Date: 2014-07-28
From: Happy Hill Shelter

To: Moose Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 16.8
Weather: few clouds

I woke up to the sound of a light rain on the shelter's metal roof and rumbles of thunder in the distance, which made it hard to crawl out of my warm sleeping bag despite my excitement to reach New Hampshire this morning. Even harder was slipping on my clothes that were cold and damp from getting caught in the rain last night. I was the first to leave the shelter, at 8:00 am, at which time the others were still fast asleep in their bags. A quarter-mile down the trail the rain picked up and I sensed something was wrong. That's when I realized I'd left my Amicalola Falls State Park cap, the one I'd bought at the start of the approach trail in Georgia, hanging from a nail at the shelter. There was no question I'd backtrack to retrieve it, as it has great sentimental value to me, having worn it every one of the 110 days on the trail so far. I thought about how far I would have to have gone to have not returned for it and concluded most of the six miles to the New Hampshire border. With the increasing intensity of the rain, it soon got so dark in the woods that I was practically night hiking. And the water running down the trail was forming mud that was downright treacherous on the steep descent. Vermont was clearly giving me a send-off to burnish its reputation and remind me why its nickname is Vermud. Eventually I had to put on my raincoat, not because of the wet conditions, but because I was starting to get cold from being drenched for almost two hours.When I crossed the border and arrived in Hanover, NH, home of Dartmouth College, I quickly found the Mountain Goat outfitter where I had my new shoes sent. Or rather where the Thai restaurant just opened in the building the outfitter used to be in. Turns out, due to a perfect storm of conditions, I'll now be picking up my new shoes in Lincoln, NH instead. Brooks had a delay in shipping my shoes, so they sent them via Fedex instead of using the USPS, as I'd requested. When a business no longer exists, a shipment normally gets delivered instead to the post office in town. But Fedex refuses to deliver there (better to screw the customer than cooperate with the enemy), so the shoes were returned, all of which I found out this morning when I called Brooks. Oh well, on the bright side, at least my new shoes won't have to endure the wet, muddy conditions on the trail the rest of this week.I spent the next few hours trying to get warm by drinking coffee and eating an early lunch at Umpleby's, a cafe recommended to me be a woman in the post office and frequented by Dartmouth students staying on campus for the summer. In between shivers, I made tentative arrangements to meet a friend, Tom, in Franconia Notch next weekend and another friend and workmate, Jim, in Pinkham Notch a few days later. I finally managed to warm up by rinsing my socks out with hot water in the bathroom sink. On the way out of town I swung by Leo's Bakery to pick up the free donut all thru-hikers are entitled to, and bought a cookie from them so I didn't feel like a freeloader. After one final stop at Subway for a second lunch, I was on my way just before 3:00, ready to cover the remaining 11 miles."My trip is over!" That's the thought that flashed through my head as my left leg slid downhill on a root while my right foot remained planted behind me, bending my right knee more than it should have and forcing it to take all my weight plus that of my pack. When my knee wouldn't go any further, I toppled sideways, and my head came inches from slamming into the ground. I took inventory and was relieved to determine nothing seemed to be twisted, torn, or broken. With the past two days of stormy weather, the rocks, roots, and mud are making for treacherous hiking.When I arrived at the Moose Mountain Shelter, who should be there but Space Blanket. He had lost track of time just before Hanover, thought it was Friday when in fact it was Saturday, and had to zero in town, waiting until Monday for a package at the post office. Hemlock, whom I hadn't seen since Central Virginia after he got almost a week ahead of me, was also there. He had to take time off the trail recently to give his aching knees a rest.It's just past 9:00 pm and is once again pouring out, but the forecast for tomorrow is for partly sunny skies. I'm looking forward to a break from the rain.