2025 Appalachian Trail
For our last hike of 2025 it was to trek East! Our good hiking buddy Scott has relocated from Davis to Massachusetts and has been hiking the “4000” (peaks in the East over 4,000 feet high – there are 48 of them on the list). Scott had a plan for a 3 day hike on the Appalachian Trail (AT) in the White Mountains in the Presidential Range. This section includes going to a number of 4000 – and Mount Washington – the highest point in the East. It was to be a total of 6 days – three on Appalachian Trail and a return on a route to return to the car. We would be staying in Huts while on the AT and camping in tents for the return loop.
Pat and I decided this would be fun. We booked our flights, hotel at the beginning and rented a car to get up to New Hampshire.
Scott and Jerry on a departure Selfie!
We met new friends while in South America earlier this year and they live in Boston. Why not make it a travel trip as well? So Barbara made a reservation to fly out after the hike to spend an extra week visiting them and her brother who was planning to visit Maine. What a plan!! But wait…
First off, Pat had to skip the last hike due to an injury was at risk for this hike as well… and she had to cancel!! Barbara’s brother also had to cancel since Sue was under the weather. So it was down to a hike with just Jerry and Scott and Barbara would fly out and we would do… something. Nothings planned except visiting with our new friends in Boston.
Everything worked out and we had a great time, but not with the pre-planning that we normally do these kinds of trips.
Trek to Boston and the Trailhead
I had booked a Red Eye from SFO to Boston so I would have time to pick up Pat on the way to the trailhead. No Pat, so I still took the Red Eye and arrived early on Wednesday September 3, 2025 to Logan Airport. Picked up a rental RAV4 car. Figured out how to connect my phone to the car’s CarPlay and off to New Hampshire.
Thank goodness for cell phone navigation! The last time I was in Boston (must have been 50 years ago) driving was a real challenge. But it’s still a challenge, but much easier knowing where to turn and not going down the wrong entrance ramp. Three hours later arrived in Twin Mountain New Hampshire at our “lodge.” Well, after a number of coffee/snack stops. Even went to a toll booth to pay the toll – $1. Cash.
Our “luxury” hotel / lodge in Twin Mountain New Hampshire
Mt. Washington Lodge … no , we didn’t stay here
I arrived before Scott so went up to Crawford Notch to do some exploring – and enjoyed a rain shower. Rain? Is this a sign of things to come?
Scott arrived not too long after and we went out for a Mexican dinner. All packed, ready to go.
Off to the trailhead! We left my car with our luggage at the lodge and took Scott’s car to the trailhead. It was a great weather first day.
Appalachian Trail
The first few steps of the trail was exactly what I expected from “A Walk in the Woods” (Bill Bryson’s book on the AT.) Lots of trees, soft leafs under foot. Blue skies. But that didn’t last long.
The first steps on the Appalachian Trail fit the image!
Scott was much more aware of the differences between trails in the West and these torture walks. Seems the East coasters (and Europe – if our trip to Corsica was common) don’t understand that a “trail” is a place to walk, not a straight line on the map that happens to connect two points. So we learned that the “trail” sometimes went straight up a rock face – much more like an off-trail adventure in the Sierras. Never mind that there is a very nice route a few feet to the right that would be perfect for a switchback. No, let’s go straight up!
So off we went. Sometimes packing away our poles for the hard climbs up the rocks. It was worth it! Beautiful views down Crawford Notch and we could see the railroad coming up the valley (a tourist destination). First day about 6 miles and 3,000 feet vertical! Because of staying in Huts (they supplied food) our packs were fairly light (mine was 33 pounds).
All along the “trail” were these huge cairns or ducks to mark the trail. They were really helpful in the fog.
This was ON TRAIL for the official Appalachian trail. We had to pack our poles to make it up the rock face.
Our first Hut was Mizpah Spring Hut. (https://www.outdoors.org/destinations/new-hampshire/mizpah-spring-hut/) This was my first encounter with an Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC) hut. Calling it a “Hut” is a bit of a stretch. This one sleeps up to 60 people!! Each room has bunk beds. Our room could hold 4 people and we were the only occupants in our room. There were about 30 staying at the hut the night we were there, including a group of about 15 from a private high school. There were also a group of 4 “through hikers” that were doing the full AT. The price is fairly high to stay in the Hut (I think it was about $150/person.)
But what luxury! Pads to sleep on! Blankets and pillows! Somewhat warm inside as well!! Fresh food!
This was dinner soup. No napkins – they didn’t want paper waste that would need to be hiked out.
I set up my air mattress and sleeping bag each night. It made it really comfortable on a FLAT surface.
Too much food each meal – it was comfort food (and really very good).
So there are about 4 staff at the Hut. They rotate who is cook for the day – we think the menu and cooking instructions are provided by AMC – and the food is good! First night was lasagna, fresh salad, black bean soup and a gooey desert. The food came from major deliveries (helicopter) for the heavy stuff – canned food that would last – and on the staff’s back where they would hike a few miles to a trailhead to pick up fresh stuff. I think they went 2x per week to get fresh food.
The routine at each Hut was pretty much the same: 5:30pm to meet with one of the staff to get a description of the Hut itself. Power, water source, sewer system, communication methods, etc. Every night at every Hut was the same discussion. Then at 6pm dinner. Family style and we met some really nice people at the tables! After dinner – around 7:30 or so – there was a presentation on some aspect of nature. About the Alpine Environment or plants or animals or whatever. Quiet time was at 9pm or 9:30pm. Then the next morning wake up “song” was at 6:30am with breakfast served at 7am. Breakfast was oatmeal followed by eggs, bacon and some sort of bread – each day was different. We didn’t have pancakes, but there were leftovers that clearly were served the day before we arrived.
The staff were silly some of the time. They would do skits at breakfast and sometimes at dinner. (The best was the Batman themed adventure in Madison Hut.)
The next morning (Day 2) we were met with foggy conditions.
The top of Mt. Pierce! There wouldn’t be a view even if it was clear!
Couldn’t see for squat. We went to our first 4K peak! Mt. Pierce. Totally in the fog, couldn’t see any views. Quickly followed by Mt. Eisenhower. Still no views. Still the same no-switchbacks and go straight up and straight down. Then Mt. Monroe. We are really in the Presidential Range in the White Mountains!!
Unsettled weather can make for very pretty pictures!
We arrive at the Lakes of the Clouds Hut after a fairly short hike (but lots of up/downs and fog.
We decide that NOW is a good time to go to the top of Mt. Washington so we did a day hike up to the top when the weather is OK (not great). (The predictions are for a major lightning storm and being at the top of the highest peak is not a good plan.) So we wanted to summit the peak to do it when we can! Up we went and what a kick at the top! There are at least 3 ways to get to the top of Mt. Washington – hiking, driving a car or taking the Cog Train. Most people take the Cog Train and at the top is a whole mini-city! A weather station, a cafeteria, exhibits, places for selfies, view balconies, Park Service station, and lots more! Downright strange at the top. It was windy and almost no view while we were there, but we did the summit!
Lakes of the Clouds Hut is very near (1.5 miles) from the top of Mt. Washington. You can hike here from a fairly close trailhead so is the most popular of the Huts. It sleeps 92 plus staff. I think there were 6 staff? Maybe more. The bunks were 3 high so much closer quarters. We had about 8 sleeping in our room.
And we begin hearing about a storm headed our way for the next day. Not sure what it means, but it doesn’t look good.
This is one of the Hut staff bringing food from the Cog Train to the Hut. It’s only 1.5 miles (downhill) and they went early to get ahead of the storm as well. The “backpack” holds about 60 pounds. Doesn’t look comfortable to me.
Back to the Hut and we begin the negotiation of asking if we can stay a second night at the Lakes of the Clouds Hut, but they are fully booked! 92 people have made reservations to stay there on Saturday night. Not sure if we can get a spot!! But EVERYONE knows about the storm, so the Hut was only about half full with LOTS of cancellations. We went out for a morning hike (the storm was predicted to arrive in the early afternoon) and we came back to sit out the storm. AND we had enough cell service so we could watch the radar of the Storm!
The Hut staff were very clear that we shouldn’t go out in the storm.
We learned to really appreciate the cairns being big with the white quartz rock at the tops to find our way in the fog. They must have fog a lot!
The main storm went a few miles north of us so we missed the prediction of a really bad storm. We still got a few hours of hard rain, but we were happily in the Hut watching through the windows. The time went by and we had yet another dinner at the Hut.
“Lakes of the Clouds Hut” is named for the few lakes near the hut. In the beginning they would get their water from the lakes, but now they have a well.
The next morning off we went toward Madison Hut. We didn’t have a reservation at Madison and we asked at Lakes of the Cloud to radio ahead to see if we could get a place for the night. We hadn’t heard by the time we left the Hut, but decided to take our chances. We had been told it was a rocky and hard trek. It included summiting a number of the 4Kers – including Mt. Clay, Mt. Jefferson, and Mt. Adams.
We began to notice that there are few (if any) little critters! No chipmunks, no squirrels. Not surprised we didn’t see deer or Moose (yes, we did see Moose dropping on the last day), but it’s strange to only see birds in the area.
It was cloudy for most of the hike. No rain, but very limited views. We did have some opening in the clouds to see down below, but not many. At least we made the summits!
Our departure from the Lakes of the Clouds Hut was pretty! You can see hikers at the top of Mt. Monroe.
We passed by the Cog Train on the way to Madison Hut.
On the Star Lake Trail
Now most of these are just bad trails. Lots of rock hopping even on flats. But one really took the cake – Star Lake Trail from the top of Mt. Adams to Madison Hut. It was over-the-top bad. I honestly would not have called it a good off-trail route. But no, it was a marked route. I give it the worst trail of the hike award.
Madison Hut from the Star Lake Trail …
Dinner time at the Madison Hut. I just wish we had pictures of BatMan.
We again passed the Cog Trains going up the hill.
We decided to go back over the route we had just come, but skip past the peaks (the trail allowed this option). Most of the time we were in clouds so there were few chances to see down to the valleys. We decided to go up to the top of Mt. Washington since the weather had cleared and we might get a view! Very nice at the top!
They had space!! Madison Hut was delightful. Again fairly lightly occupied due to the scary weather – probably about 20 hikers. Most come up for a day or two then go back. We were somewhat unusual for doing 4 nights in Huts. We met Kelly here and she was friends of friends of Scott. Seems like a good fit for future hikes with the group.
The staff here really played the fun rolls. There were three women and one man. The man was “Batman” with a cap and mask. He really had a good time and didn’t break characters for the whole dinner. Really funny. I only wish I had a picture of his performance. The women played rolls of “The Joker” and then transformed into “Bat Girl.” What the heck, it was fourth day out…
So we are now a day behind our initial played route. We were supposed to camp two nights in our tents on the way back to the car to make it a loop. Can we do two days in one? Sure!
The weather predictions were better and we were off! Still foggy in morning, but cleared up later in the day.
At the top of Mt. Washington
A really nice stroll down the valley. From rocks to forest.
Reports said the trail was hard to navigate after a flood a few years ago – nope! Easy. We had a goal, but as we progressed the timing was not working out. We were not sure of a campsite and it would be in the dark by the time we arrived – so we started looking for a place about 30 minutes before sunset – we found a place a few hundred feet off trail. First time for me to find a “wild” campsite in the woods like these. Very nice and a very nice meal! I’m really liking my tent! Works almost anywhere, easy to put up (and fast). Just has a big footprint.
We skipped past (and not close to) Lakes of the Clouds Hut and headed off the AT down the valley.
Next morning we headed out. Down the rest of the trail to the car. We ran into a few people on the trail – nothing like the AT highway. All good with Scott’s car and my car back at the motel. I drove down to meet with Barbara at Gay and Michaels house outside of Boston.
Lots of walking in the woods.
“Dry River” was not very dry
Finally saw a chipmunk. So few animals!
I’m really pleased that I was able to fit in this trip! Such a different experience hiking on the AT from the Sierras. Too early to consider doing it again!
Barbara arrived and took a bus to meet up with our friends in Boston. I drove down and met them at Gay and Michael’s house. Gay and Michael took us for some sightseeing around Concord and their part of town. We had a delightful tour of an old mental hospital – so wonderful architecture!
And the next phase of the adventure began!! Boston for a few days!
Originally we were planning on meeting with Barbara’s brother Keith and Sue up in Maine, but that fell through, so we decided just to stay in the Boston downtown area. We found a hotel (CitizenM in Back Bay) that was near the subway and right across the river from MIT. A wonderful college town in the fall.
More pictures are posted to: https://www.jerrypierce.org/photos
Boston
This is not really part of the AT, but we did go to Boston and what the heck, I’ll post pictures from that adventure HERE.
We went to the deCordova outside art exhibit. Fun stuff!
A walk around the Medfield State Hospital (not shut down). Some really beautiful building!
A park when there are so many cars to ride. Waverly would be so impressed!
We decided just to stay in the Boston downtown area. We found a hotel (CitizenM in Back Bay) that was near the subway and right across the river from MIT. A wonderful college town in the fall.
We checked in and quickly drove the rental car to the Airport and learned how to use the Subway to go back to the hotel. It’s nice not having a car in Boston!
Weather was great so all the college folks were out jogging and enjoying the weather. We, on the other hand, looked like we brought up the average age everywhere we went.
I walked up the 294 steps to the top of the Bunker Hill Monument and took pictures out of each of the windows on the four sides of the monument. After processing the resultant image was pretty spectacular. Not sure it was worth all the steps to get to the top, but at least I have something to show for it!
The first evening we went for a walk over to MIT and on the bridge. What a wonderful sunset from the bridge! We even saw rowers on the Charles River! This section of the river is fresh water and not tidal. Two bridges down are locks that separate the salt water from the fresh water.
We did lots of walking on the first day. Only walking on the first day. Began to experience the downtown!
On the second day we got two day tickets for the hop-on-hop-off bus and we signed up for a 3 hour historical tour of Boston downtown. Mike was great! Probably the highlight of the trip! https://www.therevolutionarystorytour.com/
Went to a bunch of different restaurants for lunch/dinner and had simple latte/breakfast sandwiches in the morning. We walked part of the “Freedom Trail” a marked red brick tour of the highlights of the revolution.
We took a boat tour on our last full day for sunset – a sailing ship with about 50 people! Very nice, very slow. Pretty sunset! Went to “Don’t ask Auntie” an Indian restaurant near our hotel. Amazingly good!
Next morning a Lyft to the airport and the long flight home. So boring.
