Gorham, NH

We've made it to Gorham, New Hampshire after a challenging week in the White Mountains. Challenging it was, but beautiful, breathtaking and awe-inspiring as well. The further north we travel, the lower treeline gets, and many of the White Mountain peaks and ridgelines are well above treeline...meaning beautiful vistas for miles and miles and miles.

And the weather...one word. beautiful.

There is a hut system in the White Mountains run by the Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC) that provides a bunkhouse, composting toilets, breakfast, dinner and a nightly presentation about some interesting topic related to mountainous stuff...the paying customer will pay $84 a night - a little bit out of budget for most thru-hikers. BUT each hut has a crew of 3-4 people and can take thru-hikers in as a work-for-stay for the night and the hikers can feast on leftovers. The crew is generally not supposed to take more than 3 hikers a night, but the quantity of hikers is also at the crew's discretion, and because it is nearing the end of the season with lots of closing cleaning to be done, they ended up taking way more.

Pyrofly and I were able to work-for-stay at three huts. The work is generally about an hour long. I had line the innards of stoves, with aluminum, chip ice and organize freezers, place silverware for the guests, dishwash, and scrub bathrooms with soap and bleach. The first hut (Zealand Falls Hut) accompanied three of us - me Pyrofly, and Doc Redden. The second (Mizpah Springs Hut) took 11 of us in, and the third, Madison Hut, took 21 of us in for the night...it was so weird to thave that many hikers in one place - and set record for that particular hut. Mt. Washington was six miles prior, and that resulted in a bottleneck of sorts. It was quite fun. The last time I remember that many thru-hikers in one place, besides Trail Days, was probably at Fontana Dam just before the Smokies.

Maine is in 16 miles. Chances are we won't make it tonight, but defitely tomorrow. We've got Mahoosuc Notch coming up in a few days as well - known as the most difficult, or most fun mile on the AT. I'll report an update, but I'm pretty sure it will be the most fun - it a valley/gap/notch filled with house sized boulders that we have to climb over, under, in between, sideways, upside down, etc just to get through.

Time is precious right now...gotta get going. Resupply at the grocery store, hit up the outfitter for some fuel and a belt, and find a ride back to the trail to hike another 10+ miles before the day is over.

My legs are beat. My feet hurt. And my knees hate me. But I'd rather be here than anywhere else right now. New Hampshire rocks!