Galehead Hut to Crawford Notch General Store and Campground
It was still raining when I woke up.The mist pervaded everything and I hadn’t slept very soundly due to the sound of the wind-generated electrical harnesser thing on the roof that moaned and whined all night with the gusts that came up the valley.The “Croo” got breakfast together and the regular folks ate breakfast while we thru-hikers sat over in the corner like hungry dogs waiting for a scrap from their master.This is the way it goes at the huts so I guess it’s cool, at least, we knew it would be thins way so there’s not much to complain about.At least we’re not paying $89 to stay there for the night.We do work-for-stay (WFS) at the huts but technically there are only two slots at each hut for Thru-Hikers and so invariable there are many more than two Thru-Hikers coming through, looking for WFS and sometimes we get turned away and have to hike on to the next hut or camp out in the woods; which they discourage due to the fragility of the alpine environment.It’s a hypocritical situation and it all has to deal with money.The Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC) runs the section of the Appalachian Trail that goes through the White Mountains.Basically you have no choice but to stay at one of their facilities be it a campground or a “Hut” which is actually more like a chalet and costs about a hundred bucks a night to stay there.They charge to stay in the campsites too although for Thru-Hikers it’s only $8-12.If you get to a “hut” at the right time, you c an get WFS and do dishes, sweep, scrub the oven or clean out the freezer for your stay and for dinner and breakfast.Of course, the normal guests are served first and they want you to go sit outside or disappear while they eat, like peasants or something.The thing is, the “Day Hikers” all want to talk to you and hear about what it’s like to be a Thru-Hiker so sometimes your WFS can involve giving a presentation to the group after dinner.Most of the people who come here are very well-to-do and I guess the AMC figures they don’t want to be bothered by a bunch of rough-and-tumble, smelly Thru-Hikers.We’ve known it would be like this but the fact that the AMC offers no alternatives for Thru-Hikers gets us a little pissed off and there we were, over in the corner; at least they didn’t make us sit outside in the freezing rain.That would have been pretty rough at 7AM and I have heard of it happening to a lot of Thru-Hikers.After the gentry were served, we got to eat all of the leftovers; basically, Pancakes.I’m just glad I got to sleep in a building last night rather than some dilapidated shelter.The temperature has been going down to the low 40s with a wind chill factor in the low 30s.Add to that the rain and hail and you’ve got yourself a hell of a night in the wilderness.After breakfast I did some journaling and everyone was marveling over the computer.That always seems to happen.Most of the Thru-Hikers I know are used to it by now.I was hoping the skies would clear up but it didn’t look probable.Eventually I got my wet clothes back on and got ready to head out.There’s something very harrowing about putting on cold, wet underwear that really bothers me.Obviously it the same underwear as the day before; but, that part doesn’t phase me anymore.I’ve been doing that for three months now.You generate a lot of heat out there once you start hiking and if you are like me, you hate to stop and take off your pack once you are going so you try o wear the clothes that you would want to be wearing once you are all hot and exerting yourself.The problem with that is that you put on clothing that doesn’t keep you warm until you’re climbing a hill and as soon as you stop, you start getting cold again.The constant rain we’ve been subjected to makes it so that nothing ever gets dry so not only it is it skimpy, but it’s wet and REALLY COLD when you put it on.Bitter cold, wet underwear is one hell of a shock in the morning; more effective than the strongest cup of coffee.I got out on the trail later than most but managed to pass almost all of the day hikers before the next hut where I was treated a hot cup of $3 “bottomless” soup.I threw in a packet of tuna to up my protein.The sun had come out and I ran into some of the younger day hikers and sat at the table with them while we discussed life and they gave me pieces of their bread.It was cool and I hated to split but I had to get down to Crawford Notch and hitch in to a place to stay.I had no idea where I would go and thankfully the trail down was easy.When I got to the road, there was a hostel 3 miles to the left and a hostel three miles to the right.I stuck my thumb out to both directions of traffic and let the fates decide which one I would go to.A day hiker who was passing by picked me up and took me to the right:The Crawford Notch General Store and Campground.The place was full of Thru-Hikers so I had to rent a campsite and pitch my tent.I hope it doesn’t rain. The folks there were very accommodating and I got a shower and did my laundry; although I was up ‘til about midnight getting it done.While I was in the General Store picking up some Ben and Jerry’s and some Reece’s Peanut Butter Cups I met Shawn and Sage.Sage was a cute little girl accompanied by her Dad Shawn who had taken her fishing that say and she caught a rather large “Native” trout.She was extremely excited about that and I was struck by how cool that was.They brought their catch in to show us.I guess I have never seen a Native Trout before; but, they have a bright orange underbelly and to hear Sage tell it, they put up a darn good fight.I set up my hammock in the dark and got to try out the Big Agnes inflatable pad that I modified for the hammock.
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