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In the middle of the steep section, we came to a side path that led
about 1/10 of a mile to the gorge. This was definitely a worthwhile side trip;
there were two thin ribbons of water cascading almost straight down into
another pool. The cascades were supposed to be 600 feet long, but we could
only see a small portion of this distance, maybe 200 feet.
Above the
quarter mile long steep section, the trail eased up a bit,
crossing and recrossing the now narrow Ammonoosuc River numerous times. At
one point, there was a short ladder up a steep ledge. The cascades were
not as steep at this point, but still continued down the ledges.
As we began approaching
treeline, we left the river behind. The
views back down the ravine here were great. We could also see up to Mt
Monroe, Little Monroe, and Mt Washington, but we still couldn't see the Lakes of
the Clouds Hut.
Finally, the hut seemed to appear out of
nowhere and we quickly walked the rest of the way there. There was an
eighth-grade school group, their leaders, and a few other people outside
who had been there for the night. We went inside for a short rest, had
some snacks, and bought tee-shirts. The
croo were doing some work in the hut, so part of the dining
room was inaccessible, but it was a nice place to rest anyway.
Before leaving, we stopped by the
front door to get a picture, then
walked around the hut to see the dungeon, which is the room the AMC keeps open in the
winter for emergencies). It was very small, with a couple of bunks and
enough room to stand up and stretch, and didn’t look very comfortable,
but I’m sure it would be most welcome during a winter
storm. |
Twin
falls. These cascades, located at the top of the first 1000 ft of the
steep section, fall over 600 feet down the Ammonoosuc Gorge. We're only
looking at about 200 ft here. |
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