North Adams, MA to Quechee, VT 6/10/2009-6/17/2009

Photos: http://good-times.webshots.com/album/573085599MzDdVz?vhost=good-times

6/10/2009 - 8:30 PM - Melville Nauheim Shelter - 20.0 mi today - 1602.1 mi total

Woke up at 7 and got packed up. Mixed Harley's food with a doggy sports drink mix called K9 GoDog (I call it Doggy Gatorade). He seems to like it and its supposed to help him stay hydrated, which is important as we get farther into summer. Rob drove me to the trailhead. Started at 9:30. Pretty steep climb to start. Hot and muggy so I was sweating like crazy. Crossed the MA/VT border and met Sunn. Hiked with him to the next shelter. Met the first two southbounders of the season (Brad and Will). They're trying to finish by early August, which is super fast! Cruised all afternoon. Very muddy all day long. The dog got really dirty, but cleaned up pretty well. Got to the shelter at 6:45. Met 4 Long Trail (LT) hikers and Sunny. Cooked dinner and pumped water. Nice to have a good conversation. Heading to bed now at dusk. Harley is pooped.

6/11/2009 - 8:30 PM - Story Spring Shelter - 17.4 mi today - 1619.5 mi total

Woke up at 7 and had breakfast. Sunny was already up but the LT guys were still asleep. Only one of them was up when Sunny and I hit the trail at 8. Guess they aren't in the routine yet. Muggy hiking all day. Soaked in sweat by lunchtime. Vermont has more hills than the last couple states, but also doesn't have many views. That wasn't an issue today, though, as the low clouds obstructed any view that I would have had. Hiked with Sunny all day. Nice guy from Texas going to law school in the fall. Lunch at Goddard Shelter at 11:15. The afternoon flew by. Took a break at Kid Gore Shelter and saw evidence of porcupine activity. Really hope the dog doesn't come into contact with one of them. Got to the shelter at 4 and called it quits. Nice easy day. Met trail maintainer Henry and LT hiker Tom. Both very nice. Rained after we arrived but didn't last long. Cooked dinner and relaxed. Nice to have time in camp. Shooting for manchester Center tomorrow. Mail drop waiting there.

6/12/2009 - 9:30 PM - Spruce Peak Shelter - 18.3 mi today - 1637.8 mi total

Got up at 7 and made breakfast. Rained overnight. Sunny had to pack up a wet tent (He was worried that Henry would snore... he doesn't, but most old men on the trail do). Glad I chose to stay in the shelter. Got going at 8:15 in steady rain. The trail was extremely muddy. Sunny and I tried to dance around the puddles to no avail. Our feet were soaking wthin a short while. That's the major disadvantage of my new trail runners. Took a snack break on the way up Stratton. No view as it was too cloudy. Had lunch at Stratton Pond Shelter a couple miles later. Pretty easy afternoon and the sun finally started to come out a bit. Met a LT hiker named Laura. Had a beautiful view at Prospect Rock. Manchester Center sat at the bottom of a green valley surrounded by green mountains. Looked very European. Cruised along and reached the shelter at 6. Nice place that even has a woodburning stove. cooked dinner, rinsed my muddy socks, and chatted with Sunny and Laura for a while. Trying to dry out my boots with candles tonight. e'll see how it works. Plan to drop into Manchester Center tomorrow morning to pick up my mail drop. Did a good job eating my food this week and will hit town with no extra food on my back. Hope the weather is nice tomorrow.

6/13/2009 - 9:00 PM - Big Branch Shelter - 19.3 mi today - 1657.1 mi total

Woke up at 6 and hit the trail at 7:20. Laura joined Sunny and I for the descent to Route 11 as she is spending today in town. Hitched a ride on a mini-bus (there's a car show today so they are using minibuses to transport people around town). Picked up my mail drop and met Sunny outside Friendly's after he went to Price Chopper and EMS. Got a donut from the bakery and said goodbye to Laura. Hitched out and hit the trail at 11:30 (very quick town visit). Big climb up Bromley Mountain to begin with a nice view at the top (FINALLY!) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYHcv3MFt9Y. Met a girl from Rochester, and an amateur film maker. Had lunch there with Sunny and then moved on. Nice view from Styles Peak, though the black flies were biting. Pretty obvious where the Green Mountains get their name. Nice mix of trees in the forest (evergreen and deciduous). Trail in incredibly muddy most of the way. Took a snack break at the Peru Peak Shelter and then pushed on to Big Branch. Nice to have a hiking partner with the same pace. Sunny and i talked all afternoon. Got to the shelter at 7 PM. Not bad timing for a resupply day. Threw the dog in the stream because he was so muddy. Cooked dinner and tried to plan the next week or so.

6/14/2009 - 9:00 PM - "Secret Shelter" (AKA Swansong Shelter) - 22.7 mi today - 1679.8 mi total

Woke up at 6:30 and went through the morning routine. It's second nature now. Hit the trail at 7:30 and trudged through the mud. It rained overnight, so it was extra muddy this morning. Little Rock Pond was very pretty. Hoping to see a moose in one of the many ponds that we are passing. No luck yet. Passed two really cool rock gardens before lunch. Got soaked from all the water that had collected on the pine trees and fell on me as I passed. Lunch in the sunshine. Climbed up Bear Mountain from there, but no view. Took a break at Minerva hinche Shelter to pum water. Three miles later, sunny and I went swimming in Clarendon Gorge to cool off. Harley was a baby and didn't get in (he's not a big fan of water). Chatted with a local, and then his brat of a kid threw mud on Sunny's back for no reason. The father displayed his terrible parenting skills by letting the kid get away without apologizing too! Got back on the trail again with a pretty rocky climb. Cruised through the mud for a while, and then the skies opened up. I got soaked. I was not happy, and neither was Harley. Trudged on through the rain and eventually found the sign for the secret shelter. We had heard about it from other hikers and decided to stay here. Found an orange soda (score!) and a bunch of candles. Cooked dinner and dried off the dog. No just chilling in the candle light trying to dry everything out. Really hope that this wet weather ends soon. Muddy trails and wet clothes make me a frustrated hiker.

6/15/2009 - 6:45 PM - Churchill Scott Shelter - 8.7 mi today - 1688.5 mi total

Woke up at 7 and found that Sunny was already eating his breakfast. Got moving so as not to keep him waiting. harley obviously did not want to hike today. He has developed some raw spots on his elbows where the pack rubs him. Started to whimper when I put his bag on. I felt bad, but there wasn't much I could do. I cut a hole in a pair of my socks to make a sleeve for his arm, but they fell off within 5 seconds. Will try to make an adjustment tomorrow. He seemed okay after a while, but I'll have to keep an eye on that. rain held off as we climbed Killington. Just as we reached Cooper Lodge, the sky opened up and we had a huge hail storm http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xVjS8VjjT1Y. Sunny and I had lunch and waited out the storm. He pushed on when it cleared, but I stayed behind to make some phone calls. Unfortunately, Rachel's dog Lucky has passed away. It brought back memories of our last family dog, Charlie. I made sure to give Harley some extra love today. Left the shelter at 2:30 as the rain started up... again! Really crappy weather and trail conditions in Vermont. Got very frustrated and stopped for the day at the next shelter 3 miles later. Harley was glad to stop. Pumped water and had dinner. Now I have about two hours of daylight to kill. Hoping to attack my med school application essay. I've done some good thinking on the trail, but now I have to get that down on paper. The blackflies are biting now. I am not enjoying Vermont at all. Looking forward to a night off the trail on Wednesday with some friends.

6/16/2009 - 8:00PM - Wintturi Shelter - 21.8 mi today - 1710.3 mi total

Woke up at 7 and dragged myself out of bed. Hit the trail at 7:45 in wet shoes and socks. I don't think my shoes have been completely dry in the past week. Can't seem to find a solution to prevent rubbing on Harley's elbow. He's in some discomfort and avoided the pack more than normal this morning. Will call the vet when I get in town. Chewed through the miles early, plodding through the mud some more. Really hope this ends soon. Ate my GORP next to Kent Pond. Saw Thundering Falls and took some pictures. Nasty climb up Quimby Mountain. Sweated a lot as the weather was heating up. Nice to see the sun again. Lunch at Stony Brook Shelter was cut short by the black flies. Had to climb down a ladder just North of there. Harley found another route down. Met some forest service workers that said this was a dry summer compared to last year. Glad I'm not hiking last year!Cruised until I reached a lookout from the top of a cabin. The owners allow hikers to climb to the top to check out the view (one of the very few I have had in Vermont) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TG-Krs0nJms. Beautiful panoramic view. Nice to be rewarded for my efforts. Got to the shelter at 6 and met 5 section hikers. Cooked dinner and am getting an early night. Looking forward to Alex's house tomorrow.

6/17/2009 - 11:30 PM - Alex's House, Quechee VT - 16.4 mi today - 1726.7 mi total

Woke up at 7 and was left camp at 7:45. None of my shetermates were awake when I left. The guidebook made it look like the terrain would be rolling gently the whole way as the elevation numbers were all close. What I didn't take into account was the hills in between all of the landmarks. What a bumpy ride! Sailed through the first 4 miles by 9, but then slowed down significantly until lunch. Luckily the trail wasn't very muddy and the sun was out all day long. There was only one spot where the mud was unavoidable, and it was probably the worst section of the trail so far. I was in mud up to my ankles. Just when I thought my shoes would finally dry out. I was pissed! Walked through a stream just to get the mud off my feet, and then squelched along in wet shoes for the rest of the day. Had lunch on a hillside under some trees. Stopped in at Thistle Hill Shelter to pump water and then pushed hard to reach Route 14 by 3:30. My right knee started to hurt during the last two miles. Hopefully that doesn't become a problem over the next couple days. Met Alex, Elissa, and Ali at Route 14. The car windows all opened as I sat down in the car. Drove to Alex's house and hosed off the dog. His sore spots look really bad today and have been bleeding a bit as we hiked. Decided to call the vet and send her some pictures to see if there was anything I could do that would allow him to heal and hike. After a lot of deliberation and phone calls back and forth, we decided that it is in Harley's best interest that he get off the trail. This is not how I wanted it to end for him. He has been a terrific companion for me and I will miss him terribly over the next 450 miles. My friend Kate is driving back to Rochester from Hanover and has graciously agreed to give Harley a lift. Not looking forward to saying goodbye tomorrow morning. The next few days are going to be really tough for me to transition back to hiking on my own. The crappy weather forecast doesn't help matters either. Apart from that really disappointing news, my stay here in Quechee has been wonderful. I was able to shower, do laundry, and have an amazing dinner. I thoroughly stuffed myself and am looking forward to breakfast tomorrow. Now it's time to hit the sack and cuddle with Harley for the last time on the trail. Here's to a speedy recovery and many more trail miles.