After a long day of climbing I’m spending the night less than two trail miles from the summit of Mount Washington – the most formidable mountain on the AT. Tonight at Lakes of the Clouds there is a nice thunderstorm going on outside. It’s actually been going on since about the time we arrived around 4:30. This is the busiest of the huts since it’s so close to Washington, they usually let four thru-hikers do work for stay. Tonight there was a bit of drama when the crew turned away a big group of hikers who said they were thru hiking but had come up to the hut on a side trail. We arrived shortly after and were granted WFS and got to hear the other group complain about their unfair treatment. We even got to sit indoors tonight while the regular guests ate dinner!
So that was the evening excitement, but the hike was even better today. One of the best days on the trail, I enjoyed all of it, even though it was a huge day of climbing. We started at Ethan Pond, descended to the lowest elevation in days at Crawford Notch, and then headed straight up into the Presidential Range. Before long we were hitting summits and seeing spectacular views what felt like every few minutes. The climb up to the ridge was hot, the warmest we’ve seen in days. It was hard to believe that just a couple of days ago we were freezing on Franconia Ridge. We took a short break at Mizpah Hut before making the ascent above treeline and heading for Lakes of the Clouds. Most of the time between huts the AT was contiguous with Crawford Path, one of the most scenic stretches of trail yet. We could see Mount Washington ahead of us – the weather observatory clearly visible on top from miles away – and tree filled valleys on either side. Alpine terrain stretched out all around us on the ridge as we climbed ever higher all afternoon. Not much other than the photographs will do justice to the views today so I’ll leave it at that and get some sleep. Ready to get an early start and finally be back in a town tomorrow.