Date: 2013-08-05
From: Beerdra's mom's house, Great Barrington, MA

To: Tom Leonard Shelter
Miles today: 6.4
Weather: clear sky

I woke up with a head-ache as I knew I would. I set my alarm to get up by 7 a.m., but it was completely unnecessary. My mind was awake and working. I wanted to figure out a way to dictate my trail journal to text, so I wouldn't have to transcribe them all. I have a major back-log. So I laid in bed and searched for apps. I heard Beerdra stirring. She sad that she was going to start the coffee and then through a load of sheets in the washer. I took that as my cue to get up. We drank coffee and ate banana chips. I fiddled with that apps, and managed to get half of an entry done before I accidentally erased the whole thing when I was trying to copy and paste it. I started over and got about a quarter of the way done. I accidentally erased that one, too. Oh, this wasn't going well at all. Beerdra's sister and brother-in-law came to pick us up. I hugged her good-bye. She was headed to the trail, and I was headed to somewhere where I could get some writing done. Ray dropped me at Patisserie Lenox. I ordered a pain aux raisins that was comparable to any I've had in France. For the next hour and half, I spoke into my little phone and watched with perplexity as it interpreted my words as something completely different. By 10 a.m., I had nothing. I gave up and went to the library. I got there at 10:05 and stayed until 1:00 p.m. The nice ladies and gentleman at the front desk just kept giving me pass-codes each time my time ran out. I took a break to get something to eat. I walked over to a diner and had a chicken wrap with under-cooked chicken, a chocolate milkshake with milk that was turning sour, and remarkably terrible service. Oh well, you can't win 'em all! I wrote my brother a birthday card and dropped it in the mail, and then I headed back to the library to crank out the last 4 entries. I felt terrible for the guy next to me; his computer kept blinking off, losing his work each time. He'd look at me in disbelief, and all I could do was give him a sympathetic smile in return. At 4:30, I got the last TJ posted, and it was time to hit the trail. I stopped in the hardware store to get some fuel for my stove, and then I headed back across the street to the outfitter to look at boots. They didn't have anything that interested me, so I walked down the street to find a good place to position myself to best catch a hitch out of town. A car pulled up, and I motioned to the drive. He apologetically motioned that he was just trying to park his car. It was an awkward moment for both of us. He approached me and said that if I was still there when he got back from his errands, he'd give me a lift. Fortunately, it wasn't necessary. A nice lady named Laurie pulled over. We started chatting and drove right past the trail crossing, so we had to turn around and try again. She was headed for the Whites, and she had several gear-specific questions, and I was proud to have some hard won experience and advice to share. There was a beautiful wild flower filled walk along the Housatonic. I was in a fantastic mood. I sang to myself and looked at the flowers and the river. And I slapped at mosquitoes. I really want to avoid spraying myself with DEET if I can avoid it. The trail climbed into the woods. It was a beautiful Peas-approved trail- smooth dirt with some pine straw. I passed through some hemlocks and hardwoods. There were some PUDS, but they were subtle enough that I didn't really mind. I crossed over bridge that was so newly-built that is smelled of freshly cut 2X4s. There was another smaller bridge that spanned a narrow crevice that dropped a good 15 feet down. It looked like a "lemon squeezer" of sorts, except I was seeing it from the top down. The planks of the bridge were at least 2" apart. I looked down at the water below. It was dark down there. All I could think was "Pit of Despair."My stomach started cramping pretty severely. I sincerely hoped that I hadn't gotten food poisoning from the crappy chicken wrap and sour milkshake. That would be an interesting twist. Turns out it was just Mother Nature. Not something I would normally be happy about, but considering the other option it was preferable. The trail followed along a ridge, and there were opportunities to climb out on the rocks. OR I could follow along the trail behind them. There was no white blaze to officiate which was the "official" AT; that was left up to the hiker, and I genuinely appreciated having the choice. I didn't feel any quilt choosing option "B."There was a slice of lemon yellow light cutting across the top of the adjacent mountain. The sun was on its way down, and I was still a ways from the shelter. I picked up my pace. The sun was all the way down when I got to the shelter. Pressure-D was there, as was a south-bound section hiker, Search. I had planned to tent, but it was already dark, and there was a long, steep, downhill rocky hike to the water source. By the time I got back to the shelter it was pitch black. I ate by headlamp. Two other hikers came in after dark, but I didn't recognize either of them. It's pretty cool outside, so I'm in my long johns and down jacket. Hopefully the cooler temperatures will keep the mosquitoes at bay. I'm tired and ready for some sleep.