July 22

Woke somewhat rested and ravenously hungry after a night in the shelter. It wasn't the bugs that kept me awake, but it might have been the hard sleeping surface. Due to the way the shelter was constructed, the entrance faced directly east. Seeing a sunrise from a sleeping bag is most epic.

Arrived safely at the William Douglass shelter (1640 / 544) after a pretty neat climb over Stratton mountain. Stratton Mountain was that 4k foot mountain I mentioned yesterday. The views from the top were augmented by a fire tower. Usually fire towers are locked, but this one was open to the public. From the top of the tower I could see perhaps the best view of the mountains to come. The caretaker said one could see Mt. Washington from up there... that's right; the Whites are coming! An amateur radio enthusiast was in the tower using its vantage to enhance his reach. His knowledge of the surrounding area proved to be interesting. I'm sure I annoyed him with "What's that?" and "What about that one?"

My legs feel abused. I'm pretty excited about going into Manchester Center to resupply and get some ice cream. If I'm lucky with showtimes, I probably will see the new Batman movie. Can't think of anything I'd rather do for a few hours - feet up, large diet coke, a ridiculous popcorn, and a great movie.

As I flip ahead in the guide book, I can see some pretty big stuff coming. The next month is going to be extremely challenging; I'll try to stay upbeat. The worst of the climbs clear up right before the start of the hundred mile wilderness. In the words of a wise and good friend, "I got this!"

July 21

Thought for this section: Everything looks difficult from far away.

Oh. I guess it really has awhile since my last post. I apologize for that. Since that time though, the trail has turned into what I always dreamed it would be. I'm currently in Vermont at the Kid Gore Shelter (1620.4 / 563.8). For whatever fortuitous reason the trail has matured into heaven. Weather is becoming better - both dry and chilly. I've hit trail magic more than I ever have before. The terrain and views are getting better. The people I've been meeting in town and on the trail are great. Currently, I pass more southbounders than I do northbounders. It's really quite helpful to exchange info about water sources and such.

In the last week, two places I've been really made the previous effort worthwhile - upper goose pond cabin and the Birdcage in Dalton.

Upper goose pond cabin is a small Appalachian Mountain Club owned cabin on Goose Pond. After writing that sentence, I realized the redundant nature of it. The cabin has a caretaker, is free, has a swimming pond, a canoe, and free blueberry pancakes with coffee. It was incredible. I sat on the dock with my feet in the water reflecting on the whole trail. I decided it was places like that that really make the trail fun and help with its completion. This was the place where Mousetrap caught a small-mouth bass with a survival kit. Until that point, I was pretty sure those kits were useless.

The Birdcage is almost a requirement of every through hike. It's basically a free hostel in Dalton, MA run out of Robert Bird's house. His philosophy with regard to the hostel is basically that he'll help hikers in any way that he can. He washes clothes, offers hot showers, gives beds to sleep in, and provides slack packs and other necessary rides. He seems to really enjoy the company of the hikers. He'll allow hikers to stay as long as they need to rest, relax, and heal. It was the first place on the trail that I've felt at home. I really enjoyed a 23 mile slack pack and zero there. It was a good place. It was on my slack pack that I met a southbounder from Plymouth Landing, a subdivision about a quarter mile from my house. It blew my mind. The exchange went like this... I'm from Florida. What part? Orlando. Me too. I'm from a small town called Apopka. ME TOO! I live on Plymouth sorrento rd. Alright, get the heck out!

Today I aim to get 20 miles to a shelter on the opposite side Stratton Mountain. What's climbing a four thousand foot mountain if not pure joy! I am actually really excited.

July 10 - 13

I'm afraid there hasn't been too much to publish about recently. There have been a few funny instances and several observations I will share.

I write this log with a heavy heart after learning that a childhood friend has passed. Robert Foster passed away recently, but I don't know many details. He was a great friend to those that knew him, and I'll always remember the times from TMA. Miss you, bud.

I've been mostly hiking alone during the day. The nights have usually been spent tenting with Jersey and Hillhiker. They seem to be developing a quickness to judge that has not yet been directed at myself. Since they are taking a four day break starting tomorrow, I may not see them again.

It seems like my body is well acclimatized to the heat. I start sweating early and continue all day. Words can't describe how dirty I feel. Even if I start fresh, by the time a single day is done, I am again dirty. My legs seem to be remembering their strength as the hills turn into mountains. I should be in MA by tomorrow and almost into VT not too long after that. Time and miles are flying, but I expect to have some very tough terrain coming my way soon.

Onto animals. Squirrels up here are different. They are the second mist prevalent animal behind the chipmunk. They can come in black. They also have legs as big as a rabbit's. Must be from scampering up the hills.

I used to think black rat snakes were docile, but apparently up here they are different. Connect 4 and I were dancing around a rock while the non docile nature of a rat snake came forth. It was just lying there. We were just passing around. All of a sudden it turned, I swear I heard an evil hiss, and it started chasing and snapping. Stupid snake.

Also, I've been reading a good bit during the hotter times of the day. My current book is Adventure by Jack London. Loving it so far.

July 8 and 9

It seems that your body acts much like a bank. You put in some, and you get out some. Sometimes you can get interest on what you put in such as building muscles. You can also take more out than you put in, but you'll always have to pay it back. The only bankruptcy is death.

The day started early walking past the Bear Mountain Zoo and across the Hudson. I played a while in a spring trying to improve it, but sometimes you just can't fix broken. After hiking some more I ran into Domino and Froth at a roadside deli (probably the greatest things about the North are the delis on the side of the roads). They were eating and soon I was too. I picked up some Ben and Jerry's ice cream, a sandwich, and some pizza. It was awesome. Either Domino or Froth said something about a campground that would let hikers sleep for one night for free. All the stories start benignly. It was a little further than I had intended to hike, but I got some strong legs sometimes.

After hiking and hiking, walking along a road for a mile, and getting directions and a ride to a campground from some nice guys, I find Domino and Froth dancing around a table swatting their bodies. Both have rain jackets on and Froth has his camp mattress wrapped around him. I was standing calmly in shorts and a shirt. My secret was Deet. I asked if they had bug spray and they said no... said they didn't believe it would work... seriously? Two hikers that didn't think bug spray worked, really? I said, "Boys, hold out your hands and rub this on your skin". I just made believers out of them.

The campground facilities were alright but the water had "elevated" sodium levels, the showers looked like they were from shawshank, and there wasn't a single soul working there as far as I could tell.

The next morning, we walked out past this swimming beach on the lake at the campground. It looked run down and abandoned, but it showed a little life here and there. It reminded me of Jurassic Park a few years after the incident (you'll have to bear with me tonight. It's all movies.) After getting back to the trail the life stories of these two individuals began to unfold. Domino and Froth (D and F, respectively) both had known each other for ages. They went to school and college together. It was that sort of thing. D had a degree in information systems and film. He'd moved to LA for a year after school, moved to Korea to teach English, and now was here. His stories are absolutely outrageous. He tells them with such vigor. He'll interject noises and spirit hands when necessary. F is more laid back, reserved, but he was a bouncer for a bit while studying economics. Throughout the day we found ourselves saying "No Hobo" when we were being decidedly more homeless than hiker. For example - drinking a large rolling rock out of a paper bag in front of a deli. No hobo.

At the deli, I met up with Hillhiker, Jersey, Breezy, and Connect 4. We had been separated for a bit, and it was fun catching up. I'm camped amongst that old group of friends at 1431.9. Dinner was like stand up comedy as we each took turns just ragging on each other.

Mom and Dad - I think a good place to meet up would be Dalton, MA on 7/16. There is a Walmart close to make the first night easy.

July 7

21 miles toasted today. Although New York is really pretty, I'm not quite sold on hiking in it just yet. My main complaint is there is not much water. This deficit does bring out the best in people though. I've run into about 4 caches of water in two days. At the caches there are usually many gallon jugs just waiting for a hiker in need. I think it's likely the best trail magic. Also, the shelters in ny are... hmm... no really polite way to say it but terrible. They need some work.

As far as actual hiking is concerned, ny is fun. The mountains are becoming hard again. There are many views. There are even technical rock scrambles. I've even had to remove my pack in a squeeze in a speleological fashion. I've seen more deer here than anywhere else. First time I've ever seen bucks or fawns in my entire life. Saw a pair of each. One buck still had his soft, furry horns. Each buck had two points on each side. Is guess that's a two point buck, but I don't hunt.

Tonight I'll fall asleep just past the Bear Mountain tower to the sounds of artillery fire from west point. Those boys and gals are really letting into something. Tomorrow I will cross the Hudson. We'll see if I'm froggy enough for another 20.

July 6

It's hot, I'm tired, and I'm doing a 20 mile tomorrow. Oh, it's supposed to be hotter tomorrow with a chance of apocalyptic thunderstorms... Oh boy.
Rock scrambles in the open sun were followed by a 1.6 mile walk to resupply in Greenwood Lake, NY. Resupply was followed by more climbing and more heat.

Didn't make the mileage I had hoped (1373.9), but it inspires me to do more tomorrow. It also has me trying to get up earlier tomorrow. Sometimes having a schedule isn't fun, but at least it lets me know if I need to do better.

Night all you AC dwellers ;)

July 5

Today was hottt. Started off the day walking around the catskill national wildlife refuge. This was followed by a mile long walk on an elevated boardwalk through a swamp. The humidity was stifling. It reminded me of summer soccer practices on over- watered grass.Not to say these areas aren't pretty, but sightseeing is a little different than hiking.

After a leisurely lunch which included bananas topped with honey, I sat on a rock next to a spring and made good progress in Lord of the Flies. About getting up time I hear some rustling... Out of I guess the deeper woods comes five bears - a momma and four balls of fur. They were no bigger than cats. That is except the momma. She kept leading the cubs my way, and I started banging on the rock lightly to let her know I was up there. We locked eyes, I told her she had cute babies, and she altered course. Kind of an awesome but unnerving moment.

After pushing past Wayawanda Park, I officially crossed out of Jersey for the last time. It's New York for me for a bit. I'm camped about 0.5 miles past the border. I had planned to camp right at the border but it happened to be a crest line. There are beautiful purple colored rocks splashed with lichen all around. It almost looks martian.

All in all, pretty decent day. Chipping away at the mileage that's left.