Nauman Campsite to Mt. Washington

Day Eighteen
Saturday, June 15, 2019
Nauman Campsite to Mt. Washington
6.1 Miles

Today we met Mariposa.  She tented across the trail from us in the campsite but was up and gone before use.  We caught up to her at the Mt. Eisenhower Junction.  She hiked the from there to Mt. Washington with us.  She is a delightful 70’ish solo hiker (with a lot of nerve, in my opinion).  Her husband hiked some of the lower A.T. with her, but no longer enjoys it so he supports her while she is finishing it up.  He camps at nearby campsites and picks her up at trailheads along the way. 

The trail was very moderate immediately after Mizpah Spring Hut there are two ladders and some rock climbing to do.  Then it was very good and easier than any we have had in awhile.  Lots of people were coming south off of Mt. Washington.  It was a beautiful day.

As we approached Mt. Washington at 12:00 we say LOTS of people there.  We found out there was an 8-mile run happening coming up the auto road.  The road was, of course, closed to auto traffic and it was 1:45 before the shuttles were able to take us to the bottom.   So much for a short day. 

We called Bruce when we started down and he met us at the visitor center.  Of course, our first stop was Walmart, then to Royalty Inn.  We had called Top Notch Inn again for a room but unfortunately they were full because of Biker’s Week.  Royalty Inn was a little higher, but it was close to Mr. Pizza’s where we had a good dinner.  After doing our laundry we called it a night.  

YouTube of Nauman Campsite to Mt. Washington

 

Mt. Washington to Madison Spring Hut

Day Fifteen
Wednesday, June 15, 2019
Mt. Washington to Madison Spring Hut
5.7 miles

Bruce picked us up at the Top Notch Hotel and took us to the Mt. Washington Visitor Center.  Since we will be staying at the hut tonight, we left a lot of our stuff with Bruce and carried a lighter pack.  We caught the first shuttle up the auto road to the top of Mt. Washington.  We were second in line at the Mt. Washington sign for our picture.  It was 32 degrees and wind at 55 mph. 

We had a muffin and hot chocolate/coffee in the café, then started out on the rocky trail toward Madison Spring Hut.  The trail was, of course, mostly jumbled rocks but it would dip every so often into a small wooded area for a short time.  Black flies were very bad, causing knots to form on my neck and wrists.  We had fun walking over a short patch of snow on the trail. The views were spectacular above treeline and we often looked back toward Mt. Washington, a landmark that we had looked forward to for a long time.  The clear skies gave us an excellent view.  Just before Madison Spring Hut the rocks got flatter and easier to maneuver.

We arrived there at the hut at 5:00 p.m.  We were assigned a room where we could pick out our bunk.  We placed our stuff on our selected bunk and went in search of the bathroom/washroom.  Dinner was at 6:00, served by “the croo,”  consisting of  pulled  pork, lentil soup, bread, salad, peas, couscous, applesauce cake.  An excellent meal.  We sat at the table with all sorts of visitors, all at our table were short term hikers, not coming in on the A.T.  We did see some work-for-stay hikers come in later who slept in the dining room and worked through breakfast the next morning.  WOW was one of them.  (We met him back at Lincoln.)  He had taken a bad fall coming off Mt. Washington and had scraped his arm up pretty bad on the rocks.  He told us  Silver Streak, after having gone several days without xrays on his pinky, had finally gone to the doctor and had to have surgery to put pins in his pinky.  That ended his hike.  

We were in our bunk by 7:30 and we awakened the next morning at 6:30 with a song from one of the croo members. Breakfast was at 7:00 – oatmeal, eggs, bacon, pancakes and coffee.  Another excellent meal.

We were in our bunk by 7:30 and we awakened the next morning at 6:30 with a song from one of the croo members.   Breakfast was at 7:00 – oatmeal, eggs, bacon, pancakes and coffee.  Another excellent meal.

YouTube of Mt. Washington to Madison Spring Hut