Sunday, March 30, 2008

A.T. 2008 - Danby, VT to Grafton Notch, ME

Now that I know I will be heading back to the trail for ~3 weeks this summer, I have had my nose buried in maps and guidebooks every chance I have had.
I am going to pick up where I left off in Danby, VT and hike through to Grafton Notch, ME (~250 miles) or Gorham, NH (~220 miles) depending on how things go. Here is a summary of the plan. The dates may change slightly but this is what I am currently thinking.
Day Shelter/Lodging and Notes Miles Day of the Week Date
0 Fly to Boston (arrive 9:50 pm on American Airlines) -- Tue July 22nd
1 Fly to Rutland (arrive 11:10 am on Cape Air).
Cab or Friend to Trailhead.
Minerva Shelter.
11.7 Wed 23rd
2 Pico Peak Shelter (apparently Cooper Shelter isn't in good shape.... Thanks Connie!) 16.8 Thu 24th
3 Stony Brook Shelter
(hit Deer's Leap along the way)
14.0 Fri 25th
4 Thistle Hill Shelter
(longest day of the trip.... maybe too long?)
21.1 Sat 26th
5 Velvet Rocks or hotel in Hanover, NH
(resupply and do some laundry)
14.1 Sun 27th
6 Moose Mtn. Shelter 11.3 Mon 28th
7 Firewarden's Cabin
(on top of Smarts Mtn.)
12.6 Tue 29th
8 Ore Hill Shelter 12.6 Wed 30th
9 Jeffers Brook Shelter 8.5 Thu 31st
10 Eliza Brook Shelter 15.9 Fri 1st
11 Liberty Spring Tentsite
(resupply in N. Woodstock before hiking last couple of miles to campsite)
11.4 Sat 2nd
12 Galehead Hut
(call ahead to make reservation at hut during busy weekend)
10.4 Sun 3rd
13 Crawford Notch (hostel or hotel) 14.7 Mon 4th
14 Lake of the Clouds Hut
(just down the hill from Mt. Washington. call ahead to make reservation)
11.2 Tue 5th
15 Pinkham Notch Camp
(call ahead to make reservation)
14.8 Wed 6th
16 Imp Campsite
(last night on the trail)
13.1 Thu 7th
17 Trident Col Shelter (resupply in Gorham, NH) 13.9 Fri 8th
18 Carlo Col Shelter
(right on the NH-ME state line)
11.1 Sat 9th
19 Speck Pond Campsite 9.5 Sun 10th
20Grafton Notch.
Shuttle to Pinkham Notch.
4.6Mon11th
21Concord Coach Lines Shuttle to Boston--Tue12th
22Fly home (depart 7:30 am on American Airlines)--Wed13th
All in all, I think I am being pretty conservative with the mileage. There is really only one or two days where I think I might be pushing myself a little too hard. Plus, I will be hiking in the White Mountains above the tree line for a good portion of the time so I want to play it safe. I would rather have the option to hike into Maine or come home a few days early instead of having to push myself to meet an overly aggressive itinerary.
I am really excited for the first week of the hike because most of it includes trails I hiked on while we live in Rutland (White Rocks, Deer's Leap, Spring Lake, etc.....). It will be fun bringing back some of those memories.
Also, if you are interested, here are links to my primary reference materials....
- Appalachian Trail Thru-Hiker's Companion (2007)
- Appalachian Trail Guide to NH-VT (1oth Edition)

2 comments:

Connie Cockrell said...

Craig,
I passed by Cooper Lodge on my Long Trail hike (your day 2) and the place is a shambles. You may consider pushing on to the next shelter, Pico Camp. Both the Governor Clement Shelter and the Cooper lodge are in a bad way physically and have lots of "local" visitors, not always friendly toward hikers. It makes a longer day for you but it's all downhill from Cooper Lodge and you should be able to get to Pico Camp in about an hour and a half or less.

BIGSKYBLAST said...

Love seeing your plans, Craig. If Anne ever wants to join you, let me know.