Date: 2003-07-15
From: Laurel Ridge Campsite

To: Tom Leonard Lean-to
Miles today: 19.1

It seemed like a good idea yesterday, to do 19 miles today. We survived it, but I. am. tired! The morning's miles seemed to go by slowly, setting us up for a long day.Around 5:30 this morning, the sun was glaring at me bright orange, through the trees. I rolled over and fell back asleep. When I awakened around 7, that bright sun was gone, and some fog had rolled in. I hadn't seen fog in a while, and always enjoy the eerie views it brings.Our first climb today took us to Race Mountain, and near the top, the AT stays along rock ledges for quite a while. Once there, I was above the clouds, and it was awesome to see nearby mountains peeking just above the clouds. I took a lot of pictures while on that ledge walk. It was so neat, and quite a contrast to the clear views I had yesterday from mountaintops. Just because the skies aren't clear, doesn't mean the views aren't spectacular! Today proved that. As the day wore on, the clouds/fog disappeared, leaving mostly clear, but a bit hazy views.The trail lately has had some short, steep sections, that I am not very fond of. Especially when going downhill. I slipped once or twice today and fell on my packside. Good thing the pack was there, because one time I fell on a rock sticking up from the smooth rock I slipped on. What fun.We stopped for water near Glen Brook Lean-to. The water source didn't look too good where the trail crossed it, but Hotdog climbed up some rocks, and it was flowing nicely up there. We took a lot of breaks today, and that was one of my favorites. It was so peaceful in the forest, with the sound of the small stream trickling under the boulders. The boulders and some fallen trees near them were moss-covered, and the canopy of trees provided shade, making it a wonderful, cool place to nap. I didn't nap, as I knew there were plenty of miles to go. It was great just relaxing there though.Our lunch spot was rather nice too. It was just off a road, about 0.2mi from the AT, where a spring flowed nicely. Once again, being off the road and just in the woods provided near ideal conditions, and we had a relaxing lunch there. It was well-deserved too, as the trail coming down to the road from Jug End was quite steep in places, tiring me physically and mentally.For a while after that, we just hiked. We finally made it to US7, almost 13 miles into the hike. It was about 4pm. We sat just across the road, in a shady spot, and decided to hike to a place called the Corncrib, which listed produce and "other hiker snacks" in our guides. All I was hoping for was a cold drink! I got that. Plus ice cream! I probably wouldn't have gotten any ice cream, but they had Dove bars. Mmmm! We sat outside the Corncrib in some shade and ate our ice cream and drank our fruit drinks. They even let us fill up our water bottles with cold water!It was about 4:30, and time to move on. We still had over 6 miles to go! The hiking, at first went well, but after reaching more awesome ledges on East Mountain, it seemed to take us forever to get to the shelter! I was tired, and my feet were sore, but there was nothing to do but keep trudging along.We got to the shelter at 7:30, and found Walkabout here, along with southbound thruhiker Bluegrasshopper and a southbound section hiker. I needed bug spray right away, as I'd been fending off mosquitos most of the afternoon. We all chatted a bit with the southbounders telling us about the trail and trailtowns north of here, and us NOBOs doing the same for him for south of here. He's the first SOBO I've seen, but there will be many more to come!Despite the long day, I felt pretty good today. The steep downhills made my knees ache, but not as bad as two days ago. I feel like I'm getting into better shape, and hopefully that will pay off as I get into taller mountains. For some reason, I keep forgetting Massachusetts. I either think I'm still in Connecticut or already in Vermont. I'll try to remember where I am from now on.Another milestone today! It seems like there is one every day: miles completed, miles to go, state lines crossed! I passed the 1500 mile mark. I am more interested in the countdown miles, but I definitely won't lose sight of what I've done! I am proud of myself. This has been the most difficult, and best thing I've ever done. I won't forget that.