White Mountain aftermath

imported
#1

…Okay, so I went backpacking in the White Mountains for a couple days and it kicked my a**. Please tell me that by the time you reach NH when thru-hiking, it’s not as bad as what I experienced. Of the three of us, i think i had the least heavy pack, weighing in at about 35 to 40 lbs. And I now understand just how important keeping the pack weight down really is. I do have a few questions:

 (1) How do you go about washing your pot/pan?
 (2) My toes were feeling ridiculously bruised.  Is this normal?  Or does that mean my boots sucked?
 (3) How long does it take to do from the bottom of Washington all the way through the Presidentials via the AT?  Does this mean actually having to hike down those absolutely insane trails that I used just to get to a campsite for the night and then back up the next day??  Cause, wow. (On the second day I used the King Ravine Trail and some trail that followed a river the whole way...Great Gulley maybe?)  And if that IS the case, then I know a map would perhaps come in pretty handy for this section of the trail.  Are there any other sections of the trail where a map prove pretty useful?
 (4) Do people keep their food in a seperate bag for hanging, or do you hang your whole backpack?  Is it safe to use the backpack as a pillow, or are you better off keeping it outside the tent (i don't know if the smell of food would linger on it enticing any bears nearby)?
 I'm sure I have more, but that's all the ones I can presently think of.  Thanks for your help once again everyone.
  <!--24131171147_070603-->

C-Giddy

#2

If you’re in shape its "easier. Wash you pot with your finger, clean it in town. Or wipe it our with leaves, away from camp but leave no food particals. You have to pack those out two. Wash it with your finger and water and drink that last bit-o-protien. Try some Spenco insoles. One day with a light pack, body temp 96*, I won the pint of Ben and Jerrys for calling Strider’s body temp and eta. Down the trails up the trials, stealth camp, camp at designated sites. Map would be wise on all sections. Try nav in a three foot vis fog bank. Bears a wimps up north. Hang the food, sleep on your pack. Just keep the food bags closed in your pack and take out the wrappers so mice won’t chew into your tent.

Bushwhack

#3

Hi C-Giddy,

Well, you just did part of what is widely considered to be the toughest stretch of the A.T. (For me, the toughest of the toughest was from Pinkham Notch through the Mahoosucs in Maine … I think to Grafton Notch, if I’m remembering correctly.) Two years before my thru, my husband and I hiked the Whites from I-93 (Lafayette Campground) to Pinkham. Our packs were heavy, our bods flabby (well, SORTA), the black flies a-bitin’ and the cold rain a-fallin’. We had a great time despite, but what a can-kicker, for sure. That hike took us a week.

Two years later, as I approached the Whites, having hiked my by then very unflabby self from Maine, I wondered if I’d notice a difference. Well, yeah, sure. I was able to cover more miles a day (while still taking plenty of breaks when it wasn’t pouring), was MUCH better at negotiating the rocks, my feet were tougher, and my pack lighter (although I’d picked up my cold-weather gear in Hanover … luckily). So I’d say, yes, there’s a significant difference when you’ve already been hiking for four, five months. Still, you notice the difficulty level go up significantly as well, compared to what you’ve hiked till then. Took me five and a half days to hike that same stretch in 2000.

About the cooking pot, I use the Bushwhack method myself. Well, first I stick my face in the pot and lick it, then I use a fingernail to scrap it, then I use some water and fingers to rinse it, then back into its baggie it goes. I figger I’m gonna be boiling water in there the next time, so … (shrug).

Hung my food and kept my pack in my tent every night. No problems. Maybe I was just lucky, I dunno.

Maps. Didn’t carry 'em, but, then again, I was familiar with the A.T. through the Whites … which didn’t prevent me from missing a turn and having to backtrack about a mile and a half. The A.T. can be a bit tough to follow in some areas through the Whites, because it uses pre-existing trails signed by other names. And white blazes are scarce in wildnerness areas. So if you carry any A.T. maps at all, the Whites would probably be a good section to have on hand.

ramkitten

#4

They’ll still kick your butt when you’re thruhiking :wink:

The Whites are probably one of the best places to carry a mapset of, since the trail is rarely labled the “AT.” The AMC figures (and it makes sense) that since the other trails were there first, the AT is really just using the other trails…not the other way around (as lost thruhikers often complain). Having a map won’t keep you from getting lost though…I took a wrong turn near Osgood Tentsite, realized it a mile or so down the trail, but kept going anyway since it was such a nice little trail. I ended up at Pinkham Notch and had to hitchhike about 5 miles back up to the trail. This is still one section that I would reccomend carrying maps on though.

I wash my pot out the same way everyone else does…in town.

Boots are generally pretty tough on city feet. I switched to running shoes in Pearisburg, VA and noticed immediately that my feet never really hurt anymore at the end of the day (which was a huge deal for me). You have to be really really careful after switching however, since your ankles are used to the extra boot support (or at least aren’t used to the additional weight of a pack), nor are your feet used to the rigors of rocks and such that you found on the trail. With boots, you’re more likely to get stone bruising from the boots…with running shoes, you’re more likely to get it from the stones. I use SuperFeet Insoles (and have for over 3 years) and absolutely love them. If you want to try in insole, these are worth a look.

-Howie

Hungry Howie

#5

How about using eating freeze dried foods so you only have to boil the water, dump the water in the bag and eat? Wont get the pot dirty in the first place

Jumble Jowls

#6

With no camping above treeline, it’s tough to get through the Presidentials without spending the night somewhere. The huts do offer thru-hikers work for stay, but that can or can not be a good experience depending on the hut crew. Other options are to go below treeline somewhere for the night,and then back up the next day.

For what it’s worth, I went from Crawford Notch to Pinkham Notch in about 48 hours. I spend the first night at Nauman Tent sites and the 2nd night on the floor at Madison Hut.

The Whites kicked my butt, even though I was in shape. It was the only place where my knees bothered me. But I had a heavy pack. I carried enough food from Glencliff to make it to Pinkham with out a resupply, and without relying on the huts. As I turned out, I did do a couple of work for stay, and thus ended up carrying additional food (and weight) with me.

Freeze dried food? Most thru-hikers avoid them because of the cost.

Maps: In addition to the ATC map, I also carried the AMC maps of the Whites, which allowed me to go off and do some peak bagging as I travered along.

Bears: Bears know where the food is. So, they look for it at established campsites. In the Whites, if there is a bear problem, there is usually a bear box or a bear line. Myself, I kept all my food in a seperate stuff sack that I could take out of my pack at night and hang somewhere. If nothing else, I tossed a line over a branch and hung it there. Knoch on wood, no problems yet.

Peaks

#7

Yes, Mountain House and other prepared dehydrated foods are expensive (now about $6 per 2-serving meal), but just for areas where you can’t wash your pot easily, may be worth it. For me, anyway.

Jumble Jowls

#8

Just to clarify about the work-for-stay at AMC huts, as mentioned in Peaks’ post, the “general rule” is that there are work-for-stay spots for two thru hikers (which, in this case, would mean anyone traversing the Whites on the A.T. … I think) per night, but some of the huts, at the discretion of the croos (<–not a misspelling), do allow more that two work-for-stays. Lakes-of-the-Clouds usually tries to take in all who ask, or, at the very least, charges something like $6 or $7 to sleep on the floor or tables. At least, that’s how it was when I was there in 2000. Some huts are notorious for being sticklers about the 2 work-for-stays and only 2 “rule.” I’m thinking of Madison Hut, the next hut northbound after Lakes. But certainly don’t expect you’ll be able to do work-for-stays and please don’t rush to get to the huts to get one of the spots. The Whites are as beautiful as they are challenging.

You can stop into the huts during the day and use the bathrooms, clean your cook pots if you’re really worried about them being “dirty,” get some water. Many of the croo members are very familiar with the area and may be able to help with suggesting good (legal) throw-down sites.

ramkitten

#9

If it’s the ends of your toes that are getting bruised, the cause is probably that your boots are too small (short).

Downunda

#10

What everyone else said…:slight_smile:

No, seriously, I got lucky with Work for Stay, and got on at 3 huts that way, they took 7 of us @ Zealand in a rainstorm, and 4 the next night @ Mizpah. Madison and Lakes were closing and no longer taking hikers, so MG and I hiked it down to Valley Way tentsite which was the last thing I wanted to do, but they were adament about us not hanging around the closing hut and cowboy camping there. I did the Franconia to Pinkham stretch in 4.5 days. But it’s not over after there, the 21 miles of the Wildcat/Carter range involve about 9 ups and downs and then you’ve got the serious stretch of the Mahoosucs. I was tiiirreeddd by the time I got to Andover and I’d even known what to expect.

I didn’t need maps through there at all since it’s my playground, but I do highly recommend carrying all the maps. Sure the trail is marked well in most places, but what happens if you have an emergency and need to know where that last blue blaze went out to? Emergences are just that, unexpected accidents so you can’t plan for them. Yeti and Moonshine had to use the Austin Brook Trail out of Gentian Pond when she had an allergic Rx to a bee sting - he was damn glad he had a map then. But esp. above treeline you need to have a plan and a bailout option and with only the Databook you have no idea that there’s the Perch (a RMC hut) down a side trail, or where the Sphinx trail would take you, etc. I chastised my buddies the Cream Team cause they were leaving Washington the same time in the afternoon we were and had no idea what was coming up. They spent a miserable (and illegal) night above treeline camped off the trail near Adams.

As for your cooking pot, you will soon lose the spitshine expectation you have at home. I put a little water in, use my finger and spoon to scrape off the crud (yes, packing out food scraps or a Lipton you hated, DO NOT BURY) and then fling using the LNT scatter method. Never had a problem. I left my pack outside with the cover on most times and hung my food down south, stopped that after the Shenandoahs.

Experiment with boots/shoes and insole methods. I thought Superfeet were the answer and stubbornly wore them for 1500 miles until I thought to try not wearing them. Voila, my foot with a high arch is not the kind that should/can wear these. Foot pain decreased dramatically, I use factory insoles now. YMMV. Stretch your feet at night and elevate using your pack or tent in a shelter.

Bluebearee

#11

Can’t wait to see the Whites up close and personal. Should be good hard hiking.

About cleaning your pot(s) … as people have indicated, a different standard of cleanliness applies on the trail. To help scrap my pot clean after meals, I use a spatula head – rubber or plastic, just snap off the handle and it stows in the pot real easy.

Bedouin

#12

I found a little plastic square at Academy that is made to scrape your pot. It weighs, like, nothing! about 2" x 2" square sturdy yet thin plastic. Probably weighs less than even a broken-off spatula. :girl

hikintexan