Date: 2015-07-10
From: Congdon Shelter

To: Goddard Shelter
Miles today: 14.4
Weather: clear sky

7/10, 14.4, Goddard ShelterToday started early and wet. I woke during the night to the feeling of water splashing my arm where I slept in the shelter. Investigation revealed a slight drip, one drop a minute, right above my bunk. I found my bandana in the dark and dried my pad then quietly moved away from that spot. It was still raining heavily which did not quit until about 4 am. When I headed for the latrine at 5 the rain was done, but the water was running off the hill around both sides of the shelter, and down the trail all day. We packed and hit the trail at 7 heading as far as the trail conditions would allow or 20 miles, whichever came first. As we started hiking we began in our usual morning silence. I have often used this time for prayer and/ or reflection. Today, I have to admit in all honesty, I was experiencing a serious level of cognitive dissonance. Cognitive dissonance to me is when two thoughts are prevalent in my mind in direct contradiction to one another. It is also a fancy way to relate that I often realize now that I am exactly where I want to be, but do not want to be here. A good friend, who runs marathons, reminded me that this point in the race is when I need to focus on the goal and overlook the pain and the nagging question, "why am I doing this?" So off I go continuing to walk, left, right, left, right....We broke for lunch at a nice mountaintop overlook around 1 pm. We were making ok time, but the trail was drastically muddy and much of it under standing water so as we left lunch we decided to evaluate the days goal at the next shelter 8 miles further. Otter has decided to hike with us so the four of us alternate leading and following as the day moves along. Today, as I sometimes do, I took the lead and hiked off ahead of the rest pacing myself with random thoughts. The sun came out today so things were drying off nicely, but the trail stayed muddy. When I stopped for a short break the others caught up, and we switched positions yet again. It is nice to hike alone, but comforting to hike with others as well. We arrived at the Goddard Shelter at 4, and decided the climbs had taken enough out of us to justify staying here. With the sun hitting nicely we laid out clothes, socks and boots to dry, filtered water and cooked dinner. We have settled into a nice large shelter but there are fewer folks staying here than last night so my introvert meter is not as pressured. Tomorrow we head for Stratton Pond Shelter, the first we encounter that has fee for stay. It is a 21 mile goal again, but we only have one mountain to hike over and the weather is supposed to be near perfect so conditions are right for a longer day. One gear note to share. One of the things I have read and observed is the willingness of outdoor gear companies to stand behind their products for AT thru hikers. I have put about 1100 miles on my Keen boots, that are less than a year old, and noticed the water was beginning to seep in through the waterproofing from the bottom. After sending them a photo of the bottom of my boots Keen provided a voucher for their replacement as a warranty issue. My new boots will be here shortly and my feet will be very happy! Thank You Keen!Silverback