Date: 2012-07-23
From: Salisbury, CT

To: The Hemlocks Shelter
Miles today: 13.7
Weather: overcast clouds

I went down to the post office this morning to pick up my packages. My mom is going back to Alaska at the end of the month. So, I asked her to send every piece of gear I could possibly need while I'm out here. My bounce box is pretty big now. I have enough crap following me up the trail to furnish a 3 bedroom apartment!.....(just kidding)... But it is a lot. Just to change things up I decided to wear my Granite Gear "Blaze" pack for awhile and carry my old 3/4 length foam Thermarest. I figure that it will insulate me in my hammock and maybe give me enough cushion to sleep in a shelter too.I think I will start walking less miles per day from now on. My knee is acting up again. I also weighed myself at Vanessa's and I'm back down to 143. I'm not that concerned about my weight though. There is plenty of time to get to Katahdin, I just don't want to get up there when the weather is bad. Some people are trying to push for miles before we get into the Whites, but I don't want to show up in New Hampshire with a whacked out knee. Looking back at my journal, I've noticed I haven't made very consistent mileage. I have some big days followed by lots of zeroes and nearos. I think I'd do better with smaller days and trying to be a little more consistent, it's fun taking zeroes though : DI crossed into Massachusetts today. Along the trail I found a pack cover with a raincoat tucked inside. This is important gear. I am going to carry this stuff ahead and find out who it belongs to. Some weather started coming in as I approached Mt. Everett. I had the other guy's pack cover strapped to the top of my pack. It was more convenient to get to then digging around in my bag, so I slipped it on. The weather started getting bad, I had just about summited Everett when bolts of lightning started coming down around me. I had to get over the top and down the other side, that's where the nearest shelter was. There isn't any tree cover going across the top of Everett, it's all exposed shrub bushes and rocks. I know I said I wasn't going to run anymore, but like an idiot I took off over the top while asking God not to kill me. I hunched over to stay low while I ran. I was afraid to plant my trekking poles in the ground. There were multiple strikes right around me. (Sorry you have to read this Mom). Some of the flashes were so bright all I saw was white all around me. If I had felt safe it would have been really cool. I was very relieved when the trail started going downhill. But the lightning didn't quit and I didn't stop running either. The rain was coming down extremely hard, the trail had turned into a river. I was completely soaked and getting cold. I stopped and put the jacket I found on. I was thinking it must be awful for the guy who lost this stuff. Once I got to the bottom it was a short walk to The Hemlocks Shelter. A few hikers were inside hanging up wet gear on a makeshift clothesline. I said did any of you guys loose anything today? A hiker named "Y's Guy" said he lost a blue Patagonia raincoat and a blue pack cover. I said "God has blessed you today" and handed his stuff back. He didn't mind a bit that I'd worn his stuff through the storm. In fact, he gave me some granola bars as a reward and let me cook my chicken sausages on his stove since it was too wet for a fire.