Date: 2014-07-03
From: Mark Noepel Shelter, MA

To: Congdon Shelter, VT
Miles today: 23.7

I was up early and looked down from the loft where I had slept for the night and Just Dave was almost packed up to hit the trail. It is funny but one of my observations about the trail is that the older one is the earlier one gets moving. Just Dave is a bit older than me and the two other thru hikers that shared the shelter with us were quite a bit younger and were both sound asleep...   I ate and quietly left the shelter around 7 am. I had a 4 mile hike to the summit of Graylock Mt which is the highest peak in MA. We had some rain during the night and I was hoping the clouds would have cleared enough for some good views at the peak. The peak has a small lodge and monument (see photos). I stopped for a soda at the lodge. It was probably the most expensive diet coke I have ever had but the views from the dinning hall were spectacular. Hence it was hard to complain. After a brief sit down I headed up beside the monument where I took some awesome photos of the adjacent valleys and mountains (see photos). The clouds still hung in the valleys like a sea with the distant mountains peering above like islands. I headed down almost 2000 ft towards the town of North Adams, MA. Some sections of the trail were steep and rocky. With the prior evenings rains the rocks were very slippery. On the way down I took my first spill on the AT, slipping on some wet rocks. As I was going down I tried to get my walking stick set into the ground near the rocks but I did not get enough purchase and it slid out and I landed hard on my right forearm. I ended up with a scrap over the entire length of my right forearm from elbow to wrist. After yelling out a few choice words (many four-lettered), I surveyed my arm and headed down the hill. I cleaned it up at the first stream I came upon and wiped it down with an antiseptic.   I was not sure if the fall was just my time to go down or maybe because I am still getting use to my new hiking shoes which I bought two days earlier. Once down the mountain I entered the suburbs of North Adams. The closest place for food and/or drink was about 1/2 mile to the east at a gas station. I decided I could use a cold drink or two and headed down the street. When I arrived I visited with the clerk as well as a couple of store patrons. All had questions for me related to the AT and life on the trail. I went ahead and had lunch there as I visited with everyone. I think next year the store clerk may be on the AT. I got the impression hiking the AT would be substantially more fulfilling than his current job!   Once back on the trail I headed up out of the valley. The trail runs right up a house driveway and into the woods. Along the driveway the owner had a water hose set up for AT hikers (see photos). I thought that was pretty cool. As I have mentioned in prior journals much of what makes the AT so special are the abundant acts of kindness by so many on and along the trail. Once on top of the mountain ridge I came upon the MA/VT state border (see photos). Now that I am in Vermont I only three more states to complete. However I had no time to celebrate this milestone as I could hear the distant sound of thunder. I kept moving toward the nearest shelter where if not too crowded I may sleep in the shelter again instead of my tent due to the weather. I arrived and the shelter was nearly full, mainly with weekend hikers due to the 4th of July weekend. I chose to tent and set up camp quickly with the threat of rain imminent. I set up the tent, cleaned up, and cooked dinner just as the rain began coming down. I buttoned up the tent and settled in for a stormy night.