Date: 2011-07-14
From: (97) Upper Goose Pond Cabin

To: (98) Portrait's House
Miles today: 20.5

Having finally gotten a full night¢s rest I woke cheerfully and began to gather up my gear. In the bunks all around me rest the 14 or so other hikers, many of whom had not know each other the day before, yet now slept together like a big family (In a room the size of a trailer). I can¢t think of anywhere else but the trail where you can cram so many strangers into a room together and have them all get along without a care or doubt in the world, as though they had known each other forever. I am proud to be amongst their numbers. I packed my gear on the porch of the cabin so as not to wake anyone, and then started out. Wanting to reach town before the post office closed (mail drop) and the arrival of Portrait, I went at a mad man¢s pace, the pockets of my pack bulging with snacks to eat while I went. I listened to my iPod as I leapt logs and ducked under branches, occasionally holding a hiking pole like a guitar when a favorite song played, or using it to hack down the numerous thorns that blocked my way. I was quick, and agile; an unstoppable forward motion. I was alive.I arrived at Dalton MA at 2 pm, having done 20 miles an hour and a half faster than the day before. I had packed only one liter of water, and after drinking it did not carry any for the rest of the hike. These things considered I am most definitely getting back into shape, which is important if I am ever to catch Wakarusa, who is at least a week ahead.At Dalton I bought a soda from a shop where I explained to an amazed local that I had walked there from Georgia, and then went to the post office, where I picked up the package my mom had mailed me containing a new book to read (Lord of the Flies) which I proceeded to ¢break down¢ by ripping off the front and back cover, a new hiking pole end for my Leki¢s, socks, toilet paper, and the rest of my guide book. Happy to be fully stocked, I sat on a bench to wait for Portrait, and while doing so was joined by Red Moose (he has a toy Moose hanging from his pack), Captain Planet, Smooth, and Tridub. The four of them had decided to go to a local hostel, but I had made up my mind on going to Portrait¢s. Shortly after Portrait arrived in his car, and he wasted no time in telling me how appalled he was that I had shaved my beard (I argued back that in shaving I had simultaneously dropped weight, became more aerodynamic, and stolen the heart of every girl I passed). Portrait drove me back to his dad¢s house (aka ¢Papa Portrait¢) in Northampton MA, where I received my own room to crash in. Then we went to Wal-Mart and resupplied. I bought mostly day food, and after realizing how very few of my items required cooking, considered ditching my stove and mess pan to save weight, but then decided not to due to the lack of variety and inevitable drop in nutrition.Back at the house Portrait and I sprayed our clothes with a bug repellent that is supposed to last for several washes, then we joined Papa Portrait and Portrait¢s sister for pizza. The three of us were later visited by Portrait¢s cousin, who had brought us lots of snacks for desert (I had two slices of apple pie, and some sort of maple sugar treat that tasted like Christmas, Easter, and the best Birthday you can remember all rolled into one!) The best part about spending the day at Portrait¢s, however, was finally getting some bug netting! Portrait¢s sister, a past thru hiker, had bought a bug bivy for a climbing expedition in Alaska (Denali I believe). She still had it, and was kind enough to let me borrow it for the rest of my journey. It was a day full of trail magic.