The Presidential Range

Wednesday morning I started my hike through the Presidential Range of New Hampshire.  This range includes the five tallest peaks in the state, named after the first five presidents, with the tallest being named after the first president, and so on.  Two other peaks in the range have been renamed; one for President Eisenhower and one for President Pierce, the only president from New Hampshire.  While I have hiked all of these peaks previously, this trip would bypass some of the peaks as the Appalachian Trail only summits Mt. Madison, Mt. Washington, and Mt. Pierce.

I set out early on Wednesday from the Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC) Joe Dodge Lodge and soon reached one of my favorite viewpoints at Lowe’s Bald Spot.  As often happens, the picture I took of Mt. Adams and Mt. Madison does not do justice to the view.

On my way to Mt. Madison, I  crossed the West Branch of the Peabody River on a suspension bridge.  I was happy to have the view to myself, and also to not have a second person on the bridge with me.  While crossing the bridge did not raise any safety concerns, the “bouncing” of the bridge was exciting enough with just me on the bridge.

I soon reached the Osgood Trail to begin the steep and exposed ascent of Mt. Madison.  While I have been on the summit in both the summer and winter previously, this route was new to me.  I was grateful for the beautiful weather, which made sunscreen my greatest concern while above tree-line.  The trail crosses several rocky “knobs” on the way to the summit.

From the summit, I looked ahead to two of the next three peaks — Mts. Adams and Washington — with Mt. Jefferson hidden from view behind Mt. Adams.

I spent the night at the AMC Madison Spring Hut, and was treated to a spectacular sunset.

Thursday was an ambitious day, with 11.8 miles, virtually all above tree-line.  While the AT bypasses the summits of Mt. Adams and Mt. Jefferson, the trail gains significant elevation as it ascends over the shoulders of each.

Along the way to the summit of Mt. Washington, I watched the cog railroad train descend the mountain and also had a wonderful view of the Great Gulf.  The Great Gulf is one of my favorite sections of Mt. Washington and the ascent up the headwall is my favorite route to the summit.

Upon reaching the summit of Mt. Washington, I took the usual summit photo and enjoyed my usual summit lunch.  As far as I know, the best chili dogs in the world are served at the summit of Mt. Washington — of course, the only time I have had them is after hiking to the summit.  Until I take a car ride or train ride to the summit, I will not know for sure.

After descending from Mt. Washington, I was detoured off the AT due to trail reconstruction to address severe erosion on the Crawford Path.  The detour took me over the summit of Mt. Monroe, the fifth highest peak in New Hampshire.

Friday began with anticipation of meeting family members for the first time in over five weeks.  My daughter, Casey, would join me for the weekend and my wife, Katie, would drive up to assist with spotting Casey’s car at the end of our hike in Franconia Notch and bring her to the AT crossing in Crawford Notch.  I quickly crossed over Mts. Jackson (not named after a president) and Webster, and then began the steep descent down the Webster Cliffs trail.

After I showered at the Crawford Depot, we enjoyed lunch and conversation at the AMC Highland Center.  Katie then drove  us to the trailhead to begin our hike to Ethan Pond.

Although we had two-and-a-half very enjoyable days of conversation and hiking, the weather prevented many pictures.  Saturday we woke to an overcast day and we were hiking in the clouds, with no views, as we crossed Mts. Zealand, Guyot, and South Twin.  We caught some rain late in the day as we worked our way over to Mt. Garfield and ascended to the campsite just below the summit.  Given it was a weekend, there were plenty of wet hikers seeking shelter in the lean-to, which made for uncomfortably tight sleeping quarters.

Sunday morning looked promising briefly, but we were quickly back in the fog as we summited and descended Mt. Garfield, and then ascended Mt. Lafayette on the Franconia Ridge.  The wind blew the clouds away briefly on Mt. Lafayette.  The weather finally cleared after we had crossed the ridge above tree-line over Mt. Lincoln and Little Haystack, and descended into the trees.

I had difficulty keeping up with Casey on the descent to Franconia Notch, but she patiently waited for me to keep up.  After a nice dinner and ice cream cones, we parted company and I am now working up motivation to finish the last two days in the White Mountains so I can move on to some easier trails.