Date: 2013-10-04
From: Antlers Campsite

To: Wadleigh Stream Lean-to Campsite
Miles today: 13.6
Weather: scattered clouds

Today I have been on the trail for 7 months. What does that mean? It means I'm a really slow hiker, LOL. It also means I took a lot of zero days for various reasons. I've never felt this was a race so it doesn't bother me that it took a long time other than missing my loved ones. I slept great last night and only woke up once to look at the stars. The sunrise was everything I had hoped for and more. I awoke about 5:15 and started packing up. Around 6:00 I began to see pink in the eastern sky above the lake. The sunrise was so brilliant and the sky was transforming so rapidly that I stopped what I was doing every few minutes to watch or to take a pic. Our goal for the morning was to hike 7 miles to White House Landing Hostel before 11:00 so we could eat lunch there and resupply. We easily met our deadline and were at the dock by 10:30. I had been hearing on the trail how good their cheeseburgers were and how much fun it is to blow the air horn when you arrive and have them come across the lake and pick you up. I had also heard that the guy can be cranky and unpredictable but his wife is really nice. Lets put it this way . . . I wouldn't recommend the place to thru hikers. It's probably great if you are staying there but isn't very friendly to hikers stopping in. The guy is less than friendly and clearly is burnt out. He really has no business being in the service industry. We were polite and courteous to no avail. There was no lunch unless we stayed there (despite what it says in the guidebook) and the resupply was minimal at best. They said their numbers were down by 250 hikers this year and I can see why - word travels fast on the trail. They don't plan to reopen next year and he said he could make more money from his charter fishing business in FLorida than he could from "skanky" hikers. OK . . . The sad part was we walked an extra 1.8 miles to get there and back and it doesn't even count in today's mileage. We stopped for lunch at the Nahmakanta Stream and were joined by Pappa Smurf and Yodie. The things that happen on the trail never ceases to amaze me. Walking Stick lost the cap to his water bottle sometime during the day. During lunch he casually asks Pappa Smurf and Yodie if they happened to pick up a bottle cap. Yodie reaches in his pocket and pulls out Walking Sticks bottle cap that he found on the trail! After lunch I broke another pole without falling. I was going across a bog and my pole went down into the mud about 3 feet. It startled me but I caught my balance even though I noticed my pole bending. A few hundred feet up the trail when I put weight on my pole it broke just below the handle. Tonight I duct taped it back together so we'll see if that works tomorrow. Also staying at the Waleigh Stream Lean-to tonight are Davy Crockett and Orion. I like both of them a lot and it's great to see them again. Word is that Hipsy Gypsy and Oak aren't far behind - I can't wait for them to catch up. I'm sharing Walking Stick's stove because the White House Landing didn't have a good supply of things to eat that you don't have to cook. Walking Stick was gracious enough to let me cook on his stove. Frankly, it's nice to have warm food on these chilly nights.