After waiting out the storm for a few days around Lincoln, NH and making some day hikes, we did the Presidential Traverse. Weather at the Appalachia trailhead was cloudy and rainy. Decision of the group was to press on and get to Lake of the Clouds hut in time for dinner.
We split into two groups. Greg, David, and I headed out on Valley Way toward Mt. Madison via Watson Path.
It was windy, cold, and rainy at the top of Mt. Madison. We got onto the Osgood Trail down to Madison Hut.
It was our good fortune to get some delicious curry soup at the hut. After warming up a bit, we located the Gulfside Trail and proceeded toward Mt. Washington. Along the way, we had detours to Mt. Adams, Mt. Jefferson, and Mt. Clay.
Our goal all day was to make it to Lake of the Clouds hut by 6:00pm. This is the time they start serving dinner. The wet conditions made it slow going since the “trail” was mostly going from cairn-to-cairn through a field of rocks. Although less than 2 miles, the portion from Mt. Clay to Mt. Washington was tough. Lots of elevation gain and a complete whiteout in the clouds. It was cool seeing the cog railway. We made it to the hut by 5:30pm. The rest of the group rolled in about 6:30pm and everyone got dinner.
The next morning we woke up to cold, rainy, windy, weather. I thought the window of our room had a shade, but it turns out we were completely in clouds! Greg had a deadline to get home and we had to retrieve the RAD van from Appalachia trailhead so we rolled out. I am not an early morning person so took a bit to get warmed up and moving in these conditions (in June?!?!). The good conversation with Greg made the distance go quick. After Mizpah Spring hut, we got below the cloud ceiling and the weather improved. In the interest of time, we skipped the detour to Mt. Webster. By the time we were back to the trailhead, the skies were blue and sunny (see photo of Bretton Woods resort toward Mt. Washington below).
