The Whites

They told us from the beginning that the White Mountains in New Hampshire were going to be the toughest part of this 2200 mile journey. Shuttle drivers laughed when they picked us up saying, “yup…until now you’ve done 80% of the miles but only 20% of the effort, welcome to the Whites!!” The hiking here has been one of concern for both of us, not only is it the highest elevation changes climbing 14 of the 48 peaks that rise over 4,000 in elevation, but many are above tree line and therefore subject to severe and extreme weather conditions and the weather can change in just moments.

Our first big climb was Moosilauke. The ascent was pretty brutal, not in terms of rough terrain but rather a very steep and long ascent. We made it close to the summit but put up for the evening as the rain started and temps dropped. Early the next morning, after our long and grueling climb the previous day, we summited and were rewarded with 50 mph winds and thick fog. But that was nothing compared to the descent the next day with its steep and rocky trail that was dangerously wet from the previous night’s rainfall. Nearing the bottom, waterfalls greeted us at every tricky turn so we were further slowed by numerous photo ops.

The next summits were North and South Kinsman which we had the opportunity to slack pack the 16 miles. From the start we were delayed by…you guessed it…trail magic!! Who can pass up bacon and pancakes?

Salmon, a fellow hiker, was joining us through the Whites. We assumed the 16 miles slacking would be doable but midway through our day, it was proven to us how quickly the Whites can slow you down. Despite some beautiful weather, the climbs were challenging due to the muddy trails, rock scrambles and steep terrain. But at least here we were afforded stunning views!

After reaching the summit there were still 8 miles to go so we had to keep moving. The descent was continued mud and hand over hand rock scrambles. We pushed the pace but missed our 7 pm shuttle. Thankfully, we are able to arrange a pickup from Quiet Riot who had finished the hike earlier that day. We finished at 8:30 that night by the light of our headlamps long after trail madness and giddiness had set in.

The next few days were spent reaching the summits of Lafayette, Lincoln, Garfield and South Twin. These are reached first by hiking along the Franconia Ridge which offers some of the most beautiful views of the Whites as you hike along a few miles of alpine ridge line. We hit the trail by early afternoon and set up base camp midway through the climb.

Early the next morning we ascended the ridge in a mass of…FOG!! There were high winds and limited visibility but it was surreal to be walking along the ridge line.

During our lunch break we met up with Flash. It was great to be reunited with her after several weeks. She joined us on our continued trek to Garfield and as the day progressed the skies cleared. By the time we arrived at Garfield, we could see clearly back over to Franconia Ridge and the views did not disappoint!!!

After some celebration at Garfield we stopped at the Garfield Hut to warm up a bit and grab a pastry. We were still a few miles from our intended destination, again, the hiking is tedious and slow. We had one more summit to the top of South Twin and afterwards would look for a stealth site to camp for the night. What we didn’t expect was the the .8 mile climb from the hut to the South Twin summit would literally take our breath away.

What becomes hard to manage is your need to keep moving before daylight is gone but today it didn’t matter. We took it in, relished on the moment and gave the 360 view the regard it deserved. And guess what? Because of that, the final 30 minutes of the hiking that day was by headlamp and we were graced with the most amazing sunset we had seen on trail to date. What we’ve learned is expect the unexpected and patience will always be rewarded.

The next day we descended, just over 11 miles and most all of us managed to slip or fall in the very last mile. Perhaps this was because we were rushing as one of Flash’s friends Meg, and her husband Dave, were going to host us that evening in their home. The thought of food, showers, clean clothes and good company spurred us to a heightened pace. No serious injuries ensued thankfully and we enjoyed a lovely evening together celebrating our halfway mark through the Whites.

So now it gets real…our summit up Washington. At 6,288 feet in elevation it is the tallest peak in the Northeast and home of the world‘s worst weather ever recorded. We had been feeling pretty brazen since we had covered some rigorous climbs thus far but Washington is THE ONE.

First night we hiked in about 7 miles over Mt Pierce and Jackson, ate a big dinner and set up camp at Mizpah Hut. We got on trail at 6 am the following morning and most of the morning was pretty wet and foggy. We had no preconceived notions that we would get any views off Washington, summiting it was enough. We stopped at Lake of the Clouds Hut on the way for a bowl of soup and could barely see the lake. The miles of climbing up the top were very much like a stair master…large stone steps, unevenly placed but large and stable enough to navigate. We finally arrived at the summit…still fogged in, brisk and breezy.

The summit of Mt. Washington can also be accessed via an auto road where tourists can drive to the top, so despite our hard earned effort, it was bedlam at the top as tourists raided the gift shops and cafeteria snd created a line for a summit picture. Ugh! Those muggles!!

We quickly got our obligatory summit shot, met Salmon for lunch and then departed. And remember to expect the unexpected? As we began our descent down, the clouds circled lazily in the breeze up and over the mountain tops offering sneak peeks onto the ridges and patches of blue skies. Within the next hour the sky opened up fully and we sat ourselves on the trail and took in the views.

And as quickly as we were offered some vistas, beauty and calm, the weather began to shift and rains set in. By early evening we had not made it to our intended destination so decided to stay at one of the mountain huts for the evening. They are fairly expensive but we did not feel like setting our tents up in the cold rain and we figured we deserved it because WE SUMMITED MT WASHINGTON !!!

The next morning at breakfast we received the weather report briefing. Rains and high winds were expected that day and hikers were discouraged from being on mountain summits. So what did we do? We got an early start and we crossed over Mt. Madison to begin our descent off the mountain. The attached video says it all…it was the craziest few miles…exhilarating, scary, windy, rocky, wet and cold. After almost two hours we were never so happy to descend below tree line even if it meant we spent the remainder of our day slogging through water as the final 6 miles of trail was transformed to a river running the entire length of the mountain.

The remainder of the Whites were the Wildcat Mountains…it contained 5 mountain summits along a ridge line that was easier to navigate as it was below tree line but required some of the more intense rock climbs. Katniss as usual, took it all in stride.

The Wildcats were two long hard days but we had the confidence of having traversed the majority of the Whites already and that goes a long way. we enjoyed the beautiful lakes, the old friends we met along the way and looked forward to a very dear friend meeting up with us on trail…none other than PEEPS!!!!

If you recall, Peeps had joined us for two weekend back in NC and the Smokies. She drove up from PA to meet us on trail and spend a zero (day off from hiking) with us. I’m not sure she expected the swarms of hikers that hit her up for a ride to town and back to trail! What a great treat to spend the day together and reunite with some old trail friends too!!

We are now about 16 miles from the Maine border. They say southern Maine is as hard as the Whites but we kicked some ass there so we are gonna go into Maine with confidence and courage. We have done some pretty hard things so we have no doubts in completing the next 300 miles of this journey. Thanks for being part of the journey…❤️💪🥾

With a heart full of gratitude, we got this!!