The five mile, 1,300-foot, saw-toothed ascent of Mount Wolf went slower than I’d expected, mostly due to the rocky, root- and puddle-covered trail conditions. We might catch some views from the ridges, or we might get drenched and blown off them. It wasn’t hot or humid, and it wasn’t raining yet. I expected an endurance test, but in a good way. Gus and I set out alone into a dark, mossy forest swirling with storybook mists. There’s Only One Way to Find Out for Sure But 1,300 feet spread over twice the distance should mean that the climbs and descents would be less steep, and I had less mileage than I’d averaged for the last four months. From the map, I knew that I had twice as many miles (16.4) as yesterday, twice as many significant climbs (2), and 1,300 more feet of total climbing.
I guess I learned that today’s hike over the Kinsmans and the rest of the Whites would either be better, worse, or the same than Moosilauke. But then they said, “We’re only section hikers, so we’ve never hiked these mountains with the kind of trail conditioning you thru-hikers have.” So That Means…What? Also, they thought much of southern Maine was about the same level of difficulty as the Whites. They said Moosilauke was pretty typical of the rest of the Whites and that its nasty descent wasn’t really an outlier. I’d read that the Whites were tough but had the impression that Moosilauke was one of the hardest hikes. They’d section hiked most of the AT through New England and live nearby, so I asked them how the rest of the White Mountains compared to yesterday’s Moosilauke hike. Granite and Glory were setting up for Day 2 of their trail magic when we arrived at Kinsman Notch. But it wasn’t raining yet when we drove back up to the trailhead, so we still had hope that the Whites would deliver on our high expectations. The mountains had their heads in dark ominous clouds and the forecast called for mid-day rain. I woke to a red sky and a cool, dewy morning. So, we drove off the mountain and found a decent private campground on the outskirts of North Woodstock, our van looking hopelessly out of place in a row of huge, big boy RV’s and 5 th wheels. They also said the Rangers prefer the loud midnight knock over a gentle sunset suggestion to move along.
But the Granite, Glory, and Paddington, the local hikers who put on yesterday’s trail magic, told us that the White Mountain USFS Rangers aggressively enforce their no overnight parking regulations. Please check signs for length of stay.The Kinsman Trailhead parking area has plenty of room, a clean(ish) restroom, lots of shade, and a great location.
Fire permits are required but there are no fees for camping. The creek with new vault toilets, fire rings and bear boxes. Virginia Creek also has camping sites (dispersed camping) along The road to the campground from US 395 is paved, but the campground Campground is on a one-half reservation and the remainder on a first-come basis with fees for all sites. Modern vault toilets were installed and also bear boxes to provide security for your food. Hooks-up not available for motor-homes, or trailers. National Forest Recreation Reservations handles all sites 1-87. WESTrek is responsible for operating the facility. June 7 and closes by October 16th, weather permitting. It has 45 sites half are by reservation, the It is nestled in tall Lodgepole pines and overlooks Lake Campground is located just north of the resort aboutġ00 yards.
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