Date: 2007-08-24
From: Mark Noepel Lean-To, Mass

To: .5 north of North Adams, Mass
Miles today: 14.0

I woke up later than everyone else as everyone in the shelter were quiet and kept a baffle on the loud noises. I did say goodbye to "Skip" and "Worldwide". Skip was skipping up to New Hampshire. THe Katahdin Syndrome got to him and Worldwide was just too fast to keep hanging with. I did talk with "Bucket, Handyman, and Candybar(female)". The female has hardly ever even said hi to me. I did like Bucket. He was actually carrying this plastic bucket with a sealed lid with him. It uses it as a chair and to put his food in. He also carry's to baseball gloves, a baseball, and a wiffle ball bat! They left and i soon after. The climb up to Greylock was not really that bad. THe whole MTn and approach roads are all closed until 2009 due to remodeling. At the top there is a giant tower that is closed and an emergency shelter with a fire place with bunks all built into the fireplace. This would have been a nice place to get to last night. I heard that a ranger runs you off from here though. If I got here last night all soaking wet; would it have been an emergency to stay here out of the rain; I ask you Mr ATC FatCat?(that's a joke folks). Anyway, I started zipping down the hill because I needed to get to the Williamstown Post Office before it closed at 4:30 and half way down a southbounde named "ScriptureSticks" said it was 2:20. I literally ran down Pattison Rd and down hwy 2, until a nice guy picked me up near the Wild Oats Market. I got two packages at the PO; problem was, I was expecting one more full of food. I did get new boots(my old ones were held together with duct tape); new rain jacket; and some food. I then was given a ride to the library. This town is something else, it is full of sophisticated women associated with WIlliams College. It was hard to not start working my magic; but, I had to find out what happened to my package. THe guys in the post office looked at me and said that there was nothing I could do, just put in a forwarding address! How doea a package get lost, come on, someone has it! Privatize the PO; why not oil company's are private! Anyway, I walked along way out of town with the new boots and my feet were killing me and it was an extrememly hot day along the pavement. As I was resting my feet, I heard a guy in a truck behind me ask if I needed a ride. I said sure. As I got in, I told him that I was a thru hiker and I needed a ride to the trail. He said sure; but, he needed to run by his house at first. I did not feel good about this but said sure. We went to a retirement community trailer park and he asked if I would like something cold to drink. I said a beer would be nice and he said come inside and get it. I did and began feeling uncomfortable. Now this guy was nothing but nice. He did keep creeping me out with his talk of being a professional massage therapist; his talk of going to a gay bar in Albany, so he could let loose; and asking me if I wanted to take a shower. I told him that I needed to get back to the trail and he complied and he dropped me off back where the trail goes across the Hosiec River. I went across the bridge and down another road and crossed over the road and picked the trail up where it goes by a house before going back into the woods. Here I met a late 50's couple. We talked for nearly an hour about life and alot about the war in Iraq. I left and went about .3 miles up a brook and camped illegally. I was very tired from the heat and emotionally shot from the lose of that package.