Date: 2016-05-24
From: Bear Mountain

To: Mountain Meadow Lodge
Miles today: 26.0
Weather: light rain

This morning we came out of our campsite on Bear Mountain. We traveled all the way down the mountain, but we didn't see any of the bear that give it its name.We took our first break at the Clarendon Gorge suspension bridge. It was a nice flat spot beneath the Pines there. The river and a suspension bridge that was really beautiful. You can stand in the middle of it and watch the soft waterfalls work their way towards you.Of course it was a steep uphill from there. There were a couple of places we were hoping to stop and get our groceries or meal. One was the Pierce groceries on Old River Road and the other was Cooper Lodge on the summit. There's a great restaurant with a view. But this was not open for the season yet. We were a bit disappointed but weren't too surprised that it wasn't open this early.Of course it started raining like crazy about midway through the morning and continued pretty much throughout the day. We climbed up to the Cooper Lodge shelter. We decided to get out of the rain and take a quick break, get a few warmer clothes on as we were starting to get cold from the rain. There were a couple of hikers already there trying to keep dry. We ate a quick sandwich changed our clothes and headed on.This was supposed to be the downhill portion of the day but it turned out to be some uphill and then downhill. Made much slower by the extreme slipperiness of the rocks and the roots that were wet from the day-long rain.When we finally got to the bottom of the mountain and we're standing out by the highway. We had a very small percentage left on phone battery and so we made some quick phone calls. We had decided on the way down from the mountain that if we could get a room we would duck out of the rain for the night. The first place we called the Inn by the trail, was closed for renovations. The second one we called couldn't check us in until 9 p.m. . It was only 7 p.m. when we called. That took care of our phone battery. So we decided to Hitch into Killington and see if the lodge there had openingsIt was getting late again and the cars just passed us by. But we were taken totally by surprise when a young girl walked up behind us and asked us if we needed a ride. Her name was Brightside she had hiked the AT last year and she had been walking on the AT for a little evening stroll. She drove us into town.From there we found our way to the Mountain Meadow Lodge. Not only did they have have a room available for us, they also had an amazing dinner. Even though it was pretty much closing time for their kitchen. We of course inhaled that in no time flat all the while raving about the quality of the food.As we had been standing out by the road trying to hitch earlier in the evening in the cold wet chill almost night. Will turned to me and said, all's well that ends well. And I said, huh? What are you talking about. He said it's all going to work out. And I have to say that he was very right. This is the best place that we could have been. Situated on a lake it's a huge lodge with all sorts of amenities. But mostly it just feels like home.So I'm warm and clean and dry. Ready to go to bed to sleep in for the night and I'm very thankful. I'll catch you later!Road Runner