July 20 - 13.0 / 1,819.4

For leaving a town, I was able to leave at a decent time. Five of us got a ride from the local cab service.

The climb up to Franconia Ridge was a good one. One the way up, I passed by Garrett, the caretaker we had seen a few days before while crossing over the Kinsman. He was glad to see me again. We spoke until Samurai caught up to me.

The ridge was beautiful. We got up above treeline and could see for miles. The clouds parted for almost the whole time we were up there. Sam and I stopped on top of Lafayette, the highest on the ridge, for about an hour or so just to enjoy the view. It started to get crowded so we knew it was time to go. Garrett joked with us that we would see a French Canadian. No lie, the first two ladies I came across on top of Lafayette matched the description.

Chewy ended up catching up to us on top too. With him, Sam and I started to make our way down the ridge. Sometime down the ridge, Chewy left us and Lola and Sunrise passed us. I joked with them that if they got to the hut before us and took all the work for stay spots then I would hurt them. The Whites are crazy when it comes to what a tourist will pay here. There are multiple huts in the Whites. The huts are large, enclosed lodges which sleep 36 to 90 people. People will pay over $100 for a bunkspace, dinner, and breakfast. The nice thing is, the huts let a limited number of thru hikers do a work for stay. For a limited amount of work, a hiker will get any leftover food as well as floor space for a sleeping bag. Yes, floor space is on the dining room floor.

Sam and I made it to Galehead Hut right before the rain started. We went in and asked the Hut Croo (crew) if they had any work for stay available. They told us that they would see what they could do. We knew they would come up with something for us. The two of us joined Lola and Sunrise outside as we were not allowed to be in the dining room while the guest were eating. We tried to stay dry from the rain, but eventually the rain let up and a rainbow covered the valley. It was probably the closest I have ever been to a rainbow, pretty remarkable.

After the guest dinner, we went inside to sweep the dining room. The four of us then were fed. The meal was salad, green peas, and vegetarian lasagna. It hit the spot. There was more lasagna then we knew what to do with. As we finished eating, I was told I was about to give my talk. I had volunteered to tell the guest about my hike in order to fulfill my work for stay. There we go, Chatty Cathy was able to talk even more.

The talk went well. I was quite surprised by the lack of questions. They did ask quite a few, but I was expecting more. I kept the conversation going with two of the adults which was nice. The rest of the night was pretty low key. I was able to fall asleep pretty quick even though I was sleeping on a table. It must have been the full stomach.

There was one other guy there that joined us that has rubbed me the wrong way. First off, he told us he was a thru hiker. However, he started hiking the trail back in 2008. He had to leave the trail due to an injury. Secondly, the only work he did was sweep under two tables. All the rest of us swept and performed additional duties. Ahhhh, he pissed me off.