TDawg
Well-known member
I'll keep this short....
Got dropped off at Pinkham on Friday and took Lost Pond to Wildcat Ridge Trail over the Wildcats and down to Carter Notch Hut for the night, where I was meeting my father and friends (they took the easy way up 19 mile brook). The hike up E was tough with a full pack and down from A was pretty steep as well in spots.
Next morning woke up and explored the Ramparts for a while, observing the colorful early morning sky from a large rock over looking the Wildcat River valley and Jackson, NH. After breakfast took Carter-Moriah up and over CDome to Hight where we were meeting for lunch. I waited for an hour before my father came with his friend Bob. During my time waiting I was feeding a Grey Jay for a half hour or so. Views were incredible all day during this traverse. Continued on through Zeta Pass and over S. Carter, Middle, Lethe, and N. Carter. Views on the ridge before and after Middle Carter were awesome. Decending N. Carter was interesting and made it to Imp shelter where we were staying the night. Made it to Imp in just under 6 hours (including the hour-plus long break at Hight).
At this point I scratched the idea of Moriah for today and decided on catchin the sunrise the next day from it's summit.I was the only one at Imp when I got there and it would be another 2 and a half hours before the rest of my group came along. Being by myself I killed time by filtering water, exploring the site, and taking in the view from the bench. Finally my group made it and we prepared dinner, had some manhattan's and rye whiskey, and I was out by 10pm.
Pics from Wildcats and Carters are here
At Carter Hut I had took a mental note that sunrise was about 6:39 for this day. So I woke up at 4:45am and packed up my tent and gear and was on the trail by 5:20. This was a first for me, hiking in the dark with my headlamp and really enjoyed it. It was a clear morning and the stars were very bright. I was pushing myself pretty hard to get to the summit in time so breaks were minimal and short. Made it to the top of Moriah from Imp in just over an hour, with a full pack, just like the rest of the peaks on this adventure. I had 10 minutes so spare so I just sat down and took it all in.
A perfect morning to watch the sunrise from a gorgeous peak. The sky was full of colors before the sun peaked out and finally, at exactly 6:39, the sun peaked out for the first time. It was absolutly magnificent!! Began taking pictures like a madman because everything looked so beautiful. I was very happy I had gotten up at such an early hour, tired, after two long days of hiking weighed down by a pack.
And still I had Moriah's southern ledges ahead of me that I had already passed, but it had been dark out. These were also very nice and took a few breaks on the way down to enjoy them as well. Got to the last ledge and took a final view for the day before heading down the Stony Brook Trail to NH 16, where I was meeting the others.
All and all the Wildcat and Carter Ranges were awesome, especially the Carters. We couldn't have asked for better weather, crystal clear 3 days in a row. It was my first time doing both ranges and staying at Carter Notch was my first AMC hut as well. And I forgot to mention we basically had the whole place to ourselves, plus one through hiker named Jason and the caretaker, George.
Great Hike...
3 days, 2 nights...20.7 miles and 7000 ft elevation gain
#s 30-36/48 NH 4k footers...gettin there
Moriah Sunrise Pics Here
Incase you missed the first link to Wildcat and Carter Pics
Got dropped off at Pinkham on Friday and took Lost Pond to Wildcat Ridge Trail over the Wildcats and down to Carter Notch Hut for the night, where I was meeting my father and friends (they took the easy way up 19 mile brook). The hike up E was tough with a full pack and down from A was pretty steep as well in spots.
Next morning woke up and explored the Ramparts for a while, observing the colorful early morning sky from a large rock over looking the Wildcat River valley and Jackson, NH. After breakfast took Carter-Moriah up and over CDome to Hight where we were meeting for lunch. I waited for an hour before my father came with his friend Bob. During my time waiting I was feeding a Grey Jay for a half hour or so. Views were incredible all day during this traverse. Continued on through Zeta Pass and over S. Carter, Middle, Lethe, and N. Carter. Views on the ridge before and after Middle Carter were awesome. Decending N. Carter was interesting and made it to Imp shelter where we were staying the night. Made it to Imp in just under 6 hours (including the hour-plus long break at Hight).
At this point I scratched the idea of Moriah for today and decided on catchin the sunrise the next day from it's summit.I was the only one at Imp when I got there and it would be another 2 and a half hours before the rest of my group came along. Being by myself I killed time by filtering water, exploring the site, and taking in the view from the bench. Finally my group made it and we prepared dinner, had some manhattan's and rye whiskey, and I was out by 10pm.
Pics from Wildcats and Carters are here
At Carter Hut I had took a mental note that sunrise was about 6:39 for this day. So I woke up at 4:45am and packed up my tent and gear and was on the trail by 5:20. This was a first for me, hiking in the dark with my headlamp and really enjoyed it. It was a clear morning and the stars were very bright. I was pushing myself pretty hard to get to the summit in time so breaks were minimal and short. Made it to the top of Moriah from Imp in just over an hour, with a full pack, just like the rest of the peaks on this adventure. I had 10 minutes so spare so I just sat down and took it all in.
A perfect morning to watch the sunrise from a gorgeous peak. The sky was full of colors before the sun peaked out and finally, at exactly 6:39, the sun peaked out for the first time. It was absolutly magnificent!! Began taking pictures like a madman because everything looked so beautiful. I was very happy I had gotten up at such an early hour, tired, after two long days of hiking weighed down by a pack.
And still I had Moriah's southern ledges ahead of me that I had already passed, but it had been dark out. These were also very nice and took a few breaks on the way down to enjoy them as well. Got to the last ledge and took a final view for the day before heading down the Stony Brook Trail to NH 16, where I was meeting the others.
All and all the Wildcat and Carter Ranges were awesome, especially the Carters. We couldn't have asked for better weather, crystal clear 3 days in a row. It was my first time doing both ranges and staying at Carter Notch was my first AMC hut as well. And I forgot to mention we basically had the whole place to ourselves, plus one through hiker named Jason and the caretaker, George.
Great Hike...
3 days, 2 nights...20.7 miles and 7000 ft elevation gain
#s 30-36/48 NH 4k footers...gettin there
Moriah Sunrise Pics Here
Incase you missed the first link to Wildcat and Carter Pics
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