I stayed at Carter Notch Hut last weekend - what a great experience! (Note: I stayed during the self-service season, so my review reflects that experience.)
The only way to get to the hut is to hike to it. There are a couple different trails you can take, but after consulting the AMC's website, we decided to take 19 Mile Brook Trail. It's the shortest trail, and I believe the easiest as well. It's 3.8 miles with around 2000' of elevation, so not super challenging - a good first hike of the season though. It is fairly rocky for the second half.
When we arrived at the hut, we were greeted by the friendly hut caretaker. There weren't a huge number of reservations for the night, so my boyfriend and I were allowed to choose our own room. The "hut" is actually four buildings - a main lodge sort of building, with a dining area and kitchen, two bunkhouses, and a bathroom.
Our room had four bunk-beds with mattresses and pillows. Each bunk also had a small battery-operated reading light (though a couple weren't working). There's no electricity or heating in the bunkhouses. I wasn't sure how cold the room would get at night, since it wasn't heated and I'm always cold. I brought a sleeping bag rated for 35 degrees, and I think it got down to around 35 or 40 that night. I was toasty warm, and ended up having to unzip my sleeping bag.
The bathrooms were SO CLEAN. It was incredible. A++ job to the caretaker. The bathrooms have lights, running water, and pit toilets.
We had full use of the kitchen to make our dinner. There's a fridge, a stove, an oven, potable water - it was really pretty similar to a kitchen at home. You do need to pack out your trash though, so be mindful of that. Peoples dinners ranged from dehydrated backpacking meals to steaks with bottles of wine.
The crowd at the hut was a friendly, conversational bunch. If you're a social person who likes the outdoors you'll fit right in.
There are some games and books in the hut for guests to use and read. They had cards, checkers, bananagrams (sans rules, which made for an interesting game), and others. Lots of nature guides - everything from trails to information on wild mushroom.
We spent the drive back planning our next hut adventure - can't wait to return! read more