Date: 2005-08-15
From: Thistle Hill Shelter

To: Velvet Rocks Shelter 
Miles today: 16.1
Weather: mist

Up and gone by 7:37. It was wet, wet and also wet that day. A nice thing about staying in the shelter is if you went to bed with a dry tent, it was still dry the next morning (as well as most everything else). Nothing worse then trying to cram a wet tent into your tent's stuff sack. If wet it also meant that there was a "dry out time" needed along the trail. As it was by the end of the day everything was soaked due to an inadequate pack cover. It kept the moister off but that was about it. I figured a way to keep the pack dry, or dryer I should say, by total accident. Double bag it. Take two back pack covers, one over the other and it will help keep things dry.   Today was mail day. I moved on toward Hanover in a "on again, off again" rainy wet day. I crossed over the White River Bridge and made my way through the small town of West Hartford. The bridge was under construction and the workers there just looked at me and shook their collective heads. I must have been a sight. On the bridge I looked down in to the water, the river looked inviting. I wished it was a warmer day, the pools of water there directly under that bridge looked great for swimming. The town store was closed up tighter then a drum, as indicated in the Hiker Hand Book. Too bad, even a nasty cup of old store coffee would have been a good thing. The trail was not clearly marked so it took a lot of back glances to get through town (back glancing to me meant looking back where you came from to see blazes going the other way, it meant you were still on course).   As I was walking into Norwich VT, the last town in VT, the sun started peeping through the clouds. It turned out to be a great afternoon. I planned on pulling in somewhere to get dry and now it looked like I could dry out along the trail. I crossed the Connecticut River and enjoyed the fact that another state was done (twelve down, two to go). I knew what to expect in NH, I have been here before. I skied on a number of slopes and slept on a number of mountains. Here I was, finally, this state and the state of Maine, was what I thought the AT was all about. It just took 1733 miles to get here. When ever I crossed a state line I would always say the same thing, " I have walked through...", and then say each state. The list was getting long ( GA, TN, NC, VA, WV, MD, PA, NJ, NY, CT, MA and now VT ). Once again it was going by fast.    A sad thing, a local college boy, set to graduate or just graduated, drowned there not long before or after I crossed that river. The college prank was to run from one state to the other, across the bridge while naked. Then swim to the other side where you left your clothes. This young man did not make it. So sorry to hear that, my prayers go out to his family still today. A NOBO named Forever North told me of the story. He was there when it happened and was interviewed by either the Authorities or the Media, I cannot recall.   Walking through Hanover, with all it's shops and all it's busy little people made me feel so out of place. I was dry but still stinky, hungry and looked like something the cat dragged in. I was so happy to see a familiar smiling face. It was Apple Pie and she looked at me and yelled "Wilderness Bob" from across the street. We talked for a bit and walked together to the Post Office. While she watched my bag I went and picked up my package. I switched to my +20 bag, and to my heavier boots (the same ones I finished PA with). I took out a number of insulation items, and made the biggest decision, I kept my lighter back pack. The Osprey carried all well and I repacked right there in the lobby of the Post Office. This was where I made the mistake of keeping both back pack covers. As I wrote by making this mistake I discovered the "double bagging" technique (it sure worked out well). I then mailed all I had left back home. Later that day I called my wife and told her what to expect and I asked my son to open the box and let everything air out in the sun. It was so great to have that home support. Soon after I was done at the Post Office Apple Pie went her own way and I walked down the street to the Subway.   I had a great sandwich there, the worker inside looked like he was having a bad day. I asked him if everything was all right and we talked for a bit. I could imagine working in a town like that where there are two classes of people (that was for sure), the rich and everyone else. He hooked a brother up with the best Subway sub I had in a long time. I then walked down toward the Market "The Hanover Consumer Co-Op". Co-Op is a fancy word for Super Market with high priced items inside. The word "Organic" normally increased the price by two. Be prepared for it. After taking out a mortgage to re-supply my food stores, I dried out all my items in the sun near the Super Market (I call it like it is). It must have looked like I was having a yard sale, colorful things spread out everywhere. Mad Chapper soon came by and I watched his stuff while he shopped. We walked out of town together and ended up at the "Velvet Rocks Shelter".   I did not know if I was going to stay there at first, too many Day Hikers were there. They moved on and it was just Mad Chapper, Lightning Rod (who came in after dark), a SOBO named Disco and myself so I set up my tent. We all had some town beer with us and settled in around the fire ring. A nice end to a bad start of a day. The next morning Disco (from Colorado) carried out the trash (Thanks Dude) and so going through another state began.   As I mentioned Lightning Rod was there. He said he got his name because he indeed was stuck by lightning not long ago. We talked about what I called once again, "The pulse of the Trail". He knew exactly what I was referring to. His pulse was at 20 miles a day. Mine varied a little of late however, I still had the trail's pulse. I was doing good "semi big mile days". Finding the shops while they were open. Settling into camp in the daylight. Finding plenty of water along the trail.    A good day this past day was, sitting around the fire, I was enjoying every beer and every minute of it, indeed "life is good".