Day 58 on the Trail

Dave is at the Madison Spring Hut Saturday evening. He summited
Mount Washington!

As of 08/13/11:
Miles today - 7.4
Miles to date - 638.9 or, 645.2

Another mileage issue -- Here's what happens -- Dave left me his schedule with planned overnights, their mile markers, and the date he expects to be there. When he stops at places not on his schedule (a hut instead of a campground, stops sooner or goes farther than planned) I go to various sources online to figure out what the mileage is.  Different sources have different mile markers, usually caused by changes in the trail over time.  Yesterday, for example, the Lakes of the Clouds Hut was not on Dave's schedule, so I found a guide that gave me its marker.  Today I found a guide that said there were 7.4 miles between Lakes of the Clouds and the Madison Spring Hut.  However, that doesn't add up to the mileage Dave has on his schedule for Madison Spring.  Finally, thebackpacker.com which has trail mile markers, is a whopping 14.5 miles different than what Dave has on his schedule!  Argh.  I end up using what Dave has on his schedule, just to be consistent.  Total mileage, at the end of the hike, will be the same, it's a matter of where these stopping points happen to be noted on the various guides.

Now on to more important news, Dave summited the highest peak north of the Smokies and east of the Rockies at 6288 feet, the fearsome Mount Washington. He and Rich left Lakes of the Clouds Hut before breakfast, to get an early start, and made it to the top by 8 AM.  They knew what to expect, and here I have to quote Bill Bryson from A Walk in the Woods:
     "There may be more demanding and exciting summits to reach along the Appalachian Trail than Mt. Washington but none can be more startling.  You labor up the last steep stretch of rock slope to what is after all a considerable eminence and pop your head over the edge, and there you are greeted by, of all things, a vast, terraced parking lot, full of automobiles ...  Beyond stands a scattered complex of buildings among which move crowds of people in shorts and baseball caps.  It has the air of a world's fair bizarrely transferred to a mountaintop."

My intention was to read chapters of A Walk in the Woods as Dave was walking the same areas, but I had slipped the book back into Dave's bookcase and as the saying goes, out of sight, out of mind.  I thought of it again this morning, and thoroughly enjoyed Chapter 18 which was about Mount Washington.  If you have the book, read it!  You'll understand why I called it the fearsome Mount Washington.

Dave and Rich must have beat the crowds, as the Summit Information Center and Snack Bar weren't yet open.  At 8:30 AM they were able to go in and get coffee and breakfast.  Dave's biggest disappointment was the fact that it was so foggy he couldn't see his hands stretched out in front of his face.  But, the fog eventually dissipated and by 9:30 or 10 it was clear.  He took several pictures and is hoping they turn out well.  He made calls to Dale, Molly and me, though being in my cardio-dance class, I missed it.


Having lived in New England, I well remember all the cars that wore the bumper sticker This Car Climbed Mt. Washington.  I could never imagine walking up a mountain that is a challenge to cars! Just look what it did to this car.

Dave and Rich left the summit and got to the Madison Spring Hut fairly early in the day.  Once again they were accepted for the work-for-stay program.  When we spoke about 8:30 PM he thought his work was going to be cleaning and rearranging the dining room, then he would sleep on the floor.

Madison Spring Hut

Dave was excited to see his first moose today -- though he soon realized this was a rather unusual moose.  She had been hanging around the lodge, having learned she could find food and water left by careless visitors and tourists.  Dave saw two young women trying to approach the moose.  He cautioned them to be careful and stay away as the moose could charge them (they were all only about 30' away).  The two were from France and one did not speak English.  The other told Dave, "She wants to pet the moose."  Dave told them it was too dangerous and to stay away. I am amazed that many people think the outdoors is more like DisneyWorld than a wilderness.

Rich will be getting off the trail soon, in Gorham I believe, and Dave is thinking about his next hiking group.  He's met up with two guys from Tennessee, Stitch and Yak, who seem to be on the same schedule, so he may walk with them in Maine. When hikers walk "with" someone, they don't necessarily even see each other during the day, but they discuss where they'll stop in the evening, and keep an eye out for each other.  If someone doesn't show up where they said they would be, and there are no messages about the change in the shelter log, a search is started.  I like to know Dave keeps in touch with other people on the trail.