Date: 2017-08-12
From: Kid Gore Shelter Tent Site

To: Stratton Pond Shelter
Miles today: 15.0
Weather: moderate rain

8/12Kid Gore Shelter Tent Site to Stratton Pond Shelter 15.0 miles Total miles:  1640.0One March day, several weeks before I left to undertake this adventure, I was working as a lunch volunteer at St.Patrick's Catholic School, where Sandy worked as the third grade teacher. She came to see me during her lunch time and began explaining to one of the other parents some of the details involved in a thru hike. This woman stared at me with growing incredulity and finally exclaimed, "And, Dean, you are doing this . . . on purpose?"  Today was one of those days that the uninitiated might use to explain her disbelief.  I woke up at 5:30 to the sound of heavy rain on the tent. I decided it made no sense to get up yet, and dozed back off, hoping the rain might subside.  I woke back up at 6:30 to discover that the rain had, indeed, ceased. Becky and I got moving and had camp broken down and were ready for the trail at 8:00.  For fun, I took a photo of the white mist to the east, where we might have enjoyed a beautiful sunrise view on another day.  As we began hiking, we soon discovered that Vermont definitely deserves her reputation of mud capitol of the AT.  For several miles we trudged along over trail that consisted of hundreds of black, muddy patches. Some were thick and sticky, but most consisted of a soupy, black slurry that soon covered our shoes and our pants legs nearly to our knees.  There were places where rocks were embedded in the mud, making it somewhat possible to step from rock to rock to reduce the contact with the mud, but these were inconsistent and very slick as well.  Numerous times my foot slipped from the stone and then slurped into the mud anyway.  These conditions pretty much defined the trail for the first eight miles. We then began the 3.4 mile ascent up Stratton Mountain.  The mud gradually subsided as we climbed.  And climbed.  The trail never got very steep as we added 1,700 feet to our elevation, but for some reason the climb seemed relentless.  Becky had pretty much decided that the summit and its accompanying lookout tower was a myth when we finally reached the top. I explained to her that if you keep following the white blazes, you will eventually reach your destination. Stratton Mountain is famous as the place where Benton MacKaye was first inspired to create the Appalachian Trail.  As we reached the summit, we were greeted by Hugh and Jeanne, the caretakers. Hugh has worked on the summit of Stratton Mountain for fifty years, first as a fire lookout and then as the caretaker.  He and Jeanne share a small building built in the 1920s. Hugh was very personable and informative.  He and Jeanne, his wife, work 24 hours a day, five days a week, and then have two days off. They work May to October. Employed by the Green Mountain Club, who also maintain the Vermont Long Trail, they add a very human touch to visiting Stratton Mountain, which sees a great deal of visitors, because it can also be reached via a gondola system (which we did not see). It had been partly cloudy for most of the day, but an ominous sky had been gathering as we finished our climb. The views from the lookout tower were still stunning, but we would have seen more had we been there earlier. We heard the first rumblings of thunder as we were descending the tower. We quickly began the three mile descent to Stratton Pond, where there is a shelter.  We were half way there when the thunderstorm hit. We hiked in heavy rain for about forty-five minutes, which also helped add to the mud we again were encountering. The rain slackened to a drizzle when we reached Stratton Pond Shelter. Gravity, Becky, and I discussed staying there while at the lookout tower for a few reasons. One was obviously the weather. Also, the tenting area was 0.5 miles off trail. Becky and I reached the shelter first and went to check it out. At the shelter, which is a large building with bunks below and a loft above, we met Chris (trail name, Varsity), the caretaker for the cabin. Also employed by the Green Mountain Club, Chris lives in a platform tent by the shore of Stratton Pond.  Chris thru hiked in 2015 and left his job in Seattle to get closer to nature and to give back to the trail that he loves.  He told me his tent by the pond is the nicest place he will ever live.  The shelter he oversees is well-kept and includes a large, covered cooking and gathering area. An old friend, Skywalker, and two new friends, Beanie and Spills, were cooking dinner when we arrived. I decided to add sleeping in a shelter to my list of AT accomplishments, and Becky, Gravity, and I are the sole inhabitants of the loft tonight. Becky and I needed water, so we headed down to the pond as the evening wanned. The sun was setting over Stratton Pond and, while we may have missed the sunrise this morning, we were blessed with witnessing a beautiful sunset tonight. We watched a beaver swim across the pond (the first one I've seen this trip).  Thunder resumed as we finished filtering our water, and we walked back to the shelter in the dark and in a heavy rain.  We cooked dinner, hung our food, and toted our gear into the loft.  I dozed off to the sound of rain on the metal roof, before waking to write this entry. I just heard coyotes howling in the distance as I prepare to go back to sleep. My new shoes which I will, of course, be putting back on in the morning are a muddy mess, as are my pants and socks. I'm sure we will again experience even more of Vermont's finest mud tomorrow as we hike to Manchester Center. Despite the hardships of the day, Becky is in fine spirits, and I wouldn't trade this experience for anything.