(start 1:45. Finish 6:45. @ stony brook shelter. 10.0 miles)
Late start. I missed bus into Rutland from the Inn because the dude from the inn told me the wrong time. I choose it was time to trim the beard so I wanted to go into town to a barber. It costs me $5 to trim down the beard.
One of the things I didn't like about being at West Point and in the military is when people are passing each other they don't look at your eyes, they see what your rank is and then act accordingly. I found it very judgmental and impersonal. I am finding a similar dynamic out here. The first question most people ask is 'are you thru-hiking?' like why is that the most important thing you need to know about someone. How about- what's your name, where are you from, how ya doing?
I was talking to some cool people at the shelter tonight and I think ive come up with how I'm going to respond to 'you thru-hiking.' I'm gonna say I'm an adventurer. Another funny response I've came up with the help of Coyote (he is actually the dude i slept with at the shelter on my first night) is when people ask where'd you start, the response is going to be 'the beginning.' where you going to 'the end.'
I hammered out the 10 miles today. Felt strong. There was a decent climb. It was only 1300 feet and it was a great steady climb. The trail was awesome, no mud, no rocks, no roots.
I miss read the book and miscalculated the distance to Hanover. For some reason I thought it was 60 miles, so I planned on 4 days. Well it's only 40 miles, so I'm carrying extra food, but the real pickle is the timing of when I'll get there because I have a mail drop there of my goretex pants and coat. They say that I'm going to need warm clothes in the White mountain range so my mama mailed them to me. The problem is I could hike normal miles and get there in 3 days which would mean i would get there by Saturday but since the post office closes at noon and is closed on sunday, I'd have to wait there until Monday morning to get my stuff, so I've decided to hike smaller miles, get there on Sunday, resupply and plan the next few days, tent nearby, walk to the post office Monday morning and be on my way. (Gina, was that a run-on sentence? If not, it was a damn impressive sentence) (Russ,that's why i dont like mail drops or bounce boxes) (some hikers use bounce boxes. Which means when they're in a good town to resupply, they buy extra stuff and mail it to another town ahead so they can have good supplies in towns that may not offer good stuff but have easy access to a post office)
7/8
(start 8:40. Finish 4:20. Tented after Woodstock Stage Rd. 15.4 miles)
I'm done with sleeping at shelters for the time being. Last night there were two people about to go to sleep at like 8:30. 3 hikers came in late and made a lot noise, talked a long time and were not considerate of the two trying to sleep. So the two trying to sleep early repaid the favor this morning. They set an alarm for 4:30 and let it go and go and go. Then they proceeded to pack their gear loudly on purpose for a long time, rustling everything they could and banging stuff on the ground. It was hilarious and I couldn't blame them. However i was an innocent bystander. Then the dudes that were loud the previous night woke up at 6:30 and continued their loud shananagins while i was trying to sleep. I don't know if they're wrong or it's something that is to be expected in a public place. And it's all about freedom out here. I don't want to impose on someone else's experience. So I'm just gonna stay away. I plan to tent from now on in none shelter/campsite locations.
7/9
(start 9:40. Finish 4:30. @ iron bridge Vt 14. 11 miles)
Today was a lot of ups and downs. And the guide book i use to hike the trail isnt good at telling you the terrain. It just gives major landmarks and their elevation. So for instance today it showed one road at 880 feet and the next landmark was another road at 820 feet that's 2.5 miles away. So in planning I thought ok that should be an easy flat 2.5 miles. Nope. It was straight up then straight down. It was pretty much like that all day; however. . .
Today I hit hiker JACKPOT. The trail went briefly through this town. I was about to cross this bridge when from afar I saw this girl on the other side of the rail, looking like she was about to jump off and two people were talking to her. I was like oh snap, she's about to commit suicide and they're talking her down. As I got closer I realized there was a river down below and she was going to jump into it. She was pretty frightened and it was taking her a long time. So then I was like I'll do it. So I put my stuff down, took my boots and shirt off and hopped on the other side of the railing. Well it took me a while to finally jump. I have a fear of heights, but i finally did it. It was fun. It hurt my taint a lil. I'm guessing it was about 30 feet. (I have video of it but it's on my camera so i have to wait to get back home to put it on the computer) so anyway then the two girls jumped too. We took pictures and I was about to be on my way. Well it was the two girls and one of the girls dad there and the father invited me to have a beer back at his brother's party. I couldnt turn it down so i went. It was awesome. Great food. Great people. Great beer. Great house. This very nice lady was trying to sell me a house in the area and get me a job at the local school. She was great. And the guy who owned the house was a retired teacher. His house was amazing. He's such a craftsman. He built this little shack to have a brick oven pizza house. And that's where I'm sleeping tonight. I have a video of the party on my mobile me gallery. The link is in my blog description at the top of this site. It's definitely a night I'll never forget.
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