Shelter from the Storm 

It’s a bit of a long song, and a bit more dramatic than my story merits, but it’s a great song so give a listen if you’d like to, my opinion, an underappreciated Bob Dylan classic. Here’s the first stanza:

‘Twas in another lifetime, one of toil and blood

When blackness was a virtue the road was full of mud

I came in from the wilderness, a creature void of form

Come in, she said

I’ll give ya shelter from the storm

I am sitting here in an Airbnb in Chester, VT after another great double-zero. This one was a little different than the last. I spent Friday night at my brother-in-law’s house outside of Hanover, NH, then Laura picked me up the next morning and we drove to this Airbnb where we met our son Nick and his wife Kelly for a great two-night stay. We also did a fun and much-needed Zoom call with our other son, Dylan and his wife Vicki. Continuing on the connections theme, I was also able to catch up with several family members and friends via phone and text. It was great to be off the trail, not walking, having time to slowly go through all my gear, and planning the next stage of this adventure – New Hampshire and the White Mountains! Before we get to that, here’s a recap of the last two-ish weeks. 

I’ll start with a wow! Three states down – Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Vermont. And, almost three hundred miles in 28 days – and that includes 4 ‘zero’ days and some shorter ‘nero’ days to get to pick up and drop off points. Today, Laura will drop me off back in Hanover, NH and I will resume my hike north toward Maine and Mt Kathadan. Truth be told, I am a bit intimidated by the White Mountains but I will be in them in 3 or 4 days so time to suck it up and keep this train moving. But first ………

I chose Shelter from the Storm as the intro for this post, and thank you Bob Dylan, because in the last weekly update I wrote about surprising myself and not staying in shelters as much as I expected. I spoke too soon. This stretch of the trail has seen me stay in more shelters than my tent because of rain, lack of tent sites at shelters, just feeling like not setting up a tent, and even dodging the remnants of a hurricane. And, for lots of reasons, most thru-hikers don’t stay in the shelters – they prefer their tent. So, I am often the only one or maybe with one other in shelters that can often fit 8 – 12 people. I have always liked the shelters because if they’re in good shape – not always the case, and not buggy, then you can spread out all your stuff, not need to crawl in and out of a tent, and have lots of room to cook and pack up. Here’s some of my favorite shelters on this stretch. 

Goddard Shelter – great location on the side of Glastonbury Mountain. 

Thistle Hill Shelter – we stayed here as a family and it is on a pretty hill with a great water source. The feature image at the top of this post is the sunrise from this shelter the next morning! 

Peru Peak Shelter – you can’t see it but right in front of the shelter is a decent size stream. 

The Lookout Shelter – this sturdy and dry post and beam building was perfect for riding out a hurricane! 

As you can see from the daily miles, I have been able to up the miles as my body continues to get stronger and acclimated to carrying a pack all day. I am getting, not quite there yet, where I can adjust miles and do a longer day to get to a preferred location for the night, to make it to a road crossing for food, or to make it to a farm stand when they are open. It’s kind of like getting in a groove and being able to handle more things, more choices, and see a bit further down the trail. Not that this always works out – I am thinking of the time I started hiking early to get to Hanover by around lunch time but didn’t take into account that my early start would mean I would walk through Gifford Woods State Park (the AT literally goes through the park) around 8:00 AM, and before the camp store opened to get a cold drink and snacks! 

Stone’s Throw Farmstand, .3 from the trail, where I had what is reported to be the best chocolate milk you’ll ever drink! 

On the Edge Farmstand – just .2 from the trail and great sandwiches, wifi, charging, port-john and more! 

Trail Magic and Trail Angels continue to be a big part of this journey. And the types and frequency also continue to evolve. Some highlights from this past stretch include my stay at the Vermont Hiker Hostel, previously posted about, where for a donation they house, feed, clean, and take really good care of you. I came  upon a very timely cooler of cold drinks, and even a few PBRs (Pabst Blue Ribbon beer), at a trail crossing on a day when I got a late start because of rain and a very convenient ski hut on the top of Bromley Mountain with a clothes dryer. I had planned a longer day, had a couple of sodas, took a PBR for the road, saw a great shelter right by a river, and decided 8.1 miles was about right for the day. Here is some other Trail Magic from this section. 

Roadside water cache with drink mixes and bananas. The message on the top of the bins lists a phone number and to text when the water  is low so the Trail Angel can replace and refill as needed!

Well-placed drinks at Mad Tom Notch Rd. 

This gets a creativity award – shower products for thru-hikers at the Gifford Woods State Park shower building! 

One of the benefits of getting stronger and able to do longer miles is being able to change location when necessary.  I was coming down Killington when I got caught in a thunder and lightning storm and downpour, And, there was an incoming hurricane predicted for the next day and night. Last July Vermont got serious damage from the remnants of a hurricane and I did not want to be part of a repeat! Conveniently, I was nearing the point where the AT turns right heading east towards NH and out of the Green Mountain range. I decided that if I did a big day, 19,4 miles, it would get me pretty far, hopefully enough, to get out of the rain belt I had been in the mountains and to the Lookout Shelter. This ‘shelter’ is actually a remote private cabin .1 from the AT, The owners, make the cabin available to hikers at no cost. It is quite a large structure and could easily hold 10-15 hikers. It has a porch, windows with screens, a loft, and was a great place to ride out the storm. Fortunately for me, my calculations panned out and I was far enough away from the hardest hit areas. I understand there were some fatalities and millions of dollars in road and bridge damage further west and north from where I was staying. On a much lighter note, the other long day of this stretch, 19.6, similarly was to change my location and get me to a road crossing for a 7:00 AM shuttle to have a very long day in town at the Vermont Hiker Hostel. 

The hiking has been great. They views and woods very pretty – I have always been a fan of Vermont. Yes, the trails are muddy – but I got off easy as so far it has been a drier summer and the mud has not been too bad and so far has been drying out quickly after storms. I have enjoyed hiking with some familiar faces – though this only lasts for a day or two as I still am not doing to the 20-25 miles that NOBOs are doing as they see their finish line in sight – I passed the 500 mile to Katahdin mark one day this past week. But, I have very much enjoyed meeting my first SOBOs this past week. They are a different animal – they have only been on the trail, like me, about a month, are still building up their legs, and they are wide-eyed as they get into Vermont as they just came from the adrenaline high of Maine, the 100 Mile Wilderness, and the White Mountains! I also enjoyed spending time talking with and meeting many Long Trail thru-hikers – they also are a different animal as well. Their trail is much shorter, 272 miles, their time commitment much less, and they tend to have a lighter air to them. When I turned east towards New Hampshire, I lost these Long Trail hikers as it is at the Maine Junction just northern of VT Rt 4 that the AT and the LT split after 105 miles. 

This sign is kind of a big deal! 

Here’s a few other random thoughts from the past two weeks. 

Thank you: A very big and special thank you to my friends at CIP! Laura received and started sharing with me some messages, well-wishes, jokes, poems, and other encouragements that she received in the mail recently. You are all great people and I look forward to her continuing to sprinkle these in each time we meet. 

Listening to music; Another CIP related topic. My last week of work, one of my great colleagues asked me: ‘Dr A, are you going to listen to music, podcasts, books, or go with the silence while hiking?” I had already been thinking of this and said my default was silence to enjoy the woods while mixing in some music. I have found that mid-mornings I tend to drag a bit. So of late I am in the habit of listening to a couple of albums to move me along a bit each day! 

Food and snacks: This is not me whining, too much, but I am still working on food and snacks. I am getting to the point where I need to eat lots more than I normally would but not all food is appealing right now. I am still struggling with power bar-type things. I have started to mix it up with less nutritious but appealing things like chips, candy, etc. I have also been experimenting with breakfast drinks and ways to include more fresh fruits and vegetables. Funny thing – before the trail I loved peanut butter, right now I can’t stand it! I suspect for the duration of this adventure I will continue to work on diet and constantly adjust. 

Mental processing: One of the things I am getting better at is processing and using trail information. I use the FarOut app, the AT Data Book (hard copy), and the AT Guide (digital version). Typically the night before I will review each to plan for the next day – road crossings, shelter locations, possible trail magic, possible farm stands, stores, restaurants, etc within walking distance of the trail. In the morning I then review this again. Earlier in this journey I was losing track of which road, which shelter, what was open when, etc. as I was adjusting to the hiking. I’m getting into a rhythm of late where this seems to be getting more successful. 

Gear and equipment: I suspect this will also go on for most of the journey – I continue to adjust and change up some gear. The biggest one this stretch is that I went through my pack and am sending home with Laura pretty much anything in my pack that I have not used yet. The White Mountains, all 4 to 5,000 feet are right in front of me, and I want to get as light as possible for this next stretch of the trail. So, many back-up things (batteries, water treatment pills, wires, and such) will be getting sent back home. I also am changing up my hoodie that I wear each day as the last one was ripping and took forever to dry out. Another big change – I am sending home my book. I have been reading the hard copy of The Lord of the Rings and am about to start book three. A first for me, I just downloaded a digital copy and will read this on my phone. Again, I see the tall White Mountains right in front of me! 

Shoes: This is a funny one to me. I did not know this previous to getting ready for the AT. Thru-hiker’s feet grow while on the trail from all the constant pounding and pressure. I normally take a size 10 shoe. Knowing that my feet would most likely grow – I bought three size 10.5 trail runners for this trip – they were on a great clearance sale! I also bought one size 11 in case I ever needed to go even bigger. Well when I start hiking today, I am ‘graduating’ to the size 11 shoes already and will not be surprised if there is a size 11.5 in my future! 

Thank you: As I finish the first month of this journey, I would like to send out a very sincere thank you to everyone who has and continues to support me on this adventure. I am so enjoying the experience – it is everything I hoped it would be, and more, and even the difficult times are part of the great time I am having out here. Your well-wishes, comments, calls, texts, and visits are another part of this very special adventure and keep me moving down the trail! 

This sign was in front of the Community Center in Hanover, NH and the same sign that Tom Levardi had in front of his house in Dalton, MA where I tented in his backyard!