Carrigain (NH #29)

I arrived and slept at the trailhead around 10 PM on July 2nd ... 'shhhhh' (it's technically illegal ... though I can think of 1000 reasons why it shouldn't be), but figured that since Sawyer Road just recently opened, neither the cops or the thieves would pay much attention to me. 

 I was right, wasn't bothered, and though I didn't sleep all that well, I still managed to start my hike just after 2:30 AM.  My intention was to catch the sunrise on the summit of Mount Carrigain.  I tried to plot this out and thought that it was a four mile hike to the summit.  To my surprise, it turned out to be a five mile hike.  I was a bit disturbed because I typically cruise at an overall rate of 2 mph.  I'm a little slower going up than going down and thought that I was providing myself some cushion.  Just after this sign ...

... I noticed on the trailhead sign that the summit was 5 miles!

In any case, I started out moving out at a fairly fast pace. 

The first two miles of the hike were relatively flat, with just a slight incline.  The sound of Spring's rushing run off kept me company for the first stretch of the hike.  It was real dark because of the cloud cover and very windy.  I don't typically hike in the dark, and a few times I confused the noises of the trees swaying and squealing with some sort of wild animal.  I quickly dismissed it each time, but your mind will and can play tricks on you.  

As I arrived on the summit, I was greeted with what I guess was 40-50 mph winds.  I was about 30 minutes past sunrise, but it didn't matter as the views were completely socked in with clouds.  I was very, very disappointed, because I've read much about the views on this summit.  Today (at least this morning) wouldn't allow the vistas typically afforded from the top of the tower.  (pic  below)

As you can see, the color beyond the tower was very grey.  However, what I did see was ice!  Yes...I C E, ice in June.  The combination of the high winds and the mist in the air caused some very neat horizontal icicles on the hand rails and scaffolding. (see pic) 

I made my way to the top of the tower and the wooden steps were very slick.  After getting back down without falling, I took a shot of the summit marker shown below.

Well, because of the less than stellar conditions, I stayed on the summit for about 3 or 4 minutes and headed right back down.  The return was uneventful, but I did manage to capture this one shot when the clouds broke for a bit.  Not much of a view ... but it was a view.

Just prior to my return to the trailhead, I ran into two separate couples within 30 seconds of each other ... I said hello to both of them and they were both surprised that I was already on my way down from the summit. We chit-chatted for a bit and I continued on to my Jeep.  I finished the hike in just under 6 hours and was very hungry.  I ended up driving in search of breakfast and coffee!  Number 29 is in the books!