Get caught up:
Intro and Day 1
Days 2-3
Days 4-6
Day 7 (Monday)- Presidential-Dry River Wilderness, Isolation Trail to Davis Path to Glen Boulder Trail to Direttissima Trail to Pinkham Notch- 6.0 miles
This is where things started to get spicy and my weather-luck was running out. On day 5, I knew the forecast overnight from day 5-6 called for a “chance of thunderstorms”. I’ve weathered many a storm in a tent, and wasn’t concerned when I drifted off to sleep at 9pm on day five (Sunday)- (see previous post for how I chose a tent site to optimize storm safety). I was awaken at 11pm to some thunder and lightening. I counted the distance the storm was (seconds between lightening and thunder divided by 5 is the distance in miles, according to NOAA). The storm was never directly overhead and I stayed in my tent until it passed, I went pee and then drifted back to sleep, assuming that this would be single passing storm.
It turns out, I would be awakened again and again repeatedly by storms coming and going (as tracked by my counting). Thunder echoed off the mountainsides, making even more distance storms audible from my tent thanks to its elevation of around 4000 ft. Fortunately, given the storms’ movements, there was never a moment that I was abundantly concerned about a direct lightening strike. (Had the storms been closer or the winds higher, I would have needed to consider the benefits and risks of popping out of the tent so I could see and hopefully dodge any falling trees/limbs). I knew the next day’s forecast called for more storms and that I would be above treeline for at least part of the day. Between counting seconds, I worried about getting caught in a storm above treeline hiking and how I could best avoid that.
All in all, my watch reported I got 3.9 hours of sleep, and when the rain slowed from a downpour to a shower and the thunder became distant finally at 4:30am, I got up, ready to charge through the above treeline section of my route before the next storm rolled in.
My sleep deprived body was less excited to charge, but I did my best to pack up my soggy camp and get on the trail. I had looked forward to day 6 as a possible day to summit Mt. Washington or check out the high elevation Alpine Garden Trail. Instead, I rerouted down the Glen Boulder Trail as my quickest (though still slow going with a large pack a slippery rocks) exit from the alpine zone.
There were a few stream crossings on the way down that were high but manageable. Most of the trail had water flowing down it, making footing more difficulty. At one point I slid and snapped a trekking pole and twisted my ankle, tweaking my foot in a way that would continue to make its presence known. It turns out that today, on a popular day hiking route, would be the only day I saw absolutely no one else on the trail.
I got down to Pinkham Notch around lunch time and had some decisions to make. My original plan had been to camp in the Great Gulf that night, and hiking there was possible, but with more storms in the coming overnight I knew I couldn’t physically or mentally continue on with more sleepless, stressful and possibly unsafe nights in a tent. Sure, I might’ve ended up with mellower storms that passed quickly and allowed for a bit more sleep, but, combined with the danger of high water crossings, I didn’t want to place my bets on that. I needed a break.
Ultimately, I checked into a bunk room at Joe Dodge Lodge for the night and sprawled out all my wet gear to dry. Several AT thru-hikers were doing the same, even having been in huts during the storms they were excited for a night down low. I enjoyed chatting with them over the hot dinner and breakfast.
Day 8 (Tuesday)- Old Jackson Road to Raymond Path?? and back- 5 Miles
I had debated my options on Monday (day 7) on how to proceed today. Forecasts continued to include words like hail, flash flooding, severe thunderstorms, heavy rain, hurricane force winds. I didn’t want to drown fording a river or get struck by lighting but I did want to finish. I texted Emily, who had driven me over the week before on a Tuesday, her usual day off, to see if she could drive over this Tuesday (day 8) and bail me out. She wasn’t available and I took that as a sign to figure out a way to continue. I then texted my friend Anne, who lives about ten minutes south of Pinkham Notch, and she was willing to host me for the day and night on Tuesday while I planned my next move.
After a hot breakfast at Pinkham Tuesday morning, I decided to head out the Old Jackson Road (AT), cross the Auto Road, and take in the (probably socked in) views of the Great Gulf from Lowe’s Bald Spot. This would allow me to set foot in the Great Gulf Wilderness with minimal effort (it’s a gradual climb, and I could just take a few safety items rather than my full pack). I figured that would allow me more route options if I had checked the Great Gulf off my Wilderness list.
Turns out, I was in such a hurry to hustle up and down this mission that I ended up booking it about a mile up the Raymond Path before I realized I had completely blown past that trail intersection (one I had navigated many times over) and wouldn’t be making it to the Great Gulf today as I needed to hurry back for check-out time at Joe Dodge Lodge and my ride into Jackson.
I spent the day napping, weighing my next moves for my route, drying out gear and eating Indian food take-out. I had a lovely night’s sleep on the couch out of the rain thanks to Anne’s hospitality.
Day 9 (Wednesday)- Auto Road to Old Jackson Road to Auto Road to Madison Gulf Trail to Great Gulf Trail to Rt 16 to 19 Mile Brook Trail- 10.5 miles
After much hemming and hawing over the continuing bad forecast, I decided one more night inside was called for and booked a night at the Carter Notch Hut. I got my food resupply this morning (we picked it up on our way to the trailhead, so I could leave what I didn’t need from shortening my route with Anne).
Since I hadn’t made it to the Great Gulf yesterday, and because I really wanted to see more of the Gulf than just Lowe’s, I decided to hike through it this morning. I didn’t want to start at Pinkham and retrace most of my steps form yesterday up Old Jackson Road, so I paid for Anne to drive me up the Auto road and drop me there! Yes, I paid a lot to avoid re-hiking 1.5 miles. ($50+ to hike 1.5 miles less). I darted down from the auto-road to that silly Raymond Path junction I’d missed, then back to the Auto Road where I grabbed my pack and headed into the Great Gulf.
I’d heard from AT hikers that the river crossing before (from this direction) the West Branch of the Peabody was sketchy but doable which was exactly what I found. The water was roaring under the West Branch of the Peabody and I’ve never been so thankful for a bridge (which I know is a topic of hot debate when it comes to the management of Wilderness areas).
Mostly the rain held off this morning, and it was almost sunny when I had lunch in the Great Gulf parking lot before my road walk to 19 Mile Brook Trail. This trail is outside the wilderness so all of the crossings have bridges, but one was somewhat washed out- just one flattened log to balance on while two laid askew below it. The hike was uneventful and I was pleased to arrive at the hut as the skies were opening up for a downpour. Had I hiked in from Pinkham instead of the Auto Road, I’d have gotten much wetter. I felt solid on my decisions to continue AND my decisions to modify my route.
My original route had been to head from the Great Gulf up to Imp camp, via the Imp Trail, before jettting into the Wild River Wilderness (I would’ve explored the Moriah Trail but that seemed unsafe in high water). Given the weather and my evolving plans to avoid the worst of it, lower elevation Carter Notch now fit much better with my goals.
The hut croo was lovely and I shared a delicious pulled pork dinner with 3 other hikers. They were all set on bagging the 4000 footers, and similar to the other hikers I met at Jo Dodge Lodge, weren’t really familiar with where I was heading. That highlights just how special these wilderness areas are- so close to busy sought after peaks and yet still relatively unknown. Unlike the BWCA, where the Wilderness IS the popular place in the Superior National Forest, here it is the peaks that draw folks to the White Mountain National Forest. Save for the bits of Wilderness that lead to those peaks, the rest of the Wilderness feels much wilder, especially my last two Wilderness Areas to visit, the only two with NO 4000 footers inside them.
I was pleased to talk to one hut croo member who DID have some knowledge of the Wild River Wilderness and had even hiked the Eagle Link trail a couple of years ago. I picked his brains about how the river crossings might be, and felt confident in heading on the next day.
Keep Reading: Day 10-11 The Finale
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