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The High Huts of the White Mountains are eight
mountain hut A mountain hut is a building located high in the mountains, generally accessible only by foot, intended to provide food and shelter to mountaineers, climbers and hikers. Mountain huts are usually operated by an Alpine Club or some organization d ...
s in the White Mountains of
New Hampshire New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...
, owned and maintained by the
Appalachian Mountain Club Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC) is the oldest outdoor group in the United States. Created in 1876 to explore and preserve the White Mountains in New Hampshire, it has expanded throughout the northeastern U.S., with 12 chapters stretching from Ma ...
. They are modeled after similar huts in the
Alps The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Sw ...
and positioned at intervals along the
Appalachian Trail The Appalachian Trail (also called the A.T.), is a hiking trail in the Eastern United States, extending almost between Springer Mountain in Georgia and Mount Katahdin in Maine, and passing through 14 states.Gailey, Chris (2006)"Appalachian Tr ...
, allowing "
thru-hikers Thru-hiking, or through-hiking, is the act of hiking an established end-to-end trail or long-distance trail with continuous footsteps. In the United States, the term is most commonly associated with the Appalachian Trail (AT), the Pacific Crest ...
" who hike the entire Appalachian Trail to benefit from their services. They are generally separated by six to eight miles, about a day's hike. Hikers can reserve overnight bunks at the huts, which hold from 36 to 96 people each. They offer full service from June through mid-September, serving dinner and breakfast. Three huts stay open the rest of the year as self service, allowing guests to cook their own food in the kitchen. The huts are staffed by a team of five to nine caretakers—often called "the croo"—during full-service season. Each crew member works eleven days on, three days off. During the eleven working days, they must make four trips back down the mountain to get food and other supplies, carrying heavy loads. At the beginning of each season, fuel and supplies are flown into the huts by helicopter. The huts were built and are maintained by the Appalachian Mountain Club's construction crew. The huts have handled thousands of hikers entering the back woods and environmentally sensitive areas above
tree line The tree line is the edge of the habitat at which trees are capable of growing. It is found at high elevations and high latitudes. Beyond the tree line, trees cannot tolerate the environmental conditions (usually cold temperatures, extreme snowp ...
. Four years and an environmental impact statement were required to get the huts' permits renewed by the
U.S. Forest Service The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 154 national forests and 20 national grasslands. The Forest Service manages of land. Major divisions of the agency in ...
in 1999. The winter huts closed in March 2020 and the other huts did not open for the summer 2020 season due to the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
. This was the first time that all huts have been closed at once. The huts re-opened on June 26, 2020, for daytime visits only.


Hut history

The following High Huts are presented in the order they would be reached when hiking the Appalachian Trail from south to north.


Lonesome Lake

Lonesome Lake Hut () is the second lowest hut in the system. It started out in 1876 as a fishing camp on Lonesome Lake, with cabins built by author W.C. Prime. The hut officially became part of the AMC system in 1929, when the State of New Hampshire bought the land and invited the club to run it as a shelter.


Greenleaf

Greenleaf Hut () lies on a prominent shoulder of
Mount Lafayette Mount Lafayette is a mountain at the northern end of the Franconia Range in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, United States. It lies in the town of Franconia in Grafton County, and appears on the New England Fifty Finest list of the most ...
, with views of
Franconia Ridge The Franconia Range is a mountain range located in the White Mountains of the U.S. state of New Hampshire. It is the second-highest range of peaks (after the Presidential Range) in the White Mountains. Franconia Ridge is a prominent ridge which ...
. Its construction was the first to leave behind the stone and masonry construction technique utilized by earlier huts, and to use a team of mules to carry materials. It was completed in 1930 and pioneered running water and indoor toilets, reflecting an evolution of AMC huts from simple shelters towards becoming more like mountainside hostels. Much of Greenleaf's construction funding came from Colonel Charles Greenleaf, for whom it is named. It features a central dining room and kitchen flanked by two bunkrooms, a design which became the model for Galehead and Zealand Falls huts, both constructed within the next year. It is above sea level.


Galehead

Galehead Hut () lies nearly above sea level on rugged Garfield Ridge. Construction on the original structure there began in 1931, using wood from the surrounding trees. It was completed in 1932, along with Zealand Falls Hut, its closest northern neighbor. A small space under the front porch was used to store perishable foods. In 1938, Galehead gained a temporary 360 degree view when the Great New England Hurricane blew over all the surrounding trees. It was replaced in June 2000 with a new
Americans with Disabilities Act The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 or ADA () is a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination based on disability. It affords similar protections against discrimination to Americans with disabilities as the Civil Rights Act of 1964 ...
-compliant hut, complete with a wheelchair ramp even though it is of rough trail from the nearest trailhead. Given its altitude and remoteness, the vast majority of the new structure's materials had to be carried in; thus mainly lightweight materials were utilized. New features include
composting toilet A composting toilet is a type of dry toilet that treats human waste by a biological process called composting. This process leads to the decomposition of organic matter and turns human waste into compost-like material. Composting is carried ou ...
s (already in use at Mizpah Spring Hut, Carter Notch Hut, and Lonesome Lake Hut), both solar panels and a wind vane for producing power, and a foundation fastened to the granite bedrock with grouted
rebar Rebar (short for reinforcing bar), known when massed as reinforcing steel or reinforcement steel, is a steel bar used as a Tension (physics), tension device in reinforced concrete and reinforced masonry structures to strengthen and aid the concr ...
, giving the hut the ability to withstand winds up to . The hut is from the summit of South Twin Mountain and from the summit of
Galehead Mountain Galehead Mountain is a mountain located in Grafton County, New Hampshire. The mountain is part of the Twin Range of the White Mountains. Galehead is flanked to the east by South Twin Mountain, and to the west by Mount Garfield. The summit i ...
.


Zealand Falls

Zealand Falls Hut () was completed in 1932 along with Galehead and has been open in the winter season since 1973. It, like Lonesome Lake hut, is notable as a "family" hut due to its low altitude and relatively easy approach climb. It also has the lowest capacity of all the huts, sleeping little more than a third of the largest capacity hut.


Mizpah Spring

Mizpah Spring Hut () was originally built in 1964, and although there are newer buildings in the system, this makes Mizpah the newest hut site in the system. The building is designed to withstand winds and was built with materials brought in by helicopter.


Lakes of the Clouds

Lakes of the Clouds Hut () is the highest and largest hut in the system. It was built as a shelter in 1901 in response to the deaths of two hikers the previous year who were caught in a storm on their way to an AMC meeting atop Mount Washington. It was rebuilt as a hut in 1915, and was renovated in 1922, 1927, 1947, 1969, and 2005. Although it is the highest of the huts, at an elevation of , it is the most easily accessible due to its proximity to the summit of Mount Washington, which can be reached by car and by the
Mount Washington Cog Railway The Mount Washington Cog Railway, also known as the Cog, is the world's first mountain-climbing Rack railway, cog railway (rack-and-pinion railway). The railway climbs Mount Washington in New Hampshire, United States. It uses a Rack railway#Mars ...
. It is located adjacent to its namesake
Lakes of the Clouds The Lakes of the Clouds are a set of tarns located at the col between Mount Monroe and Mount Washington in the White Mountains of the U.S. state of New Hampshire. The lakes form the source of the Ammonoosuc River, a tributary of the Connect ...
, two small alpine
tarns A tarn (or corrie loch) is a proglacial mountain lake, pond or pool, formed in a cirque excavated by a glacier. A moraine may form a natural dam below a tarn. Etymology The word is derived from the Old Norse word ''tjörn'' ("a small mount ...
, and just below the summit of
Mount Monroe Mount Monroe is a mountain peak southwest of Mount Washington in the Presidential Range of the White Mountains in New Hampshire, United States. It is named for American President James Monroe and is the fourth highest mountain on the 4000 foote ...
. The hut provides bunks for 90 hikers. It is sometimes called "Lakes of the Crowds" due to its size and popularity.


Madison Spring

Madison Spring Hut (), originally built in 1888, is the oldest hut site in the United States. The first overnight guests stayed in the winter of 1889, and in 1906 a fee of 50 cents per night was instituted to utilize the shelter. The original hut was expanded in that same year, as well as 1911, 1922, and 1929. However, in 1940, a fire—caused by the ignition of gasoline for the gasoline-electric power generator—destroyed much of the hut. The following year it was rebuilt and re-opened. The hut was extensively rehabilitated in the fall of 2010 and early 2011. At above sea level, it is the second highest hut in the chain, and it sleeps the third highest number of guests. The hut is accessed most directly from the Valley Way trail (from the Appalachia parking lot). It is generally considered the most difficult of the full-service huts to access, based on distance and elevation required to reach it.


Carter Notch

Carter Notch Carter Notch is a high mountain pass through the White Mountains of New Hampshire. It is traversed only by hiking trails. The notch is located in the Carter-Moriah Range within the White Mountain National Forest, in Bean's Purchase, Coos Cou ...
Hut () is the easternmost hut in the system and is open year-round. Between 1996 and 2006, it operated on a self-service basis; since then it has resumed operating as a full-service hut during the summer season, remaining self-service the rest of the year. The site's use as a shelter began in 1904 as a simple
log cabin A log cabin is a small log house, especially a less finished or less architecturally sophisticated structure. Log cabins have an ancient history in Europe, and in America are often associated with first generation home building by settlers. Eur ...
; the building was rebuilt as a hut in 1914, making Carter Notch the oldest building in the hut chain, supposedly by Milton McGregor, aka "Red Mac". There are two bunkhouses located a short distance from the main hut structure; thus from the cliffs above, the hut is viewed as a small compound. There are two small ponds located nearby, as well as a tremendous boulder field. Carter Notch helped establish the hut as a viable pursuit for the AMC, and after its initial success, the group began to lay plans for a hut system.


Table


References


External links


Map of hut locations along the AT

Current Hiking Conditions near the AMC Huts

Article about hut system's history as a whole

A map of the hut system (south<->north)
{{Huts Mountain huts in the United States White Mountain National Forest Buildings and structures in New Hampshire Appalachian Mountain Club