Hot and Humid Vermont

Day 125 Bennington VT To Story Spring Shelter — AT Daily Miles 20.4;  AT Total Miles 1638.4

The 11 days I had off the trail flew by. Several experts had told me that the longer the break that I took the harder it would be both mentally and physically when I came back. They were right! Not only did I feel sluggish all day, but I just kept thinking about how I want to get to the finish line so I can rejoin my pack permanently. It didn’t help that the temperature was in the 80s today and most of the day included steep climbs.

I stayed in the same hotel last night that I stayed in the night before I headed back to Columbus Ohio. There are trail angels there including this great guy named Stops that shuttle us hikers around at no charge. They do it just because they’re great people and want to give back. Steve is another great guy that helps out in Bennington Vermont. With their help, I was able to check out of the motel and return the rental car early enough to get a good start on my hike.

As I said above, it felt like I was moving very slow. With the trail being so steep and it being so hot I just had to persevere and of course stay hydrated. It also rained pretty hard for a couple hours in the afternoon, which made the downhill at the end of the day very slippery. I was still able to get in decent mileage, which was needed if I am going to resupply after tomorrow’s hike in Manchester, Vermont.

I’m still really glad I took the 11 days off. I feel like I’ve missed so much back home, including the early months of my new granddaughter. I was able to reconnect with her as well as my son, daughter, three dogs, and last, but not least, my wife of almost 40 years. We also got a lot of chores done that typically I would’ve stayed on top of. It felt good to be productive.

So now I have to finish Vermont which will take about a week and then it’s on to the last two states.  New Hampshire and Maine will be challenging, but fun. I’m hoping to be done before the first of September. My original goal was August 10 but to date I have taken three weeks total off the trail to drive back to Columbus Ohio so I guess that means I’m roughly on the original schedule. I have a feeling that these last three states are going to really test me and that I may not do the mileages I had hoped.

Trail Angel Stops

Peaceful Creek at Bennington

Day 126 Story Spring To Manchester VT — AT Daily Miles 19.7;  AT Total Miles 1658.1

Another very long day and I am feeling it. It was really hot again, but at least the thunderstorms never happened. That would’ve made the day even harder. As it was I didn’t get to Manchester,  Vermont until almost 6 PM. It was just enough time to check into the motel, shower, and get into town to resupply for the next three days.

I had been on the fence whether to stay at a shelter, tent camp at the local VFW, or check into a hostel or motel. But with heavy thunderstorms forecast overnight and into the morning, I decided to take the comfortable approach and stay at a local motel that really takes care of the hikers. For example, they shuttled me into town for supplies at no charge. They even took me to the local pizza place where I picked up a couple pieces for dinner. Of course I had to get a couple beers at the supermarket. It’s the little things!

The actual hiking for the day was pretty average. There still weren’t very many good views, even atop Mount Stratton, but those will be coming soon in the next two states. Vermont has been a lot of hot, humid weather and the trail has been rocky and full of roots enough that I tend to need to look down more anyway. It actually makes me miss the early states where they were better views and stretches of trail where you could just hike and not worry about where to place your feet.

Having done about 40 miles the last two days and with rain forecast until about 10 AM tomorrow morning, I will probably get a slow start. I’m OK with that though. It’s actually part of the plan. I probably wouldn’t have done so many miles today if there wasn’t rain in the forecast for tomorrow. It’s good to put in the mileage on the nicer days so that you can relax a little bit on the bad weather days.

Rare Vermont View

Another View

Decent Climb Ahead

Day 127 Manchester To Big Branch Stealth — AT Daily Miles 16.4;  AT Total Miles 1674.5

I woke up at a very late 6:30 AM feeling well rested. Yesterday had been a long day, especially considering in the morning two hikers tenting close to me had their alarm set for 4:30 AM. I was up super early. It felt good to have a couple leisurely cups of coffee and get packed up well watching the local news.

I didn’t get on the trail until a little bit after 9 AM which included a half mile hike from the motel back to the trailhead. Immediately I had a couple thousand foot climb. My shower was undone very quickly! The temperature was a little better, but the humidity has been off the charts. There was no sun in the forecast for the day so I seemed to alternate between sweating when going up hills and being chilled when going down them.

The day as a whole was fairly routine, although there was one other, very steep peak, Mount Bromley, to be climbed. In the end, I ended up at a stealth camp along the beautiful Big Branch River. The sound of rushing water should lull me to sleep which will be nice. I had planned on staying at the previous shelter, but it had very limited tent sites and looked already pretty busy. Plus, it wasn’t scenic and seemed to be kind of buggy. I’m better off here at a beautiful river without close neighbors and bugs.

Tomorrow, I’ll try to get in around 18 miles which will put me 17 miles away from my next resupply in the next town. That seems very possible though admittedly I’ve been slow recently. At least my mental state is a little better today. Getting back on trail after a layoff is always so hard.

Green and Humid

Beaver Lodge

Awesomely Soft Trail

Day 128 Big Branch To Clarendon Shelter — AT Daily Miles 17.0;  AT Total Miles 1691.5

I had an incredible night sleep serenaded by the rushing water all night. It was one of my favorite campsites of the trek so far. As I was getting ready for bed, a SOBO came by to grab some water and I was able to chat with him for a while about what was upcoming for me. The south bounders couldn’t start till early June so we’re starting to see some of the faster ones now.

The day was hot and humid again, but the scenery was really good. There were not only pine trees for a change, but a really cool gorge. My only complaint with the gorge was the extremely steep climb to get out of it. And it was right before the campsite so I arrived a hot sweaty mess. At least there weren’t any mountains to go over like on the previous two days so I’ll take that as a win.

That leaves me a little bit over 16 miles tomorrow to get to a bus stop actually. There’s a bus that runs between two towns here in Vermont and the Appalachian Trail intersects the route. With any luck, I’ll be able to catch the bus and get into town for resupply and probably a shower while I’m at it. I might throw in a good dinner too! Fingers crossed.

Mt. Bromley View

Lots of Boardwalk Hiking

Epic Tent Site

Day 129 Clarendon Shelter To Rutland VT — AT Daily Miles 16.7;  AT Total Miles 1708.2

Another great night of sleep! I was the only one at the shelter and set up my tent right beside the rushing creek. It stormed overnight and that made it even better. I slept with the sound of rainfall and  the creek and they didn’t wake up until after 6 AM which was late for me. I’m such a slow starter and it was pushing 8 AM before I was on the trail.

Today was really a beautiful hike. There were lots of streams, gorgeous streams and green everywhere. The tough part was climbing up over Killington Peak, which is over 4000 feet. Still it wasn’t that bad and the thunderstorm stayed away so I was able to make decent time. Plus, I crossed the 1700 mile mark for the Appalachian Trail. Less than 500 to go.

I was under a little bit of a time crunch because of needing to catch the bus between Killington and Rutland Vermont that us hikers can use to get into town. I rushed like crazy in the afternoon and was able to get there five minutes before the bus arrived. I didn’t get into the hostel till after 6 PM which gave me just enough time to shower, get my laundry going, go to Walmart for resupply, and hit the local sub shop for a footlong.

I’m feeling pretty rundown from the faster pace you need to take care of a few personal maintenance items. My plan is to still have breakfast with the group here at the hostel and then catch the local bus back to the trailhead. I have about three days before I get to New Hampshire, which is my second to last state. Hopefully I can keep myself motivated!

Now That’s Trail!

Beautiful Ruggedness

View Near Killington Park

Day 130 Rutland VT Unexpected Rest Day — AT Daily Miles 0;  AT Total Miles 1708.2

Sometimes I listen to my wife and try to take it easy and take care of myself. Today was one of those days. I was feeling fairly lethargic yesterday and blamed it on the heat and fast pace , but I also didn’t take time to hydrate properly. In truth have been lazy lately about getting enough water. I was in a hurry to get to the shuttle into town and was not very smart yesterday, especially. Without getting into details, I was dehydrated to the point where I really needed to take a day to recover and also do a little medical attention to a problem foot and let that recover. With any luck, I’ll be as good as I can be and back out on the trail tomorrow.

The hiker hostel here is called the Yellow Deli. It is donation based and really has about everything hikers want. They even put on an outstanding breakfast for us. I’m gonna try to catch the bus tomorrow so I’ll miss breakfast on the second morning. Hopefully today’s rest will make me a better hiker tomorrow.

On that note, I think I’ll end this blog entry. So far, Vermont has been very scenic, very very green, and very very very hot and humid. I think it’s probably been a good warm-up for New Hampshire. I’ve enjoyed it more than the previous couple states but I’m ready for a break in the weather and some cooler temperatures. I suppose I should be careful what I wish for considering New Hampshire and Maine have a reputation for being much cooler in the hiking harder. Time will tell.

Yellow Deli Hiker Hostel