"For a little while we are able to see as a child sees, a world of marvels. For a few moments we discover that nothing can be taken for granted... and our journey here on earth, able to see and touch and hear in the midst of tangible and mysterious things-in-themselves, is the most strange and daring of all adventures." - Edward Abbey
I survived! (Barely) My foray into the Presidential Range of the White Mountains in New Hampshire was without doubt more difficult than I expected. I’m glad that I planned beforehand but I still have much to learn about backpacking.
My first day was the best of the trip, as one can guess.
Fresh legs and beautiful weather contribute greatly to a feeling of peace and
adventure. I got a late start because of road construction delays, but still
managed to get everything situated and hike 7 miles to Mt. Eisenhower Trail as
planned. Along the way I climbed three mountains on the AMC list and stopped at
the beautiful Mizpah Spring hut.
The initial view I had from the top of Mt. Jackson literally
took my breath away. I had forgotten the feeling of being totally inconsequential
when compared to the vastness of the wilderness you are staring out across. I
just had to laugh a little bit at the thought of it. Absolute gorgeousness preserved solely for the enjoyment of
that moment; space that hopefully will exist and inspire awe in generations to
come.
As I hiked on, the weather turned foggy and gave a surreal
effect to the last 2 hours of hiking- knowing that hundreds of feet had walked
before me, but not seeing a single person. My campsite for the night was a
not-so-stealthy stealth site about 0.1 miles down the Mt. Eisenhower trail. I slept well in my
Eno Hammock despite temperatures falling into the mid 30’s during the night.
Luckily I had been informed prior to heading out about a phenomenon called Cold
Butt Syndrome (CBS) and had prepared by bringing a cheap foam pad for
insulation.
The next morning I woke bright and early and headed back to
the main ridge trail to continue toward Mt. Washington. I had planned 12 miles
on my itinerary, according to the information I had gathered through hiking
forums, guidebooks and by looking at the topography on the map.
After summiting Mt. Washington- home of crowds and
stupidity- it looked as though the trail would be a relatively quick hike,
following the ridge and descending slowly. Assuming this was the case I took a
lunch break at the summit of Washington and lingered letting my legs take a
break as well as refreshing my water supply and ditching some unneeded food.
Unfortunately I was wrong about the North side of the
mountain being easy and was instead faced with about 3 hours of rock hopping
through a continuous boulder field.
I would not have made it to Valley Way tent site as planned if not for the help of a thru hiker named Heartwood. It is amazing what
good conversation can do for a flagging spirit. Meeting her gave me enough
energy to go on and I reached Valley Way about thirty minutes after sunset. The
0.6 miles from Madison Spring Hut seemed impossibly long and there were moments
when I wondered if I had passed it in the dark. I can’t describe the relief I
felt when I saw headlamps in the distance and realized I had finally found the
site. I set up my camp as quickly as possible and fell into bed immediately.
I slept in the next morning and descended the 3.8 miles to
the Appalachia parking area uneventfully. From there I received a ride back to
highland center by a very kind hiker and her daughter, who turned out to be
from the same town in New York that I’m from.
This trip had been on my bucket list for while, and I’m glad
I completed it successfully. It was challenging and pushed my limits to near
breaking at points, but once I had finished I had the desire to return to those
moments on the mountains.
Final count- 3 days, 23 miles and 8 mountains.
