Summary: start the trip on a big anniversary day to complete last uncovered Appalachian Trail (AT) section in White Mountains – Carter Range.
05:52 wake up at home in Boston without an alarm.
06:29 ODO 0.0 +22°C – depart home after replenishing on packets of sugar and sachets of tea. It is very overcast outside. Forecast looks OK with 8-12°C at night and 20-23°C during the day. Rain is possible today and Sunday.
The clouds are a good cover for morning sun that normally blinds drivers going north-north-east in the summer.
08:19 – 09:03 ODO 118.6 / remains 46 mi +21°C – I am at Hannaford in Ossipee, NH. I do not need anything – just walking around the parking lot to do Duolingo where there is still a cell signal. Also, I need to reply to several congratulatory messages. I have a perfect excuse that I cannot speak now because I am on the way to the mountains. Although there are plenty of clouds and even fog, the weather is not that gloomy anymore.
10:15 – ODO 170.6 +21.5°C – I arrived at Pinkham Notch where I will drop the car for a few nights. The car is vibrating at high speed, the fan is howling, but the 11-year-old car is performing surprisingly well. Parking is plentiful and the spot I picked looks promising for a lasting shade. Last time I visited here was on June 27 and June 29 when I was conquering Presidential Range. This time I explore the area around parking lot by crossing Cutler River on a winter-use bridge and entering a tangle of ski trails after the bridge (for example, Avalanche Brook Ski Trail). None of these trails are on my maps, but AllTrails.com community heat map shows that many people explored these trails before. To gather my thoughts I find a spot where I can sit with my back towards the bridge and facing the river. The place is near magical: water in the river, open sky, complete quiet and the whole place discovered by accident just a few steps away from a busy Pinkham Notch parking lot. It is amazingly pretty, clean and promising for further exploration in the future.
11:00 very weak signal allows me to attend work meeting. Good. There are no emergencies. Everything can wait till Tuesday.
11:35 – I start the 14 mi bike ride to the beginning of the hike. It is easy and fast ride down from the height on the notch into the valley.
There are plenty of interesting places on the road – Wildcat ski area, Mt. Washington Auto Road, Dolly Copp Campground, Androscoggin Ranger Station, and side streets of Gorham.
12:32 – 13:11 after a very narrow and uncomfortable section on route 2 I reach a rest stop at Shelburne War Veterans Memorial Rest Area. By accident, my sister Vera is calling me right at this moment. A perfect timing – there is a table here to sit and speak. It turns out that she found a new place to work – less money and it is inconvenient to commute, but it is good news after 2 months of unexpected “freedom”.
13:20 -13:55 after a short 1.4 mi, I am arriving at Rattle River Trailhead (elev. 785′). This is my starting point for the south Bound (SOBO) AT hike. Here I need to hide the bike. A nice lady is asking me about my bike, and it turns out she is representing search and rescue team with a Glock 17 gun on the waist. Very impressive. Interestingly, she is unhappy that she just lost 100 lb. with all the rescue work that occurred in recent months.
It is warm and comfortable weather – +24°C. Today, I need to walk only 1.8 mi to the next shelter.
14:25-14:45 At is crossing a small unnamed brook – a tributary of Rattle River. I decided to follow up the stream for about fifty yards or less. Here I found a good spot to take a drive. Yes, it is shallow but secluded and water is perfectly transparent. The river is rattling as if it is talking to me in many voices. I could “conversations” or monologues up and down the stream. The only other opportunity to swim on this trip will be on the last day. I feel After the dip I feel refreshed and relaxed. Now I am finally starting to disconnect from the big noisy world. What a perfect day it is unfolding. Everything is going according to the plan, and I am only a few short hours away from completion of my plan for today.
The trail goes swiftly up from 800 to 1400’ and in another hour I am entering forest protection zone (FPZ) indicating that shelter is in 0.25 mi vicinity. Instead of staying at the shelter that is standing on the trail, I chat with resting NOBO hiker girls and continue 0.2 mi further just before trail crosses the river for the second time. Trail crosses the river; bit I keep going straight along the river a few more yards.
15:41 Now, I am dropping the backpack and exploring around on both sides of the river to find a perfect clear spot between two reliable trees. After about 20 min of roaming around I ended up at the exact same spot where I dropped the backpack. The hammock will face the river, but still a few good yards away from possible sudden water bursts (especially so after a canyon disaster in Nepal).
What is new about this trip? I did not pack the gun, not a folding saw, but this time I have Air pods and an umbrella. And I am still unclear what is that I want.
16:22 By chance, on the other side of the river I see a sign on a tree – forest protection zone border. It means I am at least 0.25 mi away from the hut.
16:46 I have already hung a hammock and started to sort things out using a tarp on the ground. But there is a strange feeling of unsatisfaction. Is it possible that even hiking is no longer a source of endless happiness on this seventh trip? Then, it would mean that I need to change something in my thinking.
17:21 I am sitting comfortably inside the hammock, I turned on the light – it is somber as I am surrounded by trees, I spread the food around me, and I am finally ready to think about “What is it I want?”.
There is no big appetite, but I really want to figure out what I want first.
18:07 All chores completed for today. I stepped out of my camp to sit on the roots of a tree right on a riverbank. There are no other trees nearby and there is still daylight here. There is no signal anywhere around, but it is early to go to bed. There is nothing interesting ahead, there is no clear reference point. All usual sources of inspiration are exhausted. There are only two tested ways to reinvigorate the flat surface of day-to-day life: strenuous hiking or extended fasting. All other senses and achievements downplayed themselves. There is nothing ahead – far out or close in front.
After supper (with porridge), I was able to relax – as if the spring inside me was unwounded. The sense of clarity came when I completed all tasks and was able to directly address the questions of purpose. It is a perfectly calm Friday evening. There are 3 nights ahead and not too many miles to complete. There is no pain, nor hunger, nor any other bodily need. It is a rare moment of clarity. If only I could find something that I want. There is already plenty of everything, of food, of work, of the house, but what is that thing that I want I life?
What do I need to gain, when according to society standards, I do not need to gain anything more? Everything has already happened. More money and more food are the only possible remaining motivators. But for now, the wonderful fragrance of foliage and the moss surround me. For the background sound there is only the river rattling. The sun is still high somewhere in the tree branches. It is not cold, and it is not warm. The only desire is calmness. I am completing day twenty-one and entering night fifteen of the wild trips this year.
Next, I climb into my hammock and take an extended break from all the worries till the next morning. No internet to search, no pictures to take, no compulsive entries in a notebook to write. Just a quiet contemplation of nature away from it all.
Navigate through the List
- 01 2026-08 First August trip to Vermont (2026/08/17)
- 02 2026-08-18 TU First day so full of driving, biking and hiking (2026/08/18)
- 03 2026-08-19 WE - second hiking day - jump over Glastenbury Mountain (2026/08/19)
- 04 2026-08-20 TH - 15 mi day over Stratton Mountain (2026/08/20)
- 05 2026-08-21 FR last 10 mi to the car (2026/08/21)
- 06 2026-08 AT VT trip lessons and overall summary (2026/08/22)
- 01 2026-08 AT NH trip to Carter Notch (2026/08/27)
- 02 2026-08-28 FR - start the hike from US Route 2 in Shelburne, NH (2026/08/28)
- 03 2026-08-29 SA - climb up from Rattle to Imp Shelter over Mt. Moriah (2026/08/29)
- 04 2026-08-30 SU from Imp Shelter to the top Wildcat Mountain (2026/08/30)
- 05 2026-08-31 MO - Down, down, and down for 5 hours (2026/08/31)
- 06 2026-08 - all seven wild nature trips this year (2026/09/01)
Be the first to comment