woodstock, nh to garfield ridge campsite

i didn’t sleep all that well at the hostel. the bed was far too short. my pillow fell off the bed a few times and i had to climb down and get it. (i was in a top bunk.) finally i shoved the pillow under the fitted sheet so it couldn’t fall anymore.

we all slept in a bit, getting up around 07:00. i grabbed my breakfast and headed to the basement where the kitchen was. i ate a weird breakfast just to solve some food problems, a bunch of peanut butter and a banana. the hostel had coffee, and i was happy to have a cup.

kick, maestro, and i got a ride back to the trail with jen, the hostel operator. she stopped on the way so we could all get out and read this sign.

she dropped us off at the same parking lot we got picked up at, and after some brief stretches we headed the .6 mile back to the trail.

kick stopped at the first river to filter some water, and maestro was going a little slower due to his smashed knee. i headed up the trail alone.

about an hour later kick caught up to me just before liberty springs campsite where we stopped for water. liberty springs was the last campsite magz and i stayed at when we did the pemi loop last october - something i meant to post here but never got around to.

we did a 4 or 5 day hike of the pemi loop right when the leaves were changing. the weather couldn’t have been better. today and tomorrow i’ll be doing a large chunk of that loop in reverse.

i headed out from the water filtering just before kick and maestro and expected kick to catch up quickly, but that didn’t happen.

i hiked the rest of the morning alone. it didn’t take me long to get up mt. liberty. from there i was above tree line for the traverse and ascent of mt. lafeyette. the weather was spectacular and the views did not disappoint. the only issue was that it was sunday and the trail and summits were infested with muggles. so many. and they smelled like soaps and perfumes. it was gross.

i stopped at the top of lafeyette for a protracted lunch. i had brought too much lunch, but i didn’t want to carry it anymore, so i ate it all. a chopped salad to which i added an avocado, a huge tub of hummus, and a beer.

when i finished i sat for a few minutes and took in the view. the sun was fierce on the summit and i decided i needed to get going before i started to burn. i shouldered my pack and walked back to the south side to see if i could see kick or maestro, and they were about 8 mimutes away, so i waited. we had a brief chat on top and then i headed out.

it took another half hour before i was below tree line and out of the sun. i spent the rest of the afternoon climbing down off lafeyette and across the ridge to garfield.

i summited garfield and immediately remembered magz and i having breakfast up there. i snapped a couple photos and headed down.

i stopped not long after at garfield ridge campsite. i sat in the shelter and called magz and we chatted for a bit. the entire family had been over for brunch, including the california contingent, something that doesn’t happen often. i was sorry to have missed it.

kick showed up and not long after maestro. we had chatted about maybe pushing on to guyot shelter, but that started to seem like a bad idea. our plan for tomorrow is to get to 302 and stay in a time share rocket’s family has. if we pushed ahead, we’d just have to sit and wait for rocket and the others to catch up.

we chatted with the caretaker about galehead hut, which was about 3 miles further. all i wanted was some floor space to sleep on after the patrons go to bed, and i could be out before they woke, but thst didn’t seem like a sure thing. we opted to stay and bought thru-hiker passes. (you pay full price for your first stay, but then half price atvall subsequent sites, and you get some free food at the huts.)

we opted to stay in the shelter. it was beautifully constructed and very spacious. we bought our thru-hiker passes and then rolled out our sleeping pads and took a nap until a section hiker showed up who couldn’t finish her meal. kick helped her out.

bugs, lyric, and rocket showed up and had decided to sleep on top of south twin. they then ate gobs of breakfast essentials and apples because they’re doing a challenge where that’s all they eat for two days. ::shrug:: and then they took off.

over dinner we chatted with the section hikers and a couple of SOBOs about all things thru-hike. after dinner i retired to the shelter to journal. kick showed up stoned and laughing at everything. maestro had given him a gummy and he had eaten a half. when maestro showed up all smiles i asked about the other half of the gummy. i’ll sleep well tonight.

some additional images from today: