Date: 2011-06-06
From: Cooper Lodge Shelter, VT, mile 1686.8

To: Clarendon Shelter, VT
Miles today: 10.1
Weather: clear sky

Cell none Old Goat's notes:The weather was perfect today. The morning was cool but nice. It warmed up this afternoon and the tree cover kept us comfortable. It is still sunny and nice, not a cloud in the sky.Starting at our highest point in Vermont is not the best idea but that was where we stopped last year. We are fortunate that we have our cars and we can control the direction we hike. Starting southbound was a smart move, yesterday was short in miles and long in elevation. Today was long in miles and a lot of downhill. We chose to skip the Governor Clament shelter which was the first one we passed. That shelter had a reputation for locals to go to party, it used to have trash all around it. The Green Mountain Club wasn't sure if they should fix it or demolish it. They cured the problem by putting a gate up on the road leading to it. It took a few years to change the party atmosphere and now the shelter is peaceful. With the problem solved the were comfortable to repair the shelter and it is really nice. The main reason we skipped that shelter was because it was only 3.8 miles from where we started and we arrived there before noon. The next 5.8 were difficult on us, because our bodies were starting to feel the fatigue and pain from the hard hiking. We were really beat when we arrived here, in fact we were both a little shaky. Now that the tent is up and we've eaten dinner I'm doing better and so is Check 6.The Vermont mud isn't too bad this year, we did encounter some but it was't too bad. I hope we don't see too much mud this year. I mentioned the hiking was mostly downhill but the day had one final climb up beacon hill. When we reached the top there was a tower with a big lens on top. I assume it is a light for the airport nearby. The hill was a real buster because it was the last mile of the day, the climb was hard and the downhill steep. I'm so glad to be done for the day. Check 6's notes:Today busted my butt! A LOT of downhill, and a lot of the downhill was steep. There were some hard uphills, too. When we finally arrived at the shelter my legs were like jelly. We are hearing that the mile back to our car (on Route 103) is VERY steep. I hope a good night's sleep will refresh us so it won't feel too bad. There are 4 young men at this shelter tonight. They're hiking the Long Trail. They gathered wood to make a fire and they stacked it by size (tinder, kindling, and fuel). Scouts are taught that so I said it made me think the guy stacking the wood was a Boy Scout. Turns out all 4 of the guys are Eagle scouts. Congratulations guys!Today I was thinking about all that took place with us over the past year. Last year we had to stop because Old Goat's right knee gave him a lot of trouble. He had a meniscus tear. He had surgery to clean up the tear and now his knee is fine. Both of my shoulders were giving me a lot of trouble last year. A cortisone shot into the biceps muscle finally took the pain away in my right shoulder. Unfortunately I ended up with a torn biceps tendon, but that's not giving me any trouble, so my right shoulder is ok now. Two cortisone shots didn't work on the left shoulder so I finally opted for surgery. The doctor ground down a bone spur, repaired a torn rotator cuff, and severed my biceps tendon that was 90% separated. My left shoulder is fine now, finally. So now we're both able to hike with full packs again. I'm concerned about my right knee. I've had intermittent pain over the past few months. I hope it does't get in our way this year. Last evening it hurt a lot, but it was fine today. Whew!Sent from my iPhone