Date: 2015-07-27
From: top of mountain shy of shelter

To: stealth in two mile NY stretch
Miles today: 17.2

I got out of camp first this morning, a little before 7. My tent was not very wet, the rain had stopped in the wee hours. The trail was smooth down at first, but soon became a rocky climb down. Large smooth rock surfaces were very slippery, and I am now completely psyched out by the idea of falling. I sat down and scooted down several of these descents, being extra careful. When the trail leveled out and went over a little wooden footbridge, I forgot how slippery wet wood is and went down on my first step. It was a soft landing so no harm done. I stayed down and scooted across on my butt. We pased Warren Doyle and Boomerang again and chatted with them a bit. It occurred to me that if I can keep up with them, I'll finish in time to make it to the Gala!The trail went through some kind of a boggy area with a wooden footpath to walk on. It went on for a very long time and I took it slow. The Mosquitos were out in force, and the gnats as well. As much as none of us like those bugs, I have to give them props for work ethic. They are so dedicated to their missions. They drive me nuts! At one point today, I was getting tired of batting the gnats away from my eyes. They dive bomb into them, like little kamikazes. I decided just to walk with my eyes wide open, let them dive, kill them off at one time with the irresistible and unprotected targets. They dove. Ha ha! I said- out-loud." Was it worth it? Now you are dead and I'm still hiking!" This strategy did nothing to cull the numbers, however, and soon I was batting them away again and cursing as I walked.The trail went over a long Boardwalk, cattails growing by the thousands on either side. It was beautiful and a nice change from the woods. We passed a couple of Adirondack chairs, one facing north and one facing south. One said Georgia, the other said Maine. We came to a hiker friendly garden center and enjoyed sodas and ice cream, charged our phones and got water. Wreck was there too. The lady working there was very friendly. I love al of these cool stops along the way.The trail went through cow pastures, over styles, and it was smooth and easy for much of the day. Then- finally- welcome to Connecticut! Another state line! I loved New York- it was beautiful- but I love making progress! One thing I'll never forget about New York- people from New York City love their town so much that they drive 35 miles and climb Bear Mountain just so they can look at their city from a distance. They really do love New York!The trail continued to be smooth, but the uphills became a little tougher. We passed a wide creek/ River. It looked so crisp and inviting so we all decided to go swimming. I got in the water and it felt indescribably wonderful. I let the current stretch me out while I held on to a rick. Then I climbed on a huge flat Boulder and let the warmth of it soak through me and dry my clothes. This is sort of what I fantasized about in my year of planning and it was a brilliant AT moment.The skies got dark and the thunder started, so we packed up and hurried up to the shelter . As it rained, we shared a Katwalk Dahl with peas and rice, and we put it on tortillas. The shelter was full with people we knew, plus a Dad and his two boys out for a 50 mile hike. The rain passed and we hiked on, the trail getting steeper and harder. Finally, we found a nice spot, back in NY now for a couple of miles and pitched our tents. We are hot, sweaty, bug bit, but it was a great hiking day!