by Garfield Pond, then made a steep climb up to Mt Garfield where I stopped for second lunch. I sat down by a rock that blocked the cool wind and I was in the nice warm sunshine looking back across the valley to Mt Lafayette. I only sat up there about 30 minutes while I ate and aired out my feet, then I made a very steep 1,000 foot descent off Mt Garfield. I got to Galehead Hut in a few miles of more rocky walking. I walked inside and was filling up a water bottle. I asked the girl that was busy preparing dinner if her name was Abby. She looked at me and said; "You must be Stumpknocker".I said I was and she reached in the refrigerator and pulled out an ice cold Coke and handed it to me with a smile on her face. :-) Abby's Dad has signed my guestbook a few times and just recently said he had arranged to have his daughter, who is the croo at Galehead Hut, pack me in a Coke. THANK YOU, THANK YOU....Abby and Jerry! :-) Abby and I talked for about 15 minutes and got a couple pictures, then she had to get back to the kitchen and I still had some walking to do. I did the very steep ascent up to South Twin Mtn, then alot more of the very rocky walking from there. I had over seven miles left and it was getting later in the day, so I just kept at it with a steady pace. Cheeseburger was sitting outside Zealand Falls Hut when I got there. He was the only thru hiker I'd seen all day. He was going to do work for stay and was waiting on dinner to end. I walked in and filled up two water bottles and walked on...trying not to think how good that dinner smelled inside the hut. I walked on another half mile and set up my tent at a spot I've stayed at before. I was hungry, so I spent the next hour munching on another Pumpernickel, Spam and peanut butter sandwich, some Cheetos and some jellybeans. I just had to think of Mrs Gorp when I figured out my miles for the day. It drives her crazy if she gets close to a 20 mile day without actually walking OVER 20 miles. I was perfectly happy with my 19.9 miles today. ;-) Another great day on the Appalachian Trail. :-)