McAfee Hikes

Date Written: 8/28/2024 | AT Mile 327.4 | Day Total: 12.8 miles | Gain: 4728 ft

I could hear the wind howling above me all night. The trees were a really good wind break and I had minimal wind near my tent. We were supposed to get rain this morning but it hasn’t came yet. It was very cloudy and foggy.

I ate some breakfast and packed up. The rain started spitting as I was about to leave though it wasn’t enough to wet anything too much.

I walked the ridge up to wildcat D peak where there is an observation platform. Unfortunately it was all fogged in this morning.

There also happens to be a ski resort around the corner. I first saw the grass field then looked to my right and there was a ski lift. I later looked at comments on FarOut and it sounds like they let thru hikers stay in the operator room of the lift.

I started my big descent down to the Pinkham Notch. It was super steep and the rocks were wet so I took it very slow. There were some sketchy parts but I made it down safely. (I later found out that this is the steepest down on the AT)

There’s a visitor center at the bottom that has a room for hikers to spread out gear and get ready for their hike. I took the time and ate lunch here while also charging my phone.

There’s a thru hiker pass for the whites that gets you discounts and some baked goods but every hut I’ve been to including the visitor center hasn’t had any. I think it’s unpopular for the northern huts to have them because they don’t see many sobos.

The few miles after the visitor center were fairly cruzy. There was a larger climb and descent but the grade wasn’t bad. I filled my bottles at a stream right before Osgood Tentsite. This is the last reliable water source before I go 3000ft up Madison. The climb is pretty steep and has lots of rocks. Luckily by this time of the day the sun was out and the surface of the rocks had dried out.

After reading the comments from the nobos descending Madison I was prepared for some challenging uphill. While difficult it wasn’t too bad till tree line. The trail turned into a bunch of larger boulders that you needed to hop across. It was challenging but not as bad as I had imagined. It was super windy!

I had a gorgeous view of Mt Washington. Just after getting above tree line. I could see the little dots of cars making their way to the top. There’s a running hiker joke about the “this car climbed Mt Washington” bumper sticker. Like, I’m about to hiked up that sh*t.

The trail above tree line had views the whole time. I’m supposed to be above tree line for the next 12 miles. Although I’m hoping to get a work for stay at the Madison Spring Hut. From what I’ve heard the best time to arrive is 4:00 and I was timing it just right.

When I was on Mt Madison there were gusts 50+ mph. My hat is held on my a bungie cord that was cinched tight. I was able to hold my ground against the wind just fine. The views were some of the best I’ve seen so far.

After Madison I sat after making my way to the hut. It’s nested in a valley between here and Mt Adams. It’s one of the more popular stops for day hikers because of its location. When I arrived I delivered the letter from Carter Notch Hut to Brian. He was pleased. I asked about work for stay and said there was availability so I jumped on it!

I cleaned myself up in the bathroom and relaxed for a while. There’s a little cell service here so I was able to do some missulanous things. I also talked with some of the other day hikers.

Dinner rolled around and passed. As “work for stay” we get to eat leftover food with the croo after the guests. The food was good. They had bbq pulled pork, mashed potato’s, green beans, pasta, rolls, and black bean soup. I’m not a big fan of black beans so I passed on the soup. They also had ginger cake and brownies that were really good. As my chore I emptied and wiped down the fridge which didn’t take very long. They got a ton of produce stuffed in there.

At 9:00pm it’s lights out. I set my sleep system up in the dining room. There’s also another flip flopper hiking southbound that’s doing a work for stay and he’s in the dinning room too. Looking forward to a controlled environment sleep.