Date: 2017-08-18
From: Governor Clement Shelter Tent Site

To: Stony Brook Shelter Tent Site
Miles today: 20.6

8/18Governor Clement Shelter Tent Site to Stony Brook Shelter Tent Site20.6 milesTotal miles:  1710.8I was up and going earlier than usual this morning for two reasons. The first was that I had a big mileage day planned, since the only town that makes sense for Dustin to meet me in is Hanover, NH, which was still 57.2 miles away. Rain was also in the forecast, and I wanted to be packed and hopefully on trail when it began.  My pack was leaning against a tree, patiently waiting for me to finish in the privy, when I first heard rain drops on the roof.  Rain would be my almost constant companion from 7:00 this morning until 5:00 this evening.  I started the day by hiking up Mount Killington, the second highest peak in Vermont.  It was a long, steep, wet climb, but there were only a few instances where the going was difficult. I added 2000 feet in elevation over a 4.3 mile climb and reached Copper Lodge Shelter, located just below the summit.  There is a 0.2 mile side trail to the actual summit, where it is reported there are magnificent views. A foggy mist accompanied the rain, so I chose to remain on the AT and bypassed the summit.  The rain intensified on my way down, but, while I did fall once today, it was from tripping over a rock and not from slipping in the mud or on a slick rock.  I ate lunch at Churchill Scott Shelter, about nine miles into my hike. I shared lunch time with Black Horse, who completed a northbound thru hike in 2010. He is presently section hiking the Long Trail. He finished his section ahead of schedule and was chilling out in the shelter, waiting until tomorrow to hike down to the road where his wife will pick him up. The thought of hanging around in a shelter on a rainy day with nothing to do was strangely appealing, but I bade him farewell and hiked out in the rain.  After a long descent of Mount Killington, I reached US 4, another busy highway to cross. At one such intersection, a poster full of helpful hints was mounted on a tree.  Titled, Don't be Roadkill, it offered such advice as waiting until there were no cars visible, walking straight across the road and not diagonally, and running if necessary. Sage words of wisdom indeed. Just prior to the intersection (where I really did have to run as a car appeared after I began crossing), 1700 was spelled out in sticks beside the trail, denoting another hundred miles completed on my journey.  A mile past the highway is the Maine Junction, where the AT and the Long Trail split ways after sharing the first 105 miles of Vermont. Both the AT and the Long Trail are blazed in white, so it was imperative to turn the right way at this point. People tell stories of wayward hikers who have hiked miles on the Long Trail before realizing their error. It is certainly well marked now, and a helpful soul added further clarification with a Sharpee, labeling the correct way, "AT," and the other way, "Not AT."  I made the correct choice and soon hiked into Gifford Woods State Park. The AT goes through the park and runs parallel to a large lake for awhile before heading down to the very impressive Thundering Falls. I decided to walk over to the park office to fill my water bottles.  The office includes a covered pavilion where there was a fire place with a fire burning. There I met Maria, a friendly, outgoing park employee, who encouraged me to come and warm and dry myself by the fire. I stayed for about a half an hour, conversing with Maria and with Sam, the park manager. We had quite a conversation about Vermont mud (this has been a very muddy year, which I arrested to), sobos and nobos (there was a sobo vs. nobo volleyball game last week--nobos were the victors), and about other hiking and camping topics.  While I took a photo later of the very impressive Thundering Falls, I opted to use my photo of Maria and Sam as my journal photo for today, because the main thing I will take with me from my visit to the park was the friendly, lively interchange I had with them.  I left far sooner than I wanted, but I still had over six miles to go, and I really wanted to make it before dark. I was initially shivering from the ice cream drumstick I bought (it is never too cold for ice cream), but I soon was plenty warm from hiking. The hike up Quimby Mountain was tough, primarily because it came so late in the day. The entire climb was in steep switchbacks, with the summit remaining stubbornly in the distance for what seemed a very long time.  I finally reached the top and made better time to Stony Brook Shelter, arriving at 7:45.  Dusk had definitely settled in, but I was able to get most of my camp chores completed without my headlamp. Skywalker was in the shelter and told me that Gravity was camped in the tent area. It was good to see him again. I plan on another longer than usual day again tomorrow, and the terrain seems more conducive. There is apparently another chance of rain tomorrow, so I may be hiking again in what I like to call liquid sunshine.  Either way, I hope to get another early start, so I'll just wind this writing up and go back to sleep.