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View Full Version : Help planning trip from Crawford Notch State Park to Pinkham Notch (many questions)



hayshaker170
04-20-2022, 19:59
My son and I, age 53 and 21, are planning to hike the Whites June 18-25. I'm thinking of leaving my car in Gorham, getting shuttled south to Crawford Notch State Park, hiking NOBO to Pinkham Notch. We have been section hiking the AT for the last 11 years now and want to step it up a few notches. We have hiked mainly just south of the Shenandoah's to Harper's Ferry, which have been relatively easy.

This section is only 26 miles, but considering we have never done anything this difficult, I am not expecting long mile days. If we have extra time, maybe we can do a day hike or 2.

Question #1: Does this time of the year make sense or should I wait till July sometime?

Question #2: We have been using hammocks for several years, can I use a hammock in the Whites? Should we get tents?

Question #3: Are the black flies really bad this time of the year?

Question #4: Do we have to stay at shelter or campground? Backcountry camping permitted? Obviously not above treeline.

Question #5: It looks like the avg temp this time of the year on Mount Washington is lows in 40's and 50's, High's in the 50's - 60's. Obviously this is above treeline, would it be much warmer in the trees? Or do I simply plan plan for any temp from 30 -90 ?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated and thanks in advance.

peakbagger
04-21-2022, 07:43
#1 June can work July can get hot and busier
#2 You can not use Hammocks on the AT from the col between Pierce and Eisenhower to treeline heading down off Eisenhower. There are options to head down off the ridge on side trail and hammocks can be a plus. Many book a night at Lake of Clouds Hut and Madison Hut, its expensive and requires reservations but makes its easier.
#3 Black flies will be tapering off but they tend to head up towards the summits late in the year.
#4 There are detailed rules for backcountry camping - here is link https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/stelprdb5363715.pdf My standard warning is whomever wrote this either deliberately confused Leave No Trace with No camping. The last page of the brochure tells you where you cannot camp and could get fined, the second page is where you should not camp without violating LNT (or bad Karma).
#5 It has snowed every month of the year on Mt Washington, Yup 30 - 90. Dropping down into the trees gets you out of the wind but generally the cold weather on the ridge is caused by radiational cooling on clear calm night. Once the sun come up it warms up quick but it can be cold night. Generally cloudy days means slightly warmer temps. Hypothermia can be a threat, clouds form above treeline and hiking in clouds can be damp. Add in wind and its hypothermia time. Remember cotton kills, wool and synthetics are the way to go. I carry enough gear to cover all my skin all summer long.

Daylight is long in late June, 4:30 AM to 9 PM. The weekend closest to the solstice is very popular for folks to hike the ridge line in one day (Madison to Crawford Notch). For typical backpackers not familiar with the whites, cut your miles way down. The nice thing is you are within 3 hours a road for the entire hike so if you need to bail you can get down to a road and bail. FYI Pinkham several miles from Gorham. Its an easy hitch. There is a side trail that goes to Gorham off of Madison but few use it. Taking the Daniel Webster Scout trail gets you down on RT 16 much closer to Gorham and the Great Gulf trail is another option. There is long term parking at Pinkham Notch and in Gorham near the Police station. You can informally register your car with the dispatcher in town hall.

The AMC Shuttle from Pinkham to Crawford burns up a lot of time in the morning. Trail Angels in Berlin is a commercial shuttle. There are other shuttle firms in the area but they are not cheap.

Cell coverage has improved in the area but down in the valleys there are dead zones.

somers515
04-21-2022, 17:29
Peakbagger knows the Whites . . I defer to him but I will also add my 2 cents. Coming from hiking in NJ to the Whites my hiking pace was roughly cut in half. As you plan your trip if you are between two choices, pick the one with less miles per day and I think you'll be happy.

The pdf Peakbagger linked is super helpful for deciding where you can legally camp. I assume you have a map too. White Mountain National Forest Map & Guide | AMC Store - Appalachian Mountain Club Store (outdoors.org) (https://amcstore.outdoors.org/products/white-mountain-national-forest-map-guide)

I generally prefer to camp in legal places away from official campsites too but it can be difficult to do so legally in the section you are doing. There are AMC huts you could stay at too but even if you don't want to they are worth a visit as you hike by. The official campsites in that section often have tent platforms so if you do get a tent either have a free-standing tent or know how to pitch your tent on a platform. Sometimes the official campsites have caretakers so bring some cash in case you stay at one. My brother-in-law used a hammock thru this section while I tented and I think he generally had more options so it is certainly doable I think.

Don't forget to check the current weather conditions right before you go.

Mount Washington Observatory | Higher Summits Forecast (https://www.mountwashington.org/experience-the-weather/higher-summit-forecast.aspx)

Snow will almost certainly be a non-factor for you that late in June. I have used the Vermont Mount Mansfield snow stake to give me a very rough idea. Yes I know we are talking about NH here. : )

Mount Mansfield Snow Station (matthewparrilla.com) (https://matthewparrilla.com/mansfield-stake/)

That is an amazing section of trail you are doing, I think you will have a great time! Let us know how it goes. Hope this info is helpful to you.

peakbagger
04-21-2022, 19:43
A few other tid bits. AMC huts are hostels with food but require reservations. They sell leftovers from breakfast in the morning and then snacks later on in the day. They used to sell all you can eat soup all day but unsure if they still do. They are not a source for a resupply. They do have treated and tested water but early in the season they treat it heavily. There are a few water sources on the ridge marked on maps.

Try to plan you hike to start on Monday, its real busy during the weekends

Many folks get overly aggressive on the first day of hiking, they regret it the next few days. Climbing up out of the valleys is steep and rocky no matter which way you go. Once you are up on a ridge the hiking is very rocky but a bit more gradual. Plan for short day the first day.

The white blazed AT skips several major summits along the ridge. There are blue blazed routes along the ridge that go over the summits, the views are better on the summits. Purists will go up and down the blue blaze from one side than take the AT around the summit but many just follow the ridge. Mt Washinton is zoo. You may wait 20 minutes to an hour to get a photo of you at the summit sign. I tend to avoid it but the white blazes go over the summit. West Side trail skips the summit and is classic piece of trail building.

peakbagger
04-21-2022, 19:43
A few other tid bits. AMC huts are hostels with food but require reservations. They sell leftovers from breakfast in the morning and then snacks later on in the day. They used to sell all you can eat soup all day but unsure if they still do. They are not a source for a resupply. They do have treated and tested water but early in the season they treat it heavily. There are a few water sources on the ridge marked on maps.

Try to plan you hike to start on Monday, its real busy during the weekends

Many folks get overly aggressive on the first day of hiking, they regret it the next few days. Climbing up out of the valleys is steep and rocky no matter which way you go. Once you are up on a ridge the hiking is very rocky but a bit more gradual. Plan for short day the first day.

The white blazed AT skips several major summits along the ridge. There are blue blazed routes along the ridge that go over the summits, the views are better on the summits. Purists will go up and down the blue blaze from one side than take the AT around the summit but many just follow the ridge. Mt Washinton is zoo. You may wait 20 minutes to an hour to get a photo of you at the summit sign. I tend to avoid it but the white blazes go over the summit. West Side trail skips the summit and is classic piece of trail building.

hayshaker170
04-21-2022, 20:56
Wow, you guys are a wealth of good information. Thanks for the replies! I will be honest, I am a little overwhelmed trying to plan this hike out. It seems like there are a few more variables to consider. Also a little nervous since it's been a couple years since we have been on the trail and the Whites are intimidating. But like you said, just take it slow, which honestly, I will already be going slow trying to take in all the views.

peakbagger
04-21-2022, 21:47
These questions come up quite often there are multiple prior threads. We usually try to convince folks to consider slackpacking using a bus up the autoroad to the summit in the AM and then hiking down in either direction.

HankIV
04-21-2022, 22:59
I used the huts on my thru last summer, a luxury. BUT good and legal camping seems hard around there, and bad weather is common. 4 walls is kind of nice. The kids that staff them are enthusiastic. The food is good. And you don’t have to haul it, cook it or clean it up. So lighter pack. And good camaraderie around the meal table.

If you join the AMC you get a pretty big discount on hut cost, enough to be worthwhile.

It’s really beautiful (when not raining sideways and 50F!), so wouldn’t plan long mileage days. Give yourself time to just be there. Also that gives you more flexibility to work around weather events.

Thru hikers are required to moon the cog railway cars on Mt Washington, if you see that take no offense. They are just fulfilling the legal obligations.

HankIV
04-21-2022, 23:09
If you do book huts, I would say you could ditch sleeping pad and tent. Just bring a tarp for safety if caught out in weather. Still need sleeping bag.

Bring Guthook/Farout or a map. There are a ton of side trails, blazing and signs not always up to snuff.

Zealand Falls Hut is a great stop with great spot to dip feet in rushing stream—no mud, rims over solid granite. Really awesome.

peakbagger
04-22-2022, 06:40
The OP will be really lost if he walks by Zealand Hut as its south of Crawford Notch SP. Mooning the cog is no longer a smart thing to do, people have been arrested and cited for doing so. It's a very busy area and the owners of the cog no longer ignore it.

jigsaw
04-22-2022, 11:03
great advice all around. my first time i stayed at lakes and madison and am glad i did.it was a great time the hut croo kids do a hard job.but this year its my wife and i and to stay again its like $700.peakbaggers suggestion of going up to the summit of washington and heading off one way or the other is what were doing.this makes it way easier and cheaper. whatever way you choose its an awesome hike have fun

coach lou
04-22-2022, 12:27
I also will vote for a stay in a hut, any hut along the way....Turkey Dinner on Saturdays!
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peakbagger
04-22-2022, 12:48
The trade off with the huts is AMC has an incredible demand for them and they stuff in as many guests as possible into large bunkrooms. There is no extra space, meals are around big tables and everyone is sitting "cheek to cheek" No showers or hot water. Bring earplugs and realize you will not get much sleep as there is a steady stream of traffic back and forth to the bathrooms all night. Worth trying a night but it is an acquired taste for many. Note if you want alcohol you need to bring it up with you.

HankIV
04-22-2022, 22:47
I’d acknowledge the those aspects of the huts, although I slept fine. The fact that they do fill up proves that many do indeed acquire the taste. I could see for some they would become a disacquired taste. You do lose the night in the wild feel. Which I was fine with for a week.

rubyvermonter
04-25-2022, 12:57
I don't think that anyone mentioned that there are tentsites on the trail -- Liberty Springs in Franconia, Garfield Tentsite, Guyette tentsite (off trail), Ethan Pond, Osgood.

peakbagger
04-25-2022, 15:57
On the section that the OP is proposing to do, Crawford to Pinkham there is only one AMC Tentsite on the AT adjacent to Mitzpah Spring Hut called the Nauman Tentsite. RMC has the Perch and Log Cabin sites on Adams and Valley Way Tentsite below Madison Hut off the trail on blue blazes some distance and elevation loss. There is also a USFS campsite on the Osgood trail way down in the Great Gulf.

There is marginal hammock camping way down off Edmunds Path (the best area got wiped out by a blowdown several years ago), its good place to fill up with water not far from AT. There is better hammock and tent camping on the Jewell trail a short distance below treeline (no reliable water). Both options are about 1 mile and 1000 feet down off the AT. Thru hikers also camp in the woods between Mt Clinton and Eisenhower but its very limited. I am unaware of any camping options on the Dry River Trail or the Mt Eisenhower trail. The Ammonoosuc Ravine trail is no camping until down past Gem Pool (way down the mountain). No legal camping options on Sphynx or Six Husbands until way down in the Great Gulf. No possible camping on Caps Ridge Trail until way down off the ridge.

Note many folks camp on Sphynx just off the AT. It is not legal and a natural spot for afternoon and evening thunderstorms to barrel through due to the terrain. There is no cover except hide behind a boulder and hope.

Daybreak
04-25-2022, 16:31
The campsites from Crawford Notch to Pinkham include

Imp Campsite: AMC campsite ($15) about .1 mile south of Mizpah Hut with platforms. This is treed but I don't know if it is hammockable. "first come first served" but they used find spots for people in overflow sites if necessary. Can't camp near here within 1/4 of mile of the site and within x feet of a trail. Expect it to enforced. I feel there are hammockable places south of there or down nearby trails.

The Perch: RMC shelter and campsite about 1 mile down relatively easy graded trail (600' drop) between Mt Jefferson and Mt. Adams. I believe the policies are similar. This is a less used but compact site with platforms. Although this a total of about 2 miles total out of the way, you can take a "blue blazed" trail or shelter trail back to the AT saving 0.7 miles of this. This is below tree line.

Valley Way: 1/2 mile downhill from Madison Hut. Never been there.

Osgood : Far as I remember this is free with plenty of camping and hammock spots in area.

If you want start south of Crawford using a shuttle service but not all the way to Franconia Notch then Garfield Campsite is about 5 miles up up a trail almost to the AT. The same for Galehead HutYou can also take an easy trail to Zealand hut and easy hiking on to Ethan Pond.

Stay away from weekends and July 4 week. In bad weather you might be possible to get unused/cancelled reservations at Mizpah and Madison at the going rate. Don't know if they track this or not.

Earplugs are advisable in the huts and at these sites if you are a light sleeper.

peakbagger
04-25-2022, 16:48
Imp Campsite is North of Pinkham between North Carter and Moriah. Nauman is the AMC tentsite near Mitzpah. There are unofficial overflow spots down the blue blaze trail towards Crawfords path. The woods are open enough for hammocking.

Daybreak
04-25-2022, 17:29
You're right. I'd forgotten the name and would look up Imp campsite. Imp shelter would show up. I knew there wasn't a shelter at Nauman and could see from the google map Imp wasn't the place. Never stayed there but stopped by twice. I'd go back to the AMC page to get Nauman's name and get distracted before I got back to the post. Repeat again. I did finally get out my White Mountains map but alas...

GreatLakesBackpacker
04-25-2022, 18:18
The Perch: RMC shelter and campsite about 1 mile down relatively easy graded trail (600' drop) between Mt Jefferson and Mt. Adams. I believe the policies are similar. This is a less used but compact site with platforms. Although this a total of about 2 miles total out of the way, you can take a "blue blazed" trail or shelter trail back to the AT saving 0.7 miles of this. This is below tree line.

Sorry... I am confused. If the Perch is one mile down off of the ridge how can you take a "blue blaze" trail to or from the Perch to save 0.7-mile? I obviously am missing something.



Sent from my SM-G781V using Tapatalk

peakbagger
04-25-2022, 19:35
The RMC trail system in the Northern Presidential's is dense with many trails crisscrossing the area. Yes you can take a Blue Blaze and cut down to the Perch from Edmunds Col and then the next morning take a different blue blaze trail back up to the AT but you will miss a section of the AT. Thus a white blaze purist would not take this route. Same applies with the blue blaze trails over the summits, white blaze purists will need to go out and back from one side or the other if they wish to go to the summit while those with flexibility will just go over the top and skip the foul weather AT route that skips the exposed summit.