Date: 2015-08-05
From: Manchester Center

To: Rutland, Vermont
Miles today: 15.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Rutland, Vermont Aug 5So perhaps Brad and I are slowing down a bit.   We are at Rutland, still in Vermont, northbound mile 1703, 486 miles remaining.   Our expected completion date is mid to late September. I have not figured out an exact completion date, since that kind of detailed planning usually never works out. Brad and I came off the AT early today (about 10AM) to Rutland and will spend the night at The Inn at Long Trail. I am in the Rutland public library now.   I have not so much new to say (since my last post from Manchester Center, Vermont Aug 1st), but I will post a bunch of new pictures. I took pictures of my tent/sleeping arrangements, as well as my cooking arrangements, so you could see a bit how I sleep and eat. The heat of summer has passed, for which I am thankful.   It is definitely getting cooler.   I will get my cold weather gear back in a few days in Hanover, as we just enter New Hampshire and the White Mountains.   There we finally get above the treeline, and it can be cold there. I did speak with one AT trail maintenance person in Vermont a couple days ago. He was about 30, kind of unusual, as most trail maintainers are my age and have gray hair.   I spoke to him about my concerns for wilderness. He basically had no sympathy for my wilderness arguments.   He felt that there were already Too Many people hiking the AT, so less people on it would be better. Of course he was physically fit at age 30, so hiking the trail in its current, wilderness condition was fine for him. So we disagreed, but parted friendly, mostly.   I still think he is misguided. I presume he thinks I am wrong. And it's true that more people will be hiking the AT next year, after the movie ¢A Walk in the Woods¢, based on the famous Bill Bryson book of the same name, comes out Sept 2nd.   So go see that movie if you are interested.   The Reese Witherspoon/Cheryl Strayed movie ¢Wild¢ has increased the number of hikers on the Pacific Coast Trail this year, I was told. I got this e-mail from the ATC, of which I am a dues-paying member¢¦..Dear Paul,On September 2, the film adaptation of Bill Bryson's bestseller "A Walk in the Woods" will open in theaters nationwide. With an award-winning cast that includes Robert Redford, Nick Nolte and Emma Thompson, this movie will likely result in a surge of hikers along the Appalachian Trail.We have been busy preparing for this anticipated increase, but you can help us further our efforts by showing us how you #ProtectYourTrail.Help us #ProtectYourTrail: Learn about new initiatives the ATC and its partners have launched to encourage responsible use of the A.T.Join the social media movement and use #ProtectYourTrail to tell the world how you are preserving the A.T.Share your inspirATional Appalachian Trail story for a chance to win an ENO HammockVolunteer or make a donation to support our workVisit www.appalachiantrail.org/AWalkintheWoods to learn more.Sincerely,The Appalachian Trail Conservancy Team Here is a question from Dave B. As you reach the northern end of the trail are the trail angels less frequent and are there fewer accessible towns for resupply?My answer, Yes, less towns, eventually. In Maine, there is the ¢100 mile wilderness¢, supposedly 100 miles of nothing but wilderness, no towns, no restaurants, few roads.   But that is 250 miles from here.   Currently, there are still plenty of towns to resupply and even stay at, such that we continue to carry only 4 days supplies, and to stay at a motel or hostel every 5 days or so. Trail angels have definitely dropped off.   Probably because the hikers are now so spread out.   What we see is plastic Styrofoam coolers with food or cold drinks occasionally in them. More often, we just see the abandoned results, of garbage and empty cans and plastic bottles. So they become an eyesore. Trail Angels need to remove the results of their angel work, otherwise it just becomes garbage that somebody else has to clean up. OK, I will post my pictures now.