Date: 2014-07-03
From: Rutland VT, Yellow Deli Hostel

To: Gifford Woods State Park
Miles today: 3.1
Weather: scattered clouds

I awoke and decided to not get the free breakfast at the hostel cause I am a pancake freak and was seriously in the mood for some. Clem's was right next door and I got the usual coffee, pancakes, eggs, and bacon. A very good breakfast and not too expensive. A nice combination. I finally made the decision to get a beard trim, and an old fashioned downtown barber shop looked like a place where I can finally get this done. After all I needed my head shaved back anyways cause It's been since Harper's Ferry in West Virginia since it's been done. I asked for a beard trim without sacrificing the length, and the man did a great job. Took off some from the lower neck area that was way out of control and around the lips so I could stop eating my facial hair with every bite of pizza. Next was Wal-Mart across the street. It took me a long time to figure out why on a Thursday mid-morning the parking lot was completely full. Don't these people have jobs? However I finally realized that the 4th of July was tomorrow, so mystery solved. Over crowded places give me headaches and a shift in mood to the negative for some reason, so I attempted to get in and out quick.I packed my stuff but wanted to head to the library which seems to be much easier to get journaling done. This place in Rutland was odd however. I needed to sign up for a temporary card with a limit of only 30 minutes on a computer. Well that blows. I did manage to sweet talk the librarians for more time and I was granted. After Wendy's and about 2500 calories it was time to head to the bus station and back to the trail head to see how far I can go with the limited time I had left. I got back about 5:30, but as soon as I hit the trail heading back north the sky began to darken and rain was eminent. The woods got very dark to the point where I thought I might have to put my headlamp on at 6pm with several hours of daylight left. The winds then picked up and the thunder in the distance was getting louder and closer. 1 Mississippi, 2 Mississippi........ Boom! Crap! A couple of close lightning strikes made me hike faster downhill to lower ground. I debated weather to drop my pack and put the rain gear on, but by then it was too late. The skies opened up and the rain was fast, hard, and thick. With the winds howling and the strikes everywhere I very quickly got drenched from head to toe at the same time trying to be careful going downhill on slippery rocks that I can now hardly see due to the darkness. What could be worse? I already succumbed myself to being soaked, but now the worst part, hail! The thankfully small white ice chunks fell to the ground all around me with a few pinging me on the head. Ouch! @#$%! I said. I really misjudged this and was flying to get to the state park which had to eventually be around the corner. I didn't really care about myself getting wet but was concerned about my pack and it's contents. I didn't put my pack cover on. Grrrrr.The rain let up a bit, but it was still coming down by the time I hit Gifford Woods State Park. Right off the trail I see a shelter and head towards it to get relief. What a sight to see a shelter. I was so glad to be in it, as I threw my pack down, sat on the wooden planks with the protective roof above and just gave out a big 'whew'. These were not AT shelters and I knew it, but where else was I gonna go? It was 7:30 in the evening and I was soaked tired and needed to explode my pack and get things dry. I stripped to my skin and hung everything on just about all the nails I could find. Thank goodness my town clothes was in a baggie and I could put on dry fabric.I ended up putting my tent up inside the lean-to to prevent the mosquitoes from chewing me up, but the rain really never stopped so the bugs were not a problem. Several times during the night I awoke to do my old man business and it still precipitated. Note to self, always check the radar when possible to prevent this stuff. Oh well.SOTD, Riders on the Storm, The Doors