ECT Day 174&175

IAT Day 5&6 

Day 174: 33 miles

This morning I woke up pretty early and left the motel. I wanted to get breakfast again but knew I’d get a super later start if I did. And I had a big day ahead of me.

Today I’m walking on a main road all day long for 33 miles. But there are lots of fun stops along the way! So I’m making the most of it. Road walking can be a good time if you have the right attitude. And after climbing mountains for 5 months I’m ready for some chill flat walking.

Right off the bat I cranked out about 10 miles and got to the town of Houston. There was a Walmart there and I couldn’t resist going inside to grab some things. Walmart’s are the best store to resupply at and you don’t come across them that often.

After that I went over to a subway to grab some lunch. I got a coke and sat outside to eat. Then I continued along on my road walk. I had to figure out where I was going to spend the night tonight. There is a shelter 23 miles into my day. But I really don’t want to do such a short day. Other than that I didn’t see any camping options along the road.

I wanted to end up near the town of Bridgwater so I decided to call the town hall. The woman on the phone said that there were no camping options in town. Which was a serious bummer. But then a few minutes later I got a phone call. It was the same lady! She said that she forgot there was a new campground in town called the High’D Away. So I gave the campground a call. The nice lady on the phone said that I could arrive any time and tent at the campground. What a relief! Now I can do a 33 mile day today. Which will make my day tomorrow much easier.

At one point while I was hiking a guy pulled over and offered me a ride. He was really nice but if course I declined. The road is what I’m supposed to be walking! But maybe 10 minutes later he drove back around and gave me a bit bottle of water and a carton of lemonade. That was some amazing trail magic! I wasn’t expecting much trail magic on the IAT. But I’ve already been blown away by the kindness of people out here.

After I walked for another 6.8 miles I came to another small town. There was a gas station with a restaurant inside. I went inside and got a piece of pizza. Then I asked if I could sit in there for a while. The people who worked there were super nice and said I could sit for as long as I’d like. I charged my phone for a while and ate my pizza. It started to drizzle outside but fortunately passed quickly.

Then after sitting for a while I decided to continue along. I walked for another few miles and went by a sign for a dispensary. It appeared to be medical but I decided to walk over and ask anyway. There were a few employees outside playing disc golf. I said hello and they greeted me like old friends! Apparently the lady had seen me walking the road all day today. I wound up talking to them for a while and telling them about where I was coming from. The dispensary was medical so they couldn’t sell me any weed. But one of the guys gave me a preroll which was super nice. They also gave me a seltzer water to drink along my walk. What a fun surprise!

I continued on from there and a mile or so later I got into Monticello. The town had a small general store so I went inside. In there I got an ice cream and then continued walking. What a fun day.

On that next stretch of road a truck pulled over and the person inside hollered over to me. Apparently it was two of the guys who saw me at the subway this morning. They were shocked to see me still walking along the road. I’d gone about 22 miles since they saw me last. The guys were super curious what I was doing. They offered to give me a lift but I had to decline. And at this point I was only a couple miles from the campground where I’d be spending the night.

I wound up getting to the High’D Away campground around 6:30pm. It was a 420 friendly campground so the whole area had the lovely aroma of weed. The woman Lisa who ran the place was super nice. There were cabins on the property but I opted to tent. And she let me tent under an awning just in case it rained tonight. She smoked me up and I got damn stoned. Then I set up my camp before taking a lovely shower! I had a chill rest of the night after that.

Day 175: 33 miles

This morning I woke up and had a pretty early start to my day. I got to walking and had a long ways to go for the day. But today I am officially leaving the US and entering into Canada! And I’m so damn excited about that.

Once again it was all road walking today. But sadly there were no places to stop off all day. Unlike yesterday which had tons of fun places to stop off.

Just like yesterday though I cranked out a ton of miles before taking my first break. I stretched and snacked and then continued along. And in the early afternoon a truck drove by and pulled over. It was one of the same guys who I saw last night! The dude was so shocked to see me once again. I’d walked like 30 miles since he saw me for the first time yesterday. He really couldn’t believe it. This time he was going the opposite direction, but joked that if he drove by me again later he was gonna give me a lift. I wouldn’t be able to take it but I appreciated the offer.

At one point while I was walking the road maybe 5 miles out from Fort Fairfield I walked by a house with two kids playing outside. They ran across the street to where I was and asked my name. I told them that my name was Peg Leg and they absolutely loved that. Then they asked where I was heading. I told them that I was walking to Canada! One of the boys started excitedly yelling about Canada and how he wanted to go to Canada! I said that it was still a long ways away. But he began to follow after me.

As I walked he hollered at me, “Why are you walking so fast!?” But I was just going the pace I always do. He wound up running back to his house and getting his bike to follow me. But after a little while he gave up and headed home. The whole thing was adorable though.

Today was a bit boring because it was just road walking all day with no places to break really. But once I was 26 miles in I got to the town of Fort Fairfield. I stopped off at an ice cream and burger joint to get a milkshake. It was going to be my “walking milkshake” while I continued on through town. I still had the preroll that the dispensary guys gave me yesterday, but I knew that I couldn’t cross the border with it. So I offered it to a group of people hanging out at the ice cream place. That made their day! And it felt good to do so.

Once I got my milkshake I kept on walking through town. There was a gas station in Fort Fairfield that I stopped at to get some lunch. I got a couple slices of pizza and then sat outside to eat. There was a plug so I was able to charge my phone a bit. My service was going in and out while I sat there. That’s when I started to realize that I may not have service in Canada. I looked it up and apparently I’m going to have really awful service in Canada, if any at all.

So before I continued on to cross the border I decided to call a place across the border to book a room. I thought that once I crossed over I might loose service entirely. Then I kept on walking and had 2 miles to go to get to the border. Those last couple of miles were so exciting. It felt exciting to summit Katahdin but there is something even more exciting about today. I’m leaving the US and entering into a completely different country to continue hiking. I’ve almost officially walked from Alabama to Canada.

As I approached the border a wave came over me. I felt so emotional. When I summited Katahdin I didn’t cry or even feel the urge to. I didn’t cry when I hiked my first day solo on the IAT either. But here I was, approaching the Canadian border, and I felt so many things. I got to walk right up to the window where the cars drive through. The woman behind the counter took my passport and asked me a bunch of questions. Then I was through! Bye USA! I’m in Canada now.

I walked across the border and entered into New Brunswick. It was such an unbelievable feeling. I welled up a bit but didn’t cry, though I was really close. Just as I crossed over the border it began to rain. The timing was so funny. But I didn’t mind at all! I put my rain coat on and continued along. The road went by a lot of Amish homes and wood working buildings. It was a really lovely hike into Perth-Andover.

I got into town around 6:30pm. My first stop was at a gas station to grab some snacks and drinks. Everything inside was so different! There were so many new snacks it was awesome. I’m gonna have so much fun in Canada.

Then I walked over to the motel to check in. The guy who helped me was so unbelievably nice and friendly. He gave me his business card and told me to give him a call when I completed the trail. I dropped my things off at the room and then headed out to grab some things. There was a dispensary down the road so I headed over there. And it was so ridiculously cheap. Probably 50% cheaper than any dispensary I’d ever been to in the states. Then I went to another gas station and got some goodies for dinner. The gas station had some really nice looking microwaveable meals. I got one with butter chicken and rice. Then walked back to the room to lounge.

I took a shower and made a microwave meal for dinner. After that I laid in bed, ate, and relaxed. It was a really great way to end a 33 mile day today! I can’t believe that I’m in Canada now. I’m so excited for what’s to come.