StaceyM
New member
Hi everybody - this is my first real post on VFTT. This was our big hike of the summer so it's a little long. Rather than include pictures, if you're interested you can find them here.
Day 1:
Our original plan on Wednesday was to hike up Valley Way to Madison, continue on to Adams and Jefferson, skip the crowds on Washington, and spend the night at Lakes of the Clouds hut. Then Thursday we’d continue on through the southern Presidentials and come out at Crawford Notch where we’d catch the hiker shuttle back to our car.
The advantage of staying at the hut is we could lighten our loads and enjoy multiple days above treeline. The disadvantage is that we were locked into a particular day and therefore at the mercy of the weather. So when we woke up Wednesday morning and the forecast at the Mt. Washington Observatory predicted thunderstorms and hurricane force winds starting around 1:00, we decided to alter our route so we could be sure to get to the hut before the weather rolled in.
We figured we still had time to do about half the route so we decided to hike up Caps Ridge Trail to Jefferson and continue on with the plan from there. On our way to the trailhead we stopped at the AMC Highland Center to figure out how much of a road walk we’d have to do to get back to our car. I was surprised when the AMC employee told us to stick with our original route despite the weather forecast, and later on I was glad that we didn’t listen to him. I hope no one took his advice, which I thought was pretty reckless.
Anyway, we parked the car and hit the trail, cursing the remaining black flies, but enjoying the beautiful weather during the first half the day. We hadn’t been up Caps Ridge before, and we had a great time on the Caps with terrific views. The winds picked up a little bit when we reached the summit of Jefferson and we started to make our way along Gulfside Trail towards Clay and Washington. The views looking back were awesome, and we were grateful to get half a day of clear weather.
As we picked up Westside Trail, Wes got his photo taken by some cog passengers and after they passed, he checked out the rails more closely.The weather was still beautiful when we made it to the hut, so after claiming our bunks for the night we poked around the lakes and revisted Mt. Monroe. While we were up there, we could hear the impending thunder so we hiked back down to watch the storm come in from the safety of the hut.
The storms didn’t really hit the summits until about 3:30 or so, but I was still glad we decided to play it safe and cut the hike short. The winds and rain kicked up and the fog made visibility poor, but we enjoyed a warm dinner in the hut. There was an AT hiker at our table and I had heard about “hiker hunger”, but I have never seen someone eat that much ham in one sitting! The discussion mostly revolved around the weather, which was forecasted to be clear and sunny the next morning. After dinner we retreated to our bunk room, which we shared with a family of All-Star snorers. Thank goodness for ear plugs!
Day 2:
I woke up at about 6:00 to wind whistling through the crack in our window which revealed a wall of fog…so much for good weather! Oh well, breakfast was hearty and we layered up for the 37° wind chill. MWOBS was predicting the temps would drop throughout the day so we wanted to get going. Luckily, Crawford Path is a piece of cake to follow even when you can’t see much. Occasionally the sun tried to poke through the clouds. It started to clear up a bit as we made our way to Eisenhower and every now and then we’d get fleeting views as the clouds were swept over the mountains. The loop over Eisenhower is really nice. Annoying guy at the Highland Center aside, I definitely have to give AMC credit for some great trail work.
The skies mostly cleared up once we hiked over to Pierce, and by the time we made it back to Crawford Notch it turned out to be a beautiful day. Wes was a good sport and took the shuttle to the Ammonoosuc trailhead from which he hiked/road walked a bonus 2.5 miles back to the car while I hung out at the Highland Center and enjoyed the views. We were bummed on Wednesday to have to change our plans, but in the end we really enjoyed Caps Ridge Trail and had a great couple of days in the Whites!
Day 1:
Our original plan on Wednesday was to hike up Valley Way to Madison, continue on to Adams and Jefferson, skip the crowds on Washington, and spend the night at Lakes of the Clouds hut. Then Thursday we’d continue on through the southern Presidentials and come out at Crawford Notch where we’d catch the hiker shuttle back to our car.
The advantage of staying at the hut is we could lighten our loads and enjoy multiple days above treeline. The disadvantage is that we were locked into a particular day and therefore at the mercy of the weather. So when we woke up Wednesday morning and the forecast at the Mt. Washington Observatory predicted thunderstorms and hurricane force winds starting around 1:00, we decided to alter our route so we could be sure to get to the hut before the weather rolled in.
We figured we still had time to do about half the route so we decided to hike up Caps Ridge Trail to Jefferson and continue on with the plan from there. On our way to the trailhead we stopped at the AMC Highland Center to figure out how much of a road walk we’d have to do to get back to our car. I was surprised when the AMC employee told us to stick with our original route despite the weather forecast, and later on I was glad that we didn’t listen to him. I hope no one took his advice, which I thought was pretty reckless.
Anyway, we parked the car and hit the trail, cursing the remaining black flies, but enjoying the beautiful weather during the first half the day. We hadn’t been up Caps Ridge before, and we had a great time on the Caps with terrific views. The winds picked up a little bit when we reached the summit of Jefferson and we started to make our way along Gulfside Trail towards Clay and Washington. The views looking back were awesome, and we were grateful to get half a day of clear weather.
As we picked up Westside Trail, Wes got his photo taken by some cog passengers and after they passed, he checked out the rails more closely.The weather was still beautiful when we made it to the hut, so after claiming our bunks for the night we poked around the lakes and revisted Mt. Monroe. While we were up there, we could hear the impending thunder so we hiked back down to watch the storm come in from the safety of the hut.
The storms didn’t really hit the summits until about 3:30 or so, but I was still glad we decided to play it safe and cut the hike short. The winds and rain kicked up and the fog made visibility poor, but we enjoyed a warm dinner in the hut. There was an AT hiker at our table and I had heard about “hiker hunger”, but I have never seen someone eat that much ham in one sitting! The discussion mostly revolved around the weather, which was forecasted to be clear and sunny the next morning. After dinner we retreated to our bunk room, which we shared with a family of All-Star snorers. Thank goodness for ear plugs!
Day 2:
I woke up at about 6:00 to wind whistling through the crack in our window which revealed a wall of fog…so much for good weather! Oh well, breakfast was hearty and we layered up for the 37° wind chill. MWOBS was predicting the temps would drop throughout the day so we wanted to get going. Luckily, Crawford Path is a piece of cake to follow even when you can’t see much. Occasionally the sun tried to poke through the clouds. It started to clear up a bit as we made our way to Eisenhower and every now and then we’d get fleeting views as the clouds were swept over the mountains. The loop over Eisenhower is really nice. Annoying guy at the Highland Center aside, I definitely have to give AMC credit for some great trail work.
The skies mostly cleared up once we hiked over to Pierce, and by the time we made it back to Crawford Notch it turned out to be a beautiful day. Wes was a good sport and took the shuttle to the Ammonoosuc trailhead from which he hiked/road walked a bonus 2.5 miles back to the car while I hung out at the Highland Center and enjoyed the views. We were bummed on Wednesday to have to change our plans, but in the end we really enjoyed Caps Ridge Trail and had a great couple of days in the Whites!
