Hiker Welcome site to Kinsman Notch, 9.5 miles hiked today - 1803.7 total AT miles hiked to date
What a great day! We were picked up by the hostel shuttle at 7:30, and headed out to a road crossing just north of Mt. Mousilauke. We had light day packs with only our water and snacks as we tackled the first true test of the hand over hand climbing that the Whites will require. Having a much lighter pack made a significant difference in the difficulty, as the constant shifting of weight was not such an issue.
It took us all morning to climb the 3 miles and over 5500 feet of vertical ascent required to get to both the north and south peaks of this mountain. The climb up took us past several waterfalls, and then the rock climbs started. An additional challenge for me with my left arm in a sling was all of the rebar inserted into the rock face to assist in the toughest spots. They seemed to all be located on the left side of the trail, rendering them useless for my purposes.
Once we did arrive at the primary peak, the views were spectacular. Even though there were significant crowds of day hikers, the majesty of God’s creation laid out for miles in every direction was breathtaking. We also hit the 1800 mile mark, and now have 389 miles left to go.
We had lunch at the peak, and then started heading down. The downhill hike was longer, but easier, so it only took us 3 hours or so to cover the last 5 or so miles. As we neared the road that we’d hike down to the hostel, we had one more creek crossing, which required wading through, soaking our shoes and socks right before arriving at the hostel.
One there, we all got settled, took showers, and then headed to the only store/deli for miles. We picked up some supplies and sandwiches and headed back to the hostel to eat. The hostel is a bunkhouse with outdoor bathroom, shower, and washer/dryer in one shed. Quite an interesting layout.
Tomorrow is a 100% chance of thunderstorms all day, so we are taking a zero at the hostel to wait out the weather. Monday we will start a 10 day trek through the Whites.
Until next time…
Looks beautiful in NH!
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