We didn't get too far the next day when we left Hanover. After 4 miles we ran into the Ice Cream Man or Bill Ackerly. He lives just off the trail and offers hikers free ice cream, drinking water, and a rousing game of croquet. We stayed for 4 hours before heading back to the trail and catching a great sunset. We woke up early the next morning in anticipation of an amazing sunrise but were slightly disappointed when the sun rose behind the mountain we had to climb that morning. We found a great camp spot after a long 20 mile day and didn't sit by the fire too long before calling it a night and drifting back to our tents. The next day we got into Lincoln and were warned about the weather coming in that afternoon. We decided to wait it out and try to slack pack the next day over the first mountain in the Whites. True to form the weather never came in but we met a nice guy who said we could use the pool and hot tub at his condo complex so we weren't too discouraged. He then offered us a nights sleep on his tempur pedic bunk beds. Well rested we hit Mt. Moosilauke. The first part of the climb was crawling up a waterfall but soon turned to rock slabs that we were meant to climb. We made it to the summit as clouds rolled in and out giving us peeks at the view. We got back down and went to Chet's place in Lincoln. Chet was a fireman and search and rescue volunteer as well as an extremely avid hiker before a canister of fuel for a backcountry stove blew up on him, knocking him unconscious and burning down his home around him. Luckily he survived but is now in a wheelchair and is partially blind. Speaking to him for five minutes will tell you what an amazing person he is. He opens up his home to hikers and has built some bunk space in the garage for us. All he asks is that we help with keeping it clean, and sign our names somewhere. Every surface of the garage is covered with trail names from at least the last decade. All people who Chet has touched in some way. We sadly left the next day, after catching a movie at the local theater, and Chet invited us back for the winter to ski if we were around. He also let us know of a great camp spot next to a pond just out of town so we made it there and went for an evening swim before drying by the fire and hitting the hay. It felt good to fall asleep in the Whites, which is by far the most scenic and the most difficult of the entire trail. Since Georgia I've been hearing "just wait for the Whites" and here we were finally. The next day proved some hard miles. We were either rock hopping over all of the mud or rock climbing up steep exposed rock. The Whites were already no joke. Before climbing our second mountain of the day we got to a small water hole that can only be described as a pot of gold. We ripped off our sweaty clothes and jumped into the chilly mountain water. After thoroughly cooled down we hit the climb. We also got to check out our first hut in the Whites. The huts are placed so people can spend hundreds of dollars to hike up to it and sleep in a tiny bunk with 30 other strangers. They also have good food and often let hikers work for the leftovers. The first hut we got to was the most popular and the crowd of people could be heard from half a mile away. Overwhelmed, we hiked on without food to get away from the crowd. The next day we got to climb over Franconia ridge and Mt. Lafayette, one of the most gorgeous areas of the Whites. The climb was extremely grueling and the humidity was causing us to drip sweat out if every pore but when we reached the top it was all worth it. Some of the most incredible views I've ever seen hit us as we walked along the ridge to the top. Finally we were above tree line. A cloud came over as we hit the summit of Lafayette and it began to sprinkle down on us. Knowing we were going to get some bad weather that afternoon, we found a camp spot and hunkered down for the night. Soon it began to pour and I started collecting rain water for the next mornings hike. I got about two liters before it cleared up for a nice sunset. We woke up the next morning and played some cards before hitting the trail. We got to a really nice, secluded hut and were able to do some dishes for some hot soup and freshly baked bread. The next few miles were difficult and rocky and the Whites were weighing on my muscles. We got to do some more work at the next hut for some dinner leftovers and moved on to camp a bit further. We are now halfway through the Whites and enjoying it immensely. Mile 1844. Only 345 to go!