The plan: Hike from Pinkham Notch to the Carter Notch Hut, spend the night ringing-in my 50th with a bottle of mead and some fine cigars. Then hike out in the morning, back to route 16 then hitchhike back to Pinkham. Sounded simple.
The 'book time' from Pinkham to the hut (via Long Pond and Wildcat Ridge trails) is 4.5 hours. Considering the weight of my pack and the snow/ice conditions I gave myself an extra 1-1.5 hours to reach the hut.
I was out the door at 5:30, stopped for breakfast, and was at the trailhead by 9:15. At 9:30 I was packed up and on-trail. Going by my planning, I should be able to reach the hut by 3:30 at the latest - a good hour before dusk set in.
It wasn't that long before I started questioning my 9:30 start time. Only 0.5 miles up the Wildcat Ridge Trail I found myself well behind where I expected to be. The hike up the Wildcats from Pinkham is some of the steepest in New England, and I knew that, having climbed this route before. But I've never done it with 30 pounds on my back.
(This pic shows the most difficult section of the WRT. A 25' gully of steep rock with no hand or foot holds. Did it on all fours, and occasionally on my belly...)
From the base of Wildcat "E" to the summit is 1.9 miles - not that far even in winter conditions. But its the 2050' of elevation gain that damn near broke me. I found myself taking more, and longer breaks as the day rolled on. The saving grace was the weather - a beautiful day with a few puffy clouds and temps in the 20's. Depending on where I was at the time, the wind would be anywhere from 5 to 25 mph. There was a good gust that caught me off guard while standing on one of the outlooks, but it takes more than a 25 mph gust to move me with 30 lbs on my back ;)
When I finally reached the 4,030' summit of the "E" peak (Wildcat has 5 separate peaks), I was exhausted. But knowing that the most difficult part of the hike was now behind me was an amazing moral booster. After a short break I continued on with legs that felt 20 yrs younger than they did an hour before.
But there was clearly a problem. And the problem was time, and approaching weather. As I hiked across the ridge between E and D peaks, the wind grew fierce. The air temp was still manageable (about 20) but the wind was gusting to over 60. When I reached the D peak, I took a short break at the top of the chairlift (Wildcat is a ski area). I found a place out of the wind to take a drink of my now slushed-filled Gatorade, and checked my watch. It was now 3pm! I had been on-trail for 5.5 hours - the time I was hoping to be at or near the hut.
The top of the ski area is the last "emergency out" on the ridge. So I had to determine if I would continue on, or bug out and head down. From that point the book time to the hut is just under 2 hours. Considering my rate of progress so far, I figured I would likely need at least 3 hours to reach the hut. Now hiking by headlamp is not a problem for me. Matter of fact, I really enjoy night-hiking. But my fear - and what made me decide to bug out - was that the last mile from the A peak to the hut is a very steep descent in places and would clearly be covered in ice and snow. And to make things worse, there is a wide rock slide (from Hurricane Bob) to cross. I just couldn't see myself trying to get down that stretch in the dark with a heavy pack. And if I needed any further proof that I should bug out, the clouds rolling into the notch were ominous.
So I swilled down a bit of Gatorade, swapped out my axe for my hiking poles, and headed down the ski trail. Out in the open on these wide trails was pretty wild. With the wind now peaking 60 regularly, I found myself having to stop frequently to turn my back downhill against the wind. Exhilarating!!
(This pic show Washington and Boott Spur blanketed in a bank of clouds...)
After 2.5 miles of ski trial walkin' I reached the base. I felt a bit defeated having not made it to the hut, but with sundown having already arrived I knew I made the right decision. I sat down on one of the picnic tables at the ski lodge, packed up my poles and microspikes then hoofed the mile or so up route 16 back to Pinkham and my car.
(This picture shows the clouds rolling over Wildcat - I shot this on route 16 just before getting back to my car..)
Not the hike I planned, but it was certainly worth the effort. I pushed myself harder than I have in a long time, and I did manage to log my 217th successful 4,000 footer summit on Wildcat "D"!
Maybe on my 60th birthday I'll plan an earlier start ;)
Click HERE for the picture set.
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