do_truancy
New member
September 5th, Labor Day Weekend
Presidential Traverse backwards:
Weather Conditions: Early morning fog and some clouds that burned off into a crystal clear day. It seemed to me the winds increased throughout the day but that could have been due to steady elevation gain as we hiked the traverse backwards, going up during the day.
Major Trails: Webster-Jackson trail -to- Crawford path –Gulfslide trail and out –Daniel Webster trail...(a Webster sandwich hike).
Mountain Peaks: Jackson, Pierce, Eisenhower, Franklin, little and big Monroe, Washington, Clay, Jefferson, Adams and Madison. And yes little Monroe is worthy!
**********************************************************
It was Swamp, UCF & I that left Barnes field and flew (!) to the highland center to fuel up with the all you can eat breakfast before setting on trail around 9. As we were heading out Pete (who I met doing owls head the weekend before and is a hike worthy of a trip report) joined us. We made good time up to the top of Jackson. We paused long enough to share a beer before hiking down. Took a pit stop at the Mitzpah Hut before cruising up and over Pierce and then on to Eisenhower. The views were spectacular and given that it was a holiday weekend the crowns were few.
We stopped and I had some lunch on the downwind side of Eisenhower looking down at the lakes. As we started down I managed to twist my ankle by stepping on NOTHING!!! It was a first for me and it felt odd not to be able to control the placement of my foot. In short order it seemed OK and I choose not to look. . Pete and Swamp started to outpace us as we walked over Franklin and the Monroe’s.
At this point we were keeping a look out for Farmer and his run to break the Presi record. We weren’t disappointed. As we were climbing up Franklin (I think), Farmer came streaming down! Looking Good Too!! He paused to say hi and shared his time...and it seemed possible that he was going to break the record. After that I was MORE than a little puzzled how ANYONE can run over the rocks of the Northern Presi’s. We climbed little and big Monroe before catching up with the waiting Swamp and Pete at the Lake in the Clouds hut.
Swamp and Pete took off before we did not wanting to wait to find out if UCF was effective in scoring hot-out-of-the-oven-chocolate-chip-cookies--- for me it was worth waiting for. On our scramble up Mt Washington we passed a couple with a yellow lab that had cut all his paws and was refusing to take another step (smart pup-dumb peeps). I ended up wrapping the worst of the paws in a large mole skin pad and white tape before handing over three other pads and tape, assuming they would cover the rest. Looking back the ‘he’ was trying to carry the dog and had not covered the other paws...poor pup.
I was completely shocked at what I saw at the top of Washington. It was a ZOO! After waiting in line to take a peak photo, we joined Pete and Swamp for some pizza and beer. We ran into Big Earl, Sue and Steve who were doing the traverse from north to south--we were all in the restaurant around 2:30ish. Too weird! Again Pete and Swamp struck out and we stayed behind chatting, about 15 min longer.
OK NOW it was getting serious. Coming off MT Washington UFC skipped the trail and just went over the rocks. I was astonished at how much concentration it was taking me to pick my way through the rocks....and how the hell does one run over this? When we got to the trail it was just the same ---there was no trail! There were barely detectible piles of more rock ---may as well have been bread crumbs. The wind was howling at this elevation and I had to pull on more layers.
Now UFC was moving out on me because he had to get down and out of the more intense wind so as not to get to cold. And yes it looked to me like he was running! I was too aware of the potential for re-twisting my ankle to increase my speed. This region is special –in all my hikes this summer, I had never encountered such endless craggy body-eating boulder fields.
We went up and over Clay and then up Jefferson without trouble. At the top of Jefferson we met two guys who told us that Pete and Swamp were about 30mins ahead of us...they had made 15 min on us.
Going up seemed much more comfortable then down and so I carefully picked my way down from Jefferson. We walked past my favorite carin of the whole 48 Thunderstorm Junction. I fell in love with that big, sturdy and enthusiastically stacked cairn!
Now it was up the big boy Adams. I could ‘speed up’ on the up and speed was needed if I was going to get to see the sunset (the trail was on the eastern side of the peak). We paused at the peak for a moment to enjoy this blessed beautiful earth with the sun beginning to set and the shadows growing long. Then it was down again—As I was just climbing carefully down from Adams, and again UFC easily scurry down to get out of the worst of the cold wind, I was at the perfect place to see the moon rise JUST as the sun was slipping below the horizon. I yelled into the wind for UCF but at his elevation he could not yet see the moon. The long red rays of the sun were reflected in the moon making it glow red- Most definitively a moment of perfect alignment.
It was around 8 when we opened the door to the Madison hut to find some WONDERFUL friends with a keg, chips and brownies, cheers, support and general good spirits. I had never been in a hut at this time of day – the time of day when there were people settled in for the night. It was such a cheery warm place!
We enjoyed the warmth and company for about 30 min and then we donned our warmer clothes and head lamps and headed out for the final peak- Madison. It was great! It was fun to just follow UCF head lamp and not have to navigate. In what seemed no time at all we were at the final peak- my final 48!
Just over the peak and out of the wind we took a moment to enjoy the full moon. AND then it was time to get ‘home’ to the fire!
About a mile down we met Dave Bear heading up. He turned around and helped me get down with his cheerful banter. The Daniel Webster trail was true to the region by being challenging with the boulders and like any of the trails that head out from a long hike --- it seemed endless. I was so very, very tired at this point. This hike handed all the humility I needed!
As we approached Barnes Field a few hoots were released and there was nothing better than hearing the return hoots. I removed my shoes and took my first look at the ankle, just a lump about the size of an egg, nothing that ice a little rest and some compression won’t heal. We hung out at the fire for a few hours partying and refueling with good company and Dave Bears’ grilled sweet meat. IT was around 3am when I headed to my bed—what a truly awesome day! Thank you all for sharing
Fantastic Final 48 Kicked!
Presidential Traverse backwards:
Weather Conditions: Early morning fog and some clouds that burned off into a crystal clear day. It seemed to me the winds increased throughout the day but that could have been due to steady elevation gain as we hiked the traverse backwards, going up during the day.
Major Trails: Webster-Jackson trail -to- Crawford path –Gulfslide trail and out –Daniel Webster trail...(a Webster sandwich hike).
Mountain Peaks: Jackson, Pierce, Eisenhower, Franklin, little and big Monroe, Washington, Clay, Jefferson, Adams and Madison. And yes little Monroe is worthy!
**********************************************************
It was Swamp, UCF & I that left Barnes field and flew (!) to the highland center to fuel up with the all you can eat breakfast before setting on trail around 9. As we were heading out Pete (who I met doing owls head the weekend before and is a hike worthy of a trip report) joined us. We made good time up to the top of Jackson. We paused long enough to share a beer before hiking down. Took a pit stop at the Mitzpah Hut before cruising up and over Pierce and then on to Eisenhower. The views were spectacular and given that it was a holiday weekend the crowns were few.
We stopped and I had some lunch on the downwind side of Eisenhower looking down at the lakes. As we started down I managed to twist my ankle by stepping on NOTHING!!! It was a first for me and it felt odd not to be able to control the placement of my foot. In short order it seemed OK and I choose not to look. . Pete and Swamp started to outpace us as we walked over Franklin and the Monroe’s.
At this point we were keeping a look out for Farmer and his run to break the Presi record. We weren’t disappointed. As we were climbing up Franklin (I think), Farmer came streaming down! Looking Good Too!! He paused to say hi and shared his time...and it seemed possible that he was going to break the record. After that I was MORE than a little puzzled how ANYONE can run over the rocks of the Northern Presi’s. We climbed little and big Monroe before catching up with the waiting Swamp and Pete at the Lake in the Clouds hut.
Swamp and Pete took off before we did not wanting to wait to find out if UCF was effective in scoring hot-out-of-the-oven-chocolate-chip-cookies--- for me it was worth waiting for. On our scramble up Mt Washington we passed a couple with a yellow lab that had cut all his paws and was refusing to take another step (smart pup-dumb peeps). I ended up wrapping the worst of the paws in a large mole skin pad and white tape before handing over three other pads and tape, assuming they would cover the rest. Looking back the ‘he’ was trying to carry the dog and had not covered the other paws...poor pup.
I was completely shocked at what I saw at the top of Washington. It was a ZOO! After waiting in line to take a peak photo, we joined Pete and Swamp for some pizza and beer. We ran into Big Earl, Sue and Steve who were doing the traverse from north to south--we were all in the restaurant around 2:30ish. Too weird! Again Pete and Swamp struck out and we stayed behind chatting, about 15 min longer.
OK NOW it was getting serious. Coming off MT Washington UFC skipped the trail and just went over the rocks. I was astonished at how much concentration it was taking me to pick my way through the rocks....and how the hell does one run over this? When we got to the trail it was just the same ---there was no trail! There were barely detectible piles of more rock ---may as well have been bread crumbs. The wind was howling at this elevation and I had to pull on more layers.
Now UFC was moving out on me because he had to get down and out of the more intense wind so as not to get to cold. And yes it looked to me like he was running! I was too aware of the potential for re-twisting my ankle to increase my speed. This region is special –in all my hikes this summer, I had never encountered such endless craggy body-eating boulder fields.
We went up and over Clay and then up Jefferson without trouble. At the top of Jefferson we met two guys who told us that Pete and Swamp were about 30mins ahead of us...they had made 15 min on us.
Going up seemed much more comfortable then down and so I carefully picked my way down from Jefferson. We walked past my favorite carin of the whole 48 Thunderstorm Junction. I fell in love with that big, sturdy and enthusiastically stacked cairn!
Now it was up the big boy Adams. I could ‘speed up’ on the up and speed was needed if I was going to get to see the sunset (the trail was on the eastern side of the peak). We paused at the peak for a moment to enjoy this blessed beautiful earth with the sun beginning to set and the shadows growing long. Then it was down again—As I was just climbing carefully down from Adams, and again UFC easily scurry down to get out of the worst of the cold wind, I was at the perfect place to see the moon rise JUST as the sun was slipping below the horizon. I yelled into the wind for UCF but at his elevation he could not yet see the moon. The long red rays of the sun were reflected in the moon making it glow red- Most definitively a moment of perfect alignment.
It was around 8 when we opened the door to the Madison hut to find some WONDERFUL friends with a keg, chips and brownies, cheers, support and general good spirits. I had never been in a hut at this time of day – the time of day when there were people settled in for the night. It was such a cheery warm place!
We enjoyed the warmth and company for about 30 min and then we donned our warmer clothes and head lamps and headed out for the final peak- Madison. It was great! It was fun to just follow UCF head lamp and not have to navigate. In what seemed no time at all we were at the final peak- my final 48!
Just over the peak and out of the wind we took a moment to enjoy the full moon. AND then it was time to get ‘home’ to the fire!
About a mile down we met Dave Bear heading up. He turned around and helped me get down with his cheerful banter. The Daniel Webster trail was true to the region by being challenging with the boulders and like any of the trails that head out from a long hike --- it seemed endless. I was so very, very tired at this point. This hike handed all the humility I needed!
As we approached Barnes Field a few hoots were released and there was nothing better than hearing the return hoots. I removed my shoes and took my first look at the ankle, just a lump about the size of an egg, nothing that ice a little rest and some compression won’t heal. We hung out at the fire for a few hours partying and refueling with good company and Dave Bears’ grilled sweet meat. IT was around 3am when I headed to my bed—what a truly awesome day! Thank you all for sharing
Fantastic Final 48 Kicked!
