As I continued to hike through the rugged White Mountains I started to get concerned. Hiking by yourself is ok in lower elevations, but in the Whites it's not a good idea. I stopped for a rest and was pondering what to do when I heard the familar "clomp, clomp, clomp" of hiking boots on the trail behind me. I was not an Indian tracker, but I could tell that it was more than one person, so I waited.
There are notebooks in almost every trail shelter where people can sign in and write notes. I signed in to almost every one that I saw. I also read what other hikers wrote too. For a long time in the South I had read entries by "Ted the Head & the Strohs Brothers". But in Virginia I had apparently passed them while they were off the trail. But here, in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, I finally met Ted the Head and the two Strohs Brothers.
You can tell by their trail names that they were known for "partying". But they were very friendly to me and greeted me enthusiastically. When they realized that I was alone, they insisted that I hike with them for a while. I was glad to have the company. These guys were quite a sight! One of them yelled, "piss break" and immediately all three of them turned in unison, pulled down their zippers and peed on the side of the trail. I found out how I had passed them in Virginia. They had gotten "some good stuff" and spent several days getting high. That was when I passed them and they were just now catching up to me.
We kept gaining in elevation as we approached Mount Washington. We passed a sign that warned us of danger. It said that conditions above that point could be hazardous and could result in death in bad weather. All hikers should proceed with caution. We kept on going. It was a nice summer day, but the temperature high in the mountains was a bit cool. At another point we came to a short, shear cliff. A metal ladder was bolted to the rock. Each of us began to climb the ladder. It was harder than you think because we had our backpacks to carry too. One of the rungs was a little damp and I slipped. I didn't fall off the ladder, but I did smack the side of my head against a rock. Boy, did it hurt! Ted the Head & the Strohs Brothers gathered around me to make sure I was ok. I was a bit dizzy for a minute but recovered. I joked about the benefits of having a hard head! I also was thankful that I was hiking with some other guys. Things could have gone very bad for me if I had been knocked out by my slip on the ladder. This was a time of safety in numbers.
We approached the treeline as Mount Washington loomed high ahead. It was going to be a challenge!
2011update: This morning I weighed in at 167.4 pounds. That is 19.4 pounds lost since the beginning of this project. It also means that I am 2.4 pounds away from my goal of 165.0 pounds. If I can hit that weight just once then I will be satisfied. Long term, I have decided that I want to always stay below 170.0 If I pass that weight in the future then I have to immediately go back on strict diet and exercise. Today I ran 3.4 miles. It's time for a salad!
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