8/11/01
Last night was a perfect sleeping night in crisp, cool air with a slight breeze at tent level and a strong breeze blowing he conifers above us. Our campsite was surrounded by dense forest of fir trees and moss covered rocks and logs. I was so pumped up by our sunset and night visit to the exposed summit of Liberty Mtn., I actually listened to the radio until after midnight before going to sleep. We packed up and hit the trail around 9 a.m. It was only a half mile up before we rose above treeline at 4400' and entered the spectacular Franconia Ridge walk, which is so famous and popular on the AT. We had intentionally stayed in N. Woodstock yesterday to wait for the front to clear and the result was a perfect blue sky and no haze to traverse the awesome ridge. First we crossed Little Haystack, stopping to take in the views and to snap photos. Then we crossed Mt. Lincoln on the ridge and reached the summit of Mt. Lafayette around lunch time. We had taken our time, covering three miles in three and a half hours and stopping frequently along the way. We enjoyed lunch at the top of Mt. Lafayette with a 360 degree panoramic view, along with Swagman and Bad Moon who were already there when we summited. There were approximately 50 other day hikers enjoying the gorgeous day at the top as well. Eventually we descended from the Franconia Ridge after lunch, then tackled a steep climb to the top of Mt. Garfield for another gorgeous view of the entire ridge and peaks we had just climbed and crossed.
We weren't done yet, as we descended Garfield, then traversed rugged, but relatively flat trail the next 2 1/2 miles before climbing steeply to the top of South Twin Mountain in the late afternoon sunshine. We enjoyed yet more outstanding views looking toward the Presidential Range with Mt. Washington looming closer with its intimidating 4000' rise to 6288' at the summit. The five of us (Pogo was now with us) continued hiking in search of a good free campsite for the night. We were above treeline, which is off limits for camping, so we continued north across North Twin Mtn. From there we searched in vain for another two miles for a suitable site. The extremely dense vegetation simply didn't allow for tenting despite some nice flat spots along the trail. Finally at 7:30 p.m. we passed a tiny, and I do mean tiny, campsite about 10 yards off the trail, hidden behind dense fir trees. Since none of us wanted to night hike to another viable site a mile farther down the trail, we made the decision to somehow squeeze the five of us into the single cleared spot which normally would hold two tents. As dusk set in, the five of us cooked our dinners so we could repack our cooking gear before laying out a suitable sleeping arrangement. As darkness began to set in, Finn slid into a tiny space between the fir trees. Phantom and I set up two tents, Pogo set up his fly between our two tents, and Redneck set up his bivy next to my tent on the other side. It all worked out well, but we looked like human sardines in a can with a dense forest all around us. There was no place to hang a bear bag, so we all slept with our food. Soon everyone was asleep but me as I listened to the radio and the news for awhile and tried to journal, in vain as fatigue prevented me from concentrating. Finally I turned off the radio after listening to the Portland, ME newscast (we're getting close to Maine, only 80 more miles!). The White Mountains have been as spectacular as they were purported in the AT guidebooks and the last two days have been unbelievably full of great views. The trail remains steep and rugged, but it has been worth the hard work to be rewarded with such a beautiful place. I had no idea that mountains east of the Mississippi were so rugged and stunningly beautiful. It really does look like the Rockies in many places in the Whites. Today was another memorable day on the great journey north to Katahdin. Today's stats: low 49, high 78. Bright and sunny. Today's mileage: 13.9; cumulative mileage 1812.2.
