Kevin's AT Thru Hike

Day 137, Sunday, 7/31 – I woke up at 4:00am and was hiking at 5:00am. We all had a very difficult day of hiking in front of us. There was also some uncertainty as to where we were going to camp at night. There’s a 12 mile stretch of trail in the alpine zone, which disallows camping. However, there’s a hut that allows 10 thru hikers to stay each night. We wanted to get there early enough to secure a spot.

The first 5 miles of the day were relatively easy. We hiked past Ethan Pond, then down to a road crossing. That’s where the hike got tough. We had 10+ miles and 5,000+ ft of elevation gain in front of us. The trail wasn’t easy either. The climb up Mt Webster was essentially a rock scramble.

After Mt Webster, we climbed up Mt Jackson. We had a great view of the Presidential Traverse, which was where we were hiking next. In the photo is Mt Pierce, Mt Eisenhower, Mt Monroe, Mt Washington, Mt Clay, and Mt Jefferson.

We headed down from Mt Jackson and got lunch at Mizpah Spring Hut. We bought a huge loaf of homemade bread for $5. We ate it with hummus and cheese that we were gifted from another thru hiker.

We left the hut and climbed up Mt Pierce. We met TBD! She thru hiked in 2019 and packed up fresh oranges and bags of candy for us thru hikers. We also used the time to book an Airbnb for tomorrow night to avoid bad weather.

We continued on with our hike and climbed to the top of Mt Eisenhower, and then Mt Monroe. There was a group of high school kids sitting on top of Mt Monroe, enjoying the beautiful view. They recognized that we were thru hikers, and asked us about our experience. We all chatted for a good while.

We got to Lake of the Clouds Hut around 5:00pm (Mile 1860). The hut staff informed us that the entire place was full up. Our options were (1) hike down a side trail to a stealth spot below tree line (2) find a stealth spot in the alpine zone and risk a fine (3) hike another 5+ miles, over Washington, and get to Madison Spring Hut. None of these were great options, so we hung around a while longer to see if the hut staff would let us stay. Eventually, they said we could sleep on the dining room floor, which I was very glad to hear.

Once we secured a place to sleep, Genie, Aqua, Birthday, and I ate dinner at the lake near the hut. Forest Lorest is another NOBO hiker, and joined us at the lake. After dinner we moved spots so we could watch the sunset.

After the sunset, I went inside the hut, sat in the dining room, and caught up on my writing. The high school kids were sitting a table over from me, and they were discussing the highlights of their day. One of the kids said that the highlight of their day was meeting the thru hikers, referring to us. That was heartwarming to hear.

The dining room was full of paying guests until 9:30pm. The hut staff then called for lights-out so the thru hikers could sleep on the floor. I laid out my sleeping pad and shortly fell asleep.