Date: 2015-07-29
From: Stealth Camping South of Shays Rebellion Monument 

To: Tom Leonard Shelter
Miles today: 8.2
Weather: overcast clouds

I packed as quickly as I could. The mosquitoes were waiting for me when I crawled out of my tent in the morning.I stopped briefly to check out the Shays Rebellion Monument and then continued up the trail. According to the AT guide, when I reached US 7 there was supposed to be a repair shop .2 miles to the east with a soda machine. The repair shop, Bachetti's, was actually .2 to the WEST. The machine was out of Diet Coke, and the regular Coke was warm. But the experience was not all bad. They let me charge my phone and invited me to wait in their break room while it charged. I was grateful for their kindness.Along the road I ran into a mother and daughter who were day hiking on the AT and could not find where the trail continued after crossing the road. They were carrying absolutely nothing. I asked if they had water. They responded that they lived less than 1 hour away. I have no idea why they thought that mattered. I tried to explain about the humidity and dehydration, and suggested they take at least 1 bottle of water each. But they did not seem interested, so I gave up.I should have listened to my own advice and loaded up on water while I had the chance. Good water sources along the trail were far and few between. The heat and humidity were also increasing. By the time I reached Homes Road, which goes into Great Barrington, I was low on water. There was supposed to be water at the shelter 4 miles away and 1 water source before that. But there was no guarantee that the water would be good or even there. As I crossed Homes Road I saw houses. I thought long and hard before approaching one of the houses to ask for water. Since the houses were right next to the AT they were probably used to seeing stinky hikers. But did they have good experiences or bad experiences?? Unfortunately not all AT hikers are well behaved and good ambassadors of the trail.I knew it was not smart to continue on without making sure I had sufficient water. So I walked up to one of the houses and knocked at the door. When the lady opened the door I politely explained that I was an AT hiker and asked if I could take water from her spigot. The lady, Joan, was extremely gracious. Not only did she allow me to have the water, she came out and filled my bottles for me, then visited with me for a while.We talked about all sorts of things. It was nice to talk with someone not hiking the AT for a change. We even talked about small towns and their firetrucks. She confirmed what my husband has told me several times. Small towns, like Great Barrington, with volunteer firefighters work hard to raise money for a new firetruck. So it is a VERY big deal when a new truck arrives. They want to show the firetruck off in a parade, and everyone in town turns out to see it. I hope Great Barrington has Pierce firetrucks. If not, I hope their next truck is a Pierce.When I reached the water source listed in the AT guide I was glad I had been prudent and asked for water. The source was bone dry. Thanks again Joan! I was glad when I reached the shelter. It had been a long, buggy, hot, and humid day. High rock walls surrounded the shelter. Unfortunately the water source was a long walk down into a rocky ravine, but it was good water. The shelter was huge - 2 story with 2 sets of bunks on the first floor. No one was in the shelter and there was plenty of room, so I set up my tent without the fly in the front corner. The space I took was equivalent to the same space I would have taken with just my sleeping pad and bag.I met Gray Goat for the first time that night. He tented near the shelter. A pair of twins had already taken the tent platform overlooking the ravine. They had a perfect spot to see the full moon, which was also a blue moon. From the shelter I watched as the full moon appeared to skirt along the top of the trees, but I never had a clear view.At about 10 p.m. 2 drunk guys, talking loudly (their voices also bounced off the ravine walls, amplifying the noise) approached the shelter. They stopped right in front of the shelter and continued their loud conversation, apparently trying to figure out whether they were going to stay or move on. I politely asked them to keep it down because folks were trying to sleeep. That is when things turned ugly. One of the guys told me they would quiet down once they got settled - as they shined their headlamps directly at me. GREAT! I asked them again to be considerate to their fellow hikers and quiet down. Eventually they claimed they were moving on, but then they came back! The same guy told me I needed to learn about trail etiquette myself because I had no business setting up my tent in the shelter. Technically he was right, but I pointed out to him that it was a huge shelter, with plenty of room for them, and they were welcome to join me. That did not satisfy him and he continued to lecture me about trail etiquette, shining his headlamp in my eyes the whole time.I decided enough was enough and I admit I blurted out a few foul words. I was not proud of my language, but he got the message that I was not a woman willing to back down and be bullied by a couple of drunk rude hikers. They eventually walked off a ways and settled in for the night. I heard a few cans pop open, so they continued their drinking. At one point I think they rolled an empty can towards the shelter to aggravate me. But I was able to get back to sleep. I planned to head out as early as possible to avoid any further confrontations with them.The AT is calling. I just hope there is plenty of good water along the way.