So no disrespect to anyone who goes out and runs those obstacle course 5k and 10k things, but you’re wasting your money. The hike through Mahoosuc Notch followed by the climb up the Mahoosuc Arm was free, and one of the most challenging things I’ve ever done. It’s certainly no question how this section became known as the toughest section of the entire Appalachian Trail. It took us about an hour and twenty minutes to go 1 mile through the notch. It was constant climbing up over slippery boulders, or squeezing through tight cracks, all while hauling our 30lb packs. The notch is flanked on both sides by tall cliffs, so you can find ice and snow under the rocks. It feels like a very isolated place, and anyone out there who thinks they can handle a tough physical challenge should try hiking the Mahoosuc Notch.
As difficult as today was, it was pretty fun. That’s the thing about hiking, when it’s difficult it’s interesting, and when it’s interesting it’s fun. Besides the hardest mile of the trail, the rest of the day was no picnic. We began our day with a climb up the Goose Eye ridge in a drizzling fog. There were several sections where rebar was pounded into the rock for handholds to climb the steep rock faces. On top of the ridge were alpine bogs where if you took a misstep of the bog bridges you’d end up knee deep in mud… like a southbounder that we passed. Even the end of the day was a tough climb up and over Old Speck, but luckily the day had turned out sunny.
In all we covered almost 13.5 miles. We’re camped about a mile up from Grafton Notch tonight, at a little stealth spot near a stream. It was an exhausting day, but it felt good to get that section out of the way. It’s always fun to overcome a really hard section of trail and still put in a good day.
