Day 26, July 25, 5.7 miles

Oh, what a nice night. We stayed at the Yellow Deli hostel in Lancaster. It’s under construction, but they have a temporary set-up that’s very nice. The girls bunk room had only me and Little Engine staying. I think the guys had 6. Our room was so nice and quiet.

The people who run the hostel are very nice and accommodating.

This morning, the hostel provided cereal, scrambled eggs, toast and goat cheese for breakfast. It was delicious. After breakfast we got our shuttle back to the top of Mt. Washington. The weather is much better today. Almost no wind, still in the clouds, but no rain. The temps were in the 30’s yesterday, today it’s 50. What a difference!! We’re in the Presidential Range and we’ve been over or on several Mts. named after presidents, like Lincoln, Garfield, Adams, Washington, and soon Madison.

Today’s hike was nothing but rocky. I didn’t like the hike today. We have been and will be until tomorrow, above treeline. We would be in the clouds and then they would clear for a few minutes and we’d get a good view and then the clouds would move back in. So, view-wise, it was better than it could have been. Terrain-wise—didn’t like it.

We had decided we’d stop at the Madison Springs Hut and try to work for stay because it’s another day of afternoon thunderstorm predictions and we’re still above treeline. The huts are run by AMC and most people who stay here have had reservations for a long time. They come and stay to hike hut-to-hut. They pay a minimum of $100/night (if you’re an AMC member) up to $150/night on the weekends if not a member. You’re paying for a bunk, bathroom (no shower), breakfast and supper. They offer thru-hikers WFS (work for stay), which means they give you a job like washing dishes, sweeping, moping, wiping down tables, etc. in exchange for a space on the floor in the dining room to sleep. The deal is that you get to have leftovers after all the guests have eaten (if there are any), and you have to wait until after they’ve cleared out to bed down and you must be up and out of the way by 6:15 in the morning.

In an attempt to get off of Mt. Washington and get at least a few miles in today, we stopped and did get WFS at Madison Springs Hut.

Weasle

Madison Springs Hut in the distance

Mt. Washington cog rail