We left my parent’s house a bit after 6 this morning to head back to the trail. My mom and dad drove us back to Pinkham notch, but we did stop for a nice breakfast in Saint Johnsbury on the way. We hit the trail just before 11am, and began the final 300 or so miles of this journey. We have no more zero days planned, and no more dates to hit. As we stepped off onto the trail today we felt like we were finally getting back to our thru hike, and that we are on the last leg of it.
The climb out of Pinkham notch was pretty brutal. We first walked along a pond and stream, which was surrounded by boulders and rocks. And then the actual climb was steep and about 3 miles long. It just never really let up. As tough as it was, it was pretty fun and interesting. We stopped on top of Wildcat mountain to eat some food and rest, and to take in the incredible view of the presidential range just across the notch.
After lunch, and hiking the Wildcat ridge, we lost about 1200 feet of elevation on our way to the Carter Notch hut, which is sadly the last of the AMC huts in Whites. We hung out for a bit, mainly to refill water and use the toilets. Then we headed right back out to climb up the other side of the notch to Carter Dome, the highest peak on the Carter Ridge. We hiked about a mile further to Mount Hight, where we found a nice little tent spot just below the treeline.
We cooked dinner up on the summit, where we had full 360 degree views as we ate. It was a nice way to get back out on the trail, and a nice reminder of why we’re still doing this and enjoying it. Not everyone gets to spend the evening cooking on a mountain top with far reaching views of majestic mountains and valleys. It’s going to be a clear night, but a cool one. Even so, we’re going to leave the rain fly halfway off in the hopes of getting some nice stars.
Spectacular views! We’re almost there…thanks for taking us along.