Date: 2005-08-10
From: Bromley Mtn. Shelter

To: USFS 10
Miles today: 15.8

Another shot at a sunrise foiled! I had gotten up early enough to make the one mile climb to the top of Bromley Mt. to watch the sunrise. Gypsy and crew had pushed on to the top last night to do the same. When I got there the fog obscured the whole sunrise. I also noticed that none of them had bothered to get up. It was a fantastic morning and I felt good. The blue funk I was in the other day was gone and I was enjoying the morning. There was only one thingthat marred the day. A blister. A lowly blister that I had gotten on the side of my little toe about ten days ago. I have not had many, if any blisters on the hike and I didn't pay much attention to it. Mistake!! I think the blister got a blister and then it got infected. Bottom line, a very sore little toe that is causing me some pain when I walk. I had hoped the down time in Manchester would have helped. It helped some, but not enough. Anyway, I hiked along enjoying the scenery. Vermont is a pretty state and I am enjoying it. I am running into a lot of people doing The Long Trail. The Long Trail is a 260 or so, mile trail that goes up the state of Vermont. It and the AT share the same trail for the first 97 miles in the southern part of the state and then the AT swings toward NH. So, now, we have NOBO's, SOBO's, and Long Trail hikers. Lots of people out here but it is fun to stop and chat with them. I was taking my time today. Stopping and taking a lot of little breaks at different spots. I really like to stop at the ponds. You will be walking along and all of a sudden you run into a pond. These ponds are just so relaxing. I haven't spotted any moose yet but I am told I will. I am also still waiting to hear my first loon call. For some reason that is one thing I really want to hear. I think their call is a hauntingly beautiful call. When I got to Baker Mtn. I had to grin. It had a bad weather detour. When you see these you know you are going to have some fun climbing, usually on rocks and boulders. Sure enough, it was a rock scramble and a fun one. The views on the way up and on top were awesome. People have been saying wait till you get to NH and ME if you want to see pretty. I have seen a lot of great stuff in the last couple of weeks and if it is better up there my mind cannot conceive it right now. As the day wore on I got lazy and my toe was really bugging me. Especially after I had stubbed it again on a rock. If I had been daydreaming before I did that I sure wasn't after. Talk about teeth clenching pain! Ouch! I came to the forest service road and decided to call it quits. I was only going a total of 10 more miles before I headed back to Manchester so no big deal. There were a lot of day hikers and bikers here but I found a secluded spot and set up. It was still fairly early so I took some time to float stick boats down the stream. The sun sparkled off the water as I urged the boats over the rocks and through the rapids. Many failed but some made it. Talk about reverting back to your childhood! I never did see the rest of the crew. They must have passed while I was playing. Everyone has the plan so, unless they change theirs minds, I will see them again on Friday, in Manchester. I do want to mention something. Awhile back, around the Cawtaba area, I mentioned how people change out here. It hit me yesterday as we were walking up to the bookstore. It was the quiet strength, the confidence in the stride, that I noticed. If we had been in a crowd the people would have made way for us. Not because of us bowling through. They would have sensed it also. I have known most of these people since the very early days and I know it wasn't there then. We were all green and unsure. It is a whole different story know. I had to smile to myself.