February 13, 2025 4 min to read

AT Blog: Day 117 and 118

Tree Lines and Chocolate

Day 117:

Start at Eliza Brook Shelter today. There was a section hiker there last night as well, we chat for a bit in the morning before I start hiking before 8 AM.

First thing is a 1500 foot climb up to the Kinsman’s mountains. The fog is thick today, well I guess it’s more low hanging clouds here. I can’t see anything on top of Kinsman’s, just like the other mountain tops so far.

I stop by Lonesome Lake Hut afterwards. They sell hot coffee and soup for anyone, but not much else. The clouds do begin to dissipate and warm up, allowing me to shed my rain jacket and let it dry.

Shortly after is Cascade Brook, which despite my best efforts, I still got my shoes wet. At the very least, my shoes are cleared of mud from all the rain causing mud on trail. Afterwards I cross i-93, which is the more popular way to get into Lincoln.

And after a road crossing, you know what that means, GOING STRAIGHT UPHILL. Starting from 1500 feet, the next mountain is at over 5000. The trail ascends Mt. Liberty at the start before diverging and heading towards Mt. Lincoln. Mount Lincoln shouldn’t be confused as one of the Presidential Mountains in New Hampshire, as it was named after the Earl of Lincoln in England. I get to the Presidentials in a few days.

Nearing the top, it stays very windy. From Little Haystack to beyond Mt. Lafayette the trail is above the tree line and exposed. Essentially the forest will block the wind and some weather, since these mountains are so tall and located so far north, trees don’t grow near the top of them. Fortunately, today it is just windy and cloudy, with no rain. Still, I keep my rain jacket on as a wind break.

Lincoln is clear, but Lafayette is shrouded in clouds. However, by the time I make it up there, the clouds part just enough to look around.

From there I hike down. Unfortunately, I took too long hiking (to be honest sat down for a long lunch at the hut), so my original plan of staying at Garfield Ridge shelter is pushing it. So, I stop about a mile early and camp at Garfield Pond. It’s certainly not the best location as the area around the pond is swampy from the earlier rain. By the time I set up, Scout and Homesick stopped by and make camp there too, so I had company for the night.

The pond itself was beautiful, but the wind pouring through the ridge and the cold pond meant it was a colder night than most. Plus, the exhaustion from the tough terrain kicks in and I was out fast.

Day 118:

I start at Garfield Pond today. It was cold last night but I stayed warm enough. The wind chill is the biggest enemy though.

The hike up Garfield Mountain is not as bad as I expected, it’s steep but not overly technical. I kinda regret not pushing to the shelter yesterday, but oh well. There’s some decent views up above.

The next good view is South Twin Mountain. Today there isn’t a cloud in sight so the view is amazing plus I can see back the way I came.

One surprise is how many day and section hikers there are across the trails, but the huts make it easier for folk to visit. I had stopped by Galehead Hut earlier and got some soup. Additionally I ran into Homesick and Scout there and we discussed our plans for the day and tomorrow.

When starting to go down Zeacliff Mountain I accidently bumped into someone heading the opposite way. I was about to turn around and apologize when they started cussing me out and his wording was enough to make a sailor blush. I kept going without turning back, if someone is that hostile immediately I’ve learned not to interact with them.

With that out of the way, the weather is certainly weird. It got cold enough to freeze last night so I’m having to juggle layers like it’s winter. I take a break at Zealand Hut, where the drop in elevation has increased the temperature. I ask the caretaker some advice for tomorrow when I summit Mt. Washington. He said to really watch the weather and Lake in the Clouds has plenty of space for hikers just in case. Also he gave Homesick, Scout and I some leftover chocolate, and it was the good kind. Like not hersheys but some like European chocolate?? Anyway so the caretakers are good people.

The last few miles are well maintained and flat, I was going to stop at Ethan Pond, but the early end time and the hard day tomorrow made me push to the road. Overall I did 18.7 miles today.