No Wildcats, but a Beaver, a Bear, and an Osprey

In Walking with Spring Earl Schaffer, the first person to continuously thru hike the AT, notes that the climb out of Pinkham Notch via the Wildcat Ridge Trail is one of the more challenging sections. So it was with some trepidation that we headed to that very trail on the most beautiful morning of the entire week. I wasn't all that confident that two middle-aged city workers could scale the rocky 3000 elevation, especially now that we had our packs loaded for a three day trip.

We left the Joe Dodge Center at Pinkham Notch following The Lost Pond Trail, a level .09 mile spur going to the Ridge Trail and bypassing, what was referred to as the 'dangerous Ellis River Crossing'. Have I mentioned that it was a beautiful morning? It was. So clear you could make out every detail of Mount Washington, and so still that you could see the ridges of Tuckerman's Ravine reflected in Lost Pond, broken only by the determined swimming of a Beaver. There are times, especially in the age of digital cameras, when you realize your photos probably look just like thousands of others, and then there are times, very unique occasions when you realize you are being presented with a rare photo opportunity – and you wish you had the skill to take that phenomenal photo. This morning was one of those moments. I'll let the pictures I did get do the 'talking' but just imagine...



It was while admiring the beaver dam that SD felt his pack give. The left stay ripped right out of its pocket and barring a sailors palm and needle (which we did not have) was irreparable. Duct tape might have done the trick temporarily but it was not responsible to head out into the wilderness for 4 days, up the roughest ridge in the Presidentials, with a broken pack. And so we headed back to the trailhead, back to the car, and back to North Conway.

And that's when we first saw the bear. And I was just where I wanted to be when I say my first bear – in the car. He was cute, and he did look like Pookie, especially as he stood up and looked over at us. He also looked like he could swot your head of with flick of his adorable paw.

We took a few (bad) photos and headed on our way to Eastern Mountain Sports where SD picked out an Osprey Atmos 65 Pack . By the time we repacked the bag and returned to Pinkham Notch it was noon. Too soon to call it a day, too late to reattempt the Ridge, we choose instead to take the 19 Mile Brook Trail with the idea that while we'd miss the Wildcats, we could stick with our original plan.