Zealand Falls hut.

These are mostly unedited daily notes to self:

– read 1st chapter of book about Joe Dodge.  He is a legend in NH hiking community.   Ran the huts from 1920s to 1959.  There are still stories about him.
– packed up
– breakfast at Zealand Falls hut
– ate with older ladies from NC that we hiked with for 3 nights
– the were 1st coed class at small liberal arts college in NC (starts with “b”)
– one was a doctor + PhD
– one’s dad was a CCC chaplain and had worked for Joe Dodge in the NH huts at 14 in 1942
– one had lost her husband 3 years prior and spread his ashes on Mt Garfield, his favorite peak(peak we crossed with old fire tower base)
– “Utah” didn’t make it into Zealand Falls.  The weather report (lightning) scared him off.  The ladies told us he got a hotel
– yesterday we skipped breakfast at galehead but and went out an hour and a half early to miss lightning
– it never came while we were hiking
– only small exposed stretch around mount guyot
– moral of the story: don’t trust weather reports (or don’t let them scare you)
– 3 or 4 miles of actual trail !!!
– 1st hill only bad climb
– start 6:45 in by 12:30
– talked to hikers
– “spicy” and her husband.  He hiked on in rain.  She did work for stay.
– “numbers” there with friend’s 7 year old boy
– other family with grandmother, parents and 3 grandchildren
– all 4 kids has a blast playing in rain puddles
– dinner and breakfast at hut … more than you could eat.
– “numbers” is a local.  Gave us good Intel on trails ahead
– our planned 16 mile day from Carter notch to Gorham might be too much for one day
– we changed plans: picking up our hiking gear early from hotel where we dropped it to allow camping, breaking that one up.  Would eat into “zero” day in Gorham
– very easy hike out to 302 from Zealand Falls.  7 miles NO climbs, flat trail
– old work/college friend met us, we went to rental (large place near ski lift)
– pack explosion
– laundry
– drove to Lincoln NH to get camping gear, food for possible overnight, snacks/bars for next 5 days of hiking, dinner
– I stopped back at store where I had purchased “Topo” trail runners and thanked sales person, “jay” for the good recommendation.  Good traction.  No blisters.  No scrunched toes.
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