Date: 2006-09-04
From: Stony Brook Shelter

To: Rutland - Back Home Again Hostel
Miles today: 8.6

Well, it looks like we will have a day with out rain, but it is still overcast and a bit chilly. I am the last to leave the shelter, but not as late as the last two days. Afterall, today might be a town day! The trail today is pretty much a green tunnel, nothing to see but trees and bushes. I do pass by Kent pond before entering into Gifford Woods State Park. The area around the pond is very peaceful and if I lived up here, I would probably spend a lot of time hiking around the pond or canoeing on the pond. I pass by Lenny and Susan in GWSP. They have decided to go on to the next shelter and not stay at the park, but will take time to get a shower as the park has facilities. I stop at the park and call home to check in. Then I look in the phone book to see if Rutland has any chiropractors. I can feel my back getting out of alignment and that is starting to affect my knees and feet as well. They do, so I decide that I will be staying in Rutland tonight. I continue down the trail until it junctions with the Sherburne Pass Trail and take it to the Inn at the Long Trail. I have heard that this is a must see place, so I decide to stop and have lunch there. I order pasta and a Guiness and watch tennis on the big screen TV. Unfortunately, there is not much atmosphere in this place in the middle of the day, so to be honest I don't see what the big attraction is. It is fun to read all the letters that thru-hikers have sent to the Inn that are posted with their summit pictures by the side entrance.I get info on the bus and wait outside for it to pick me up and take me to the Back Home Again Cafe and Hostel run by the Twelve Tribes. I inquire about lodging and am taken upstairs to the women's bunk. As I prepare to go to Walmart to get some supplies, I run into Grizzly Bear. He has decided to get off the trail and is going back home to SC. He thinks he might hike the Foothills trail. I wouldn't be surprised though, if I run into him later on down the trail. This kid is just a rambler. After my visit to Walmart, where I picked up a camo t-shirt with the Superman "S" on it, I meet the other hiker staying at the hostel, Chef. Chef was hiking the northern part of the AT, but has been at the hostel doing work for stay for about 3 weeks. Chef also, knows my sister and brother-in-law having hiked the PCT with them in '04. The world is small and you never know who or when or where you might just run in to someone. The 12 tribe folks invite us to eat dinner with them and the food is delicious.Just so you know, the 12 Tribes is a religious group where the members all live and work together in a community. They have a sort of dress code that means the men all have beards and ponytails and the women all have long hair usually worn in braids, no make-up, and hippy clothes. They go by Hebrew names that are hard to pronounce, but the ones I remember are Kesher, Bessera, and Mizpah. They homeschool their children who also participate in chores pertaining to the cafe. Women have separate living quarters than men, but given the number of children the families have, the men and women obviously get together sometimes. They are friendly, giving people, who do not push their religion on you, but will gladly talk about it if you give them the slightest opening. While some people feel strongly against this tribe, I enjoyed my stay with them and found them to be very helpful.