Day 134: Connecticut is Hard
Saturday, July 20th
Behind someone’s house
17.9 miles today
1498.7 miles total
Today I was really doubting myself. Which sounds crazy considering we have less than 700 miles left but I really felt weak and tired today. Compared to yesterday it was night and day difference. I had a pep in my step yesterday and today I just felt slow and every step felt heavy. It was over 4k ft of elevation gain over several climbs, it looked like the roller coaster on the map. I don’t have a ton of food either for this stretch I didn’t want to carry a lot of weight but I have enough to get me through to Mass. I really wondered if I could make it through the white mountains in New Hampshire if I was struggling on these smaller mountains. I think I was just in my head about it and I’m just feeling the toll of being on trail for this long. It’s hard to gauge yourself and not compare yourself. We met 111 today whose hangtag has the number 001 on it. I think he’s a little prideful about having that number.
I had a lunch break with Joe at a shelter somewhere on the ridgeline with 8 miles left in the day. I bought these stupid crackers I thought had peanut butter in them but actually had this fake cheese and they taste disgusting but I gotta eat them. We could hear cars driving around a local racetrack all the way to town. I saw Spencer at the trailhead and this guy was giving him $25 for no reason later he told me the guy was a little off the rocker and off the meds. I checked the weather after seeing big dark clouds looming overhead and it was supposed to rain in 15 and I started to feel drops. So luckily there was a regional high school right off trail we could hide under the awning for cover and at 4pm it down-poured for the next hour. Joe unfortunately was behind and was caught in it for .7 miles. We waited it out and then got moving again.
That was where we crossed the 700 miles left to Katahdin sign before getting into the small town of Falls Village, CT. We saw moonshine, the country boys and blonde and camo at the cafe and we got the $20 burger and beer special. Charged our stuff and hung out for a while then setup camp behind this guys place where this restaurant used to be. It’s about 7 of us back here. While today was hard it always feels good to just lay down and relax and now it doesn’t seem so bad. One step at a time, one day at a time I’ll be there.
Day 135: Massachusetts!
Sunday, July 21st
Sages Ravine Campsite
15.2 miles today
1513.9 miles total
I woke up surprised it was 7am! And as I got my socks on I realized we were in a thick fog and everything was soaked. I can’t leave anything out to dry anymore. Everyone else was gone when we packed up and ate breakfast. Since it was 8 at that point we went to the cafe and had second breakfast, an actual breakfast. There triple one and Jenna and Julia (who are section hiking) showed up and also had breakfast and debated amongst each other which town they’d spend the night in. I was talking to triple 1 about his nights on trail in the snow and stuff and how he’d lost 40 pounds since starting and all and then just before we left we saw a big black bear walking around town like no big deal.
We left town and crossed the 1500 mile marker and stopped to look at the great falls. It was a little climb to mt prospect then a nice 5 mile decent down. I picked a nice handful of raspberries too. We got to a trail head and I saw the back of someone’s car open and Joe talking to someone. I was hoping it was trail magic and it kinda was.. This guy was going hiking and had some extra fruit he brought so we got some strawberries, raspberries and dried mango. Then we saw Navajo Jo who had some Gatorade for us. I was about to say we went through all of New York and didn’t get trail magic and almost all of Connecticut but I’ll take it. We hung out there for a while, I talked to sassafras and woodchuck then moonshine rolled in just before we got going again. The climb up to the first water source wasn’t that bad, and that’s when we found out the news of Biden dropping out and we told people as they came by and didn’t believe it at first. Then the climb up to lions head was a little steep but climbing up to bear mountain (the highest peak in Connecticut but not the highest point) i didn’t think was all that bad. I was asking the guy we met who gave us fruit, shredder, about his PCT and AT hikes and how he became a firefighter on the way up. We also saw a porcupine in a tree, that was my first encounter ever. Just as prickly and funny looking as I expected.
At the top there was a pretty good view so we hung out up there for a while and ate some snacks and traded amongst ourselves. I watched chickadees bathing in small puddles and soaked in the good view. We haven’t had one like this in a while. A super steep decent down to the north side of the mountain and we were in Massachusetts! This section of trail has been flying by, the heat did make it drag a little but wow I can’t believe I’m here already. It’s just going to keep flying by. It’s like college they say it’s the time of your life and sometimes you get caught up in the horse shit of assignments and tests and before you know it you’re graduating. I feel like we’re at the point on trail where we’re about to become seniors and soon it’ll be over and I don’t want it to end like that, all of the sudden. I gotta live in the now, be in it, love it all the good and the bad. We’re all happy to be here.
Day 136: trail magic please?
Monday, July 22nd
Travelodge
14.1 miles today
1528 miles total
It was COLD last night down in that ravine. Cold wet air made everything damp and I had to inflate my sleeping pad at 3am because I couldn’t stay warm. I can’t remember the last time I used it in my hammock because it’s been so warm. Another late morning, I don’t think we left until well after 9 o clock. We passed some beautiful swimming holes this morning but Too bad we were in a rush to get into town 1) to resupply our food but 2) because there was supposed to be trial magic from 10-3 just before town so we needed to hustle to make it.
Today was humid and warm so I just was getting annoyed with my shirt and had to hike without it. Ontop of the first mountain Mt. Race we walked along the ledges and got beautiful views of Massachusetts with swallows flying in the wind. The next climb up Mt. Everett was an unforgiving vertical ascent with wooden steps drilled into the rock. Thank goodness there was water cached at a parking lot just after because I sucked down nearly all my water from sweating so much and there wasn’t any natural water sources close by. It was 11:45 when I left and tried to keep a quick 2.5mph+ pace to make it to the trail magic on time. Luckily this part of the hike was mostly downhill.
At one viewpoint a local pointed out Mt. Greylock way off in the distance, the highest peak in Mass 65 miles ahead by trail. We’ll climb it just before getting into Vermont. I kept pushing and got to the tent at 2:10 and they were already cleaning up… they said they had some snacks but were getting ready to leave. I told them I had about 10 people behind me and that I’d been basically running for 8 miles to get here. I think they’re felt bad so they cooked me a couple hot dogs and before I could finish them Spencer and some more people starting rolling in. So many that they decided to pull out the burgers anyways. I’d like to think I was kind of the saving grace for everyone. I was the appointed concierge telling everyone where the drinks, snacks, and wash station was.
One of the local shuttle drivers even showed up and offered us a ride into town so we took her up on it. We went to the local community center to swim and shower before calling it a night. We were going to camp but while we ate a free local dinner they were providing (coincidentally) it was down pouring so Joe got a motel room.
Day 137: Blink-182
Tuesday, July 23rd
0 miles today
1528 miles total
Today was the day we’ve been talking about all summer. Since we were around 300 miles in we’ve talked about maybe seeing a Blink-182 concert while on trail. At the beginning of this month we finally pulled the trigger and bought the tickets. I’m glad we did. I had a loaf of bread we got from the community center for breakfast and went shopping at the price chopper for my resupply. Unfortunately they were remodeling so they had a limited selection. I made due though and it wasn’t too expensive. I waited for the guys to go swimming again at the community center and shower before we waited at McDonald’s for Spencer’s friend to pick us up.
Before I knew it we were in Boston. I’m so lucky I’ve had family and friends all along this trail it’s been such a wonderful experience. Family, given or chosen, is what makes life worth living to me.
The concert was good, I’m glad to say I got to experience that before I won’t be able to. The more important part, to me, was spending time with the people around me. That is what’s worth more than anything.
Day 138: Mosquitos
Wednesday, July 24th
South Mount Wilcox Shelter
11.8 miles today
1539.8 miles total
I think about Mt. Katahdin everyday. It’s getting hard to fathom this will be over so soon. I’m trying to remember this quote.
“Stop acting like there is infinite time. This—the way you are living right now—is your one life.”
My fears and cares about frivolous things are slowing going away but it’s easy to get away from those things out here. In town I feel more pressure, more stress to be a certain way that just doesn’t matter out here.
We got back to the trail safely, thank you aunt Barri for driving us all the way back, truly couldn’t be more grateful for you. We didn’t really know how many miles we’d do but we ran into some of our familiar crowd and got some Powerade. I took the time to stop and eat the second half of my sub I carried and some of my snacks. I think my body just thinks it’s funny now to try and make me poop a couple miles before a shelter. I made it and even made it to the trail magic before they ended at 3pm. I got a nice breakfast sandwich and maybe the best cookie I’ve had in trail? A chai oatmeal cookie. I’m waiting until we get to the northern cookie lady to make that determination. We ended at a shelter 11 miles in to get an early start tomorrow (for real this time). We want to try and do bigger miles like we’ve been hoping. I don’t think we need to push hard but if we can just hike longer and not rush it’ll be better for us.
All the while we cook dinner and setup camp we were being eaten alive by mosquitos. Nothing else interesting really happened. Moonshine showed up before we went to bed. We also found our sweet relish has the yellow brick, we want to take it from him. This yellow brick has been carried by hikers with a goal of getting it to Katahdin.
Day 139: Bold
Thursday, July 25th
October Mountain Shelter
24.7 miles today
1564.5 miles total
Luckily it only sprinkled rather than the projected quarter inch. Everything was still damp in the morning when Joe woke up me up. We were up and out by 7 with the goal of a 24 mile day, we probably won’t see moonshine again for a while if we keep this up. It was more of a put the headphones on and just walk kind of day. It did fly by but once we got close to 20 miles the chafing was so bad I had to slow down. I ran out of water too 3 miles before the shelter but luckily there was a stream unmarked that I could fill up at.
We met will whose Navaho Jo’s husband, he’s helping support that slack packing group but his car battery died so he had to wait for AAA to come but gave us Mt dew and talked with us a bit before we left. We really considered tenting at the cookie lady 2.0’s place a couple miles ahead but we’d already done a big day and didn’t want to get in late and start that cycle again. We’ll probably stop by tomorrow morning though and pick some blueberries for her to make pancakes.
This guy we passed earlier, bold, showed up to camp with a calzone and liter of coke, he said he’d already had a pizza for lunch and packed this out for dinner but couldn’t finished so he gave me the rest. I was glad to because I was eating the knor pesto pasta and it was terrible. I finished it but I will not buy it again.
Day 140: Blueberry Farm
Friday, July 26th
Levardi’s Backyard
11.6 miles today
1576.1 miles total
Slept great but again everything was damp because of the dew. We got up and out by 8 and I was picking blueberries at the blueberry farm by 9. They had an exchange where if you picked a whole Folgers can worth of berries they’d cook you a burger with a salad and homemade bread. Just before that though I saw a group of people outside the farm who we’d met yesterday and they had the yellow brick, bricky. So they gave it to me. This yellow brick has its own Facebook page and the goal is for us to get it to Maine. They also told me it would take about an hour to pick the berries, I did it in under 40 minutes.
The food was delicious, the wind chimes were chiming and the dogs were splayed out on the cold ground. It felt like woods hole again. We stayed there for a few hours and if it wasn’t for the other people coming and going we probably wouldn’t have left. We’d only done 2 miles and had 18 more, it was noon. I carried the brick to the next town for 9 miles and as I came out of the woods I saw trail magic! They had drinks and snacks and some of the hikers we saw pass through this morning were there. Before we knew it, it was 5pm and there was no way we’d do 8 more miles so we camped out with everyone else in this guys backyard. There weren’t any trees so Joe and I had to cowboy camp. We got subs for dinner then hung out at the house until the caretaker told us to be quiet so much we just went to bed.
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