Day 114 - Tuesday, July 27, 2021

Yesterday’s “Zero” was too short! We got all caught up with drying clothes and doing laundry but my knees still hurt.. coming down off the President’s Sunday took their toll. I’m sure once I get rolling they will be fine. 

So, we got checked in at the Rattle River Lodge & Hostel and got our “slacking” packs ready for today’s hike,  the infamous Wildcat Slack Pack Challenge - a grueling 21 mile hike over the Wildcat Ridges. There are 3 “escape” exit  routes if you can’t make the entire distance. We are planning on getting to the 14 mile check point at Stony Brook, the last exit point, and assess our time and condition. 

Today’s hike of the Wildcat Challenge begins at Pinkham Notch (1873.7 NoBo) to US 2, Gorham, NH (1894.8) totaling 21.3 miles. 

We began at 5:30 am under partly cloudy skies; temperature was 58°.



The first climb over the Wildcat  Mountain was very steep and technical took us right by the ski lift at the summit of Wildcat Ski Resort. A steep rock decent led us into another series of steep climbs over Carter Dome. These climbs took a long time; we were already contemplating kicking out at the 14 mile point, Stony Brook. It you were  carrying a full pack this would be at least a 2 day hike…






A final glimpse of Mt. Washington. 











Views from Carter Dome…. spectacular!



Mountain pond by the Carter Notch Hut. I resupplied my water here.  

We reached the IMP Campsite around 3:30 pm and decided we had enough time to complete the Challenge by dark so we decided to go for it. It started to rain just as we were approaching the summit of Mt. Moriah.  

One final steep decent off Mt. Mariah till we made it to the gentler trail past Rattle River and to NH 2 at 6:40 pm; a very challenging 13 hours to say the least. 

We finally conquered New Hampshire!! 🎉 


Till next time... Happy Hiking  🥾 

😋


“Acts of generosity in this wild and primitive setting…where basic amenities…are intentionally absent–are often received in a heightened sense of wonder and gratitude by hikers. These acts of generosity are referred to as “trail magic.”

                     (Appalachian Trail Conservancy)


















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