Date: 2005-07-03
From: Goddard Shelter

To: Stratton Pond Shelter
Miles today: 19.6
Weather: clear sky

Miles hiked today : 19.619.4 AT miles + 0.2 mile of side trailEarly in the morning, at 2:15 a.m., I'd woken up to water the bushes and was amazed at how spectacular the stars looked, as the sky was remarkably clear. It had been quite awhile since the stars had been visible. The clear night also made the temperature very cool, which was great. I woke up for good at 5:15 a.m., packed, and hiked out at 6:00 a.m. with Opa. After hiking 0.3 mile, I was at the summit of Glastenbury Mountain, dropped my pack, and climbed the fire tower for an excellent panoramic view of the surrounding valley. Continuing on, I reached Caughnawga Shelter at 7:55 a.m., stopping for a 20 minute rest and water gathering break.Moving on, I covered 4.6 miles to Story Spring Shelter and stopped for an early lunch at 10:20 a.m. Upon arriving, Snail was there with his Mom, who is hiking with him until Friday. I had only seen Snail once since Vernon, NJ, at the Jacob's Ladder Highway, so it was good to catch up with him.I left the shelter at 11:05 a.m. and had heard that there might be trail magic at one of the upcoming roads. When I reached Stratton-Arlington Road at 12:35 p.m., there were quite a few vehicles and there was a group of hikers by one of them. I walked over and found a hiker, Stumpknocker, providing sodas and strawberry shortcake. Michael and Sean were on site, as well as their father and friend. I stayed until 1:10 p.m. and began the climb up Stratton Mountain with Opa and Michael.At 1:25 p.m., I stopped for 15 minutes to rest and gather water and at 1:40 p.m., I was at the summit of Stratton Mountain. I learned that there was a ski gondola running down to a neighboring village. Normally, the round trip cost is $9, though the trip was free for thru-hikers. Opa, Michael, and I stashed our packs behind the GMC caretaker hut and hiked the 0.7 mile side trail to the gondola. We rode the gondola and went into a shop for ice cream and, surprisingly, the girl behind the counter, Koosa, recognized me, as I'd met her and her husband at Cold Spring Shelter just before the N.O.C. I'm not sure whether she had to pay, though she gave the 3 of us our $3.50 soft serve ice cream cones for free. We rode the gondola back to the summit of Stratton Mountain and climbed the fire tower to check out the view. Among other peaks, I could see Mount Greylock in the distance. I hiked on at 4:35 p.m. and arrived at Stratton Pond Shelter at 5:55 p.m.Stratton Pond Shelter is maintained by the GMC, which charges a $5 usage fee. This is a point of contention for several thru-hikers and I considered moving a little bit up the trail into the woods to camp for free. Before I made up my mind, I decided to go swimming at Stratton Pond with some other hikers. The GMC caretaker, Jen, was down at the pond and kindly gave us chocolate and cheese. After wading in the cold water for a bit, I returned to the shelter to make dinner.As I was finishing up dinner, Jen showed up to collect the $5 fee from each hiker on site. I was going to have to take a mail-in credit card payment form, though Mama Snail said she wanted to pay for me. I protested, though she was very insistent, so I accepted her gracious offer. Happily, I got a receipt that will allow me to stay for free at one of the 2 other GMC shelters.After dinner, I treated water and journaled before settling into bed. Tomorrow is a 10.8 mile day into Manchester Center for fireworks and a bluegrass festival. It'll be nice to have a short day after 2 long days of hiking.Bedtime at 10:35 p.m.