Date: 2009-08-18
From: Rainbow Lean-To 

To: Lighthouse Landing 
Miles today: 15.8
Weather: broken clouds

The wind is strong enough to make the flag on the pole behind me flap occasionally. I just finished half of a freshly made omelet and enjoyed a hot shower. A few yards away, a fire is roaring, and some other guests staying here at the Lighthouse Landing are talking and eating homemade moon pies. I arrived here a few minutes before 6:00 pm after a very taxing day on the Trail followed by another 114 to get to the dock where, after blowing the air horn, I was picked up by Bill (the owner of this wilderness camp). While I was waiting for him to pick me up, I jumped in the lake for the second time today to cool off.Today was one of the hottest days of the summer between the heat and humidity, I knew I was going to be in for a long, exhausting day on the Trail right from the get go, and it was that most definitely! With a lot of effort, I made it over the Nesuntabunt Mountain, which, while only 700' vertical *trail book says it is 1520¢highascent, felt like something ten times its height. Fortunately, most of the rest of the day was relatively flat, and the last five miles were downright benign. When I learned from a NoBo section hiker, ¢Cold Feet,¢ that they stopped serving dinner at 6:00 pm at Lighthouse Landing, I surprised myself by picking up my pace to knock off a half-hour of my mental ETA to get there in time. I took advantage of the good terrain alongside Nahmakanta Stream all the way to the turnoff for the landing (having miss-planned my meals, I had only two NutriSystem muffins for breakfast and a couple of pepperoni sandwiches for lunch, so I wasn¢t about to miss dinner, that¢s for sure!). During the day, I stopped to catch my breath more times than I could count and to enjoy the views of Pollywog Gorge and to talk to Thru Hikers, ¢Phoenix,¢ ¢Tinkerbell,¢ ¢Blazer,¢ ¢Older,¢ and several others whose names escape me now. I also chatted with all of the numerous toads and frogs and two garter snakes that I encountered, but they didn¢t have much to say in return. Around 2:00 pm, I stopped for lunch on a sandy beach on Lake Nesuntabunt, where I skinny-dipped and then sat for a while in the sun drying off and catching some rest. Before moving on, I refilled my water (I drank 6 liters during the course of the day!) from a spring that was sparkling and cold nearby. I put on my ¢Keen,¢ sandals, which was a good decision since a bit later the Trail went through a lake along the shore for about 14 of a mile. I am staying in a cabin here at Lighthouse Landing. Wendy and Dan are staying here too. Wendy and Dan, a couple who met due to an advertisement she had placed looking for someone to accompany her on the Trail. She had wanted and advertised that she wanted someone to accompany her on the trail of 1,400 miles. They were married at one of the shelters on the trail this past April, power of advertising. Unfortunately, He blew out a knee, so he is now her logistics and moral supporter but hopes to complete his hike next year (as she will continue her journey this year).It¢s now dark, and I am ready to go inside and call it a day. I¢m so glad I decided to push myself, to get here because I am not sure I would have had the energy to put myself back together, even if I had had any fixings for dinner (which I don¢t!).