| Summary | |
| Owner | MITOC Gallery Administrator |
| Creation Date | 2005-10-17 22:57:14 UTC-0400 |
| Description | Don't worry, it'll stop raining once we get above the clouds. So we (Dan Walker and Christiaan Adams) get no takers for our awesome Franconia Ridge Hike. We figure lets do something even better: go visit the lesser appreciated president-ials. We get a nice start, and leave the trailhead many minutes before 11am. Its up to Jackson. Little known presidential facts: Jackson was the only president to pay off the national debt, and the first to ride a train. The stream we follow up to Jackson looks suspiciously like a trail, so we are encouraged. The weather is also not too bad (50F and RAINING): just cool enough that hiking sans chemise is motivating, not punishing. Well, until the summit. Then it's time to put on a shell. We verify through a satellite network that we are in fact on Jackson, but it seems we are 200 feet too high...
On to the AMC hut at Mitzpah. At the hut, we get warm enough to eat, but not too comfortable. People seem confused when we tell them we are headed to Washington. Maybe that's because its 1:15pm. We assure them we are not interested in a body count and head out. On the trail, and up to Pierce. Little known Pierce fact: While driving a carriage in Washington D.C., President Pierce ran over a woman and was arrested. Pierce is more exciting than Jackson in that we knock him off in about twenty minutes. On to Eisenhower. Little known Ike trivia: Ike was the first president to get a pilot license. Eisenhower offers some decent views of the valley and cloud rivers below. We even see some other suckers. By Franklin. Sorry, Benjamin Franklin was not president (but FDR and Franklin Pierce were). On to Monroe. Monroe fun fact: President Monroe was the first president to ride on a steamboat. Monroe proves to be the most pleasant and scenic of our quest today, so we break down and put on our backup pants and insulating jackets. Down to the Lake of the Clouds hut. Closed, of due course. We catch a glimpse of the Washington summit, and almost convince ourselves its a good idea. But, we are out of extra layers, so prudence and valor and all that. We start to head down the Ammonoosuc River, I mean trail, I mean river. It offers some brilliant waterfalls and cascades, which we walked down. (We'll be back when they're frozen!) We arrrive at the Cog Railway station just as the light fails... good thing we didn't go up Washington - the ammonoosuc may not be navigable by night. We go inside to see some wholesome family types doing wholesome family things. They were not too keen on giving us a ride back. So we start walking. We cruise down the base road, then turn down the ultra dark and creepy Mt. Clinton road. And we slog on for a while. Well, eventually we get back to the car and get dry-ish. Then to a great place called the Pizza Pub. No beer, but plenty of suitable food. And we sit next to the fire. and try not to fall asleep. The damage: Saco-Mitzpah: 4.3mi 2050ft 2hr30, Mitzpah-Lake of the Clouds: 4.8mi 1600ft 2hr15, Lake-Cog Railway: 4mi 0ft 1hr45 Cog-Saco: 6.5mi 200ft 1hr30, Total: 19.6mi 3800ft 8hrs |