Date: 2017-08-03
From: Bromley Mountain Ski Warming Hut

To: Little Rock Pond Shelter
Miles today: 16.8
Weather: clear sky

Long Ruminations Ahead! Pardon my verbiage, I have a lot of time to think!I heard through the hiker grapevine that Thunderbuns skipped up to the Whites. That's why I haven't seen him in journals. Atlas and Straw did the same thing last year - it's common for thru-hikers who are pressed for time (or mired in mud) to skip Vermont.I considered skipping Vermont and pushing through and trying to summit Katahdin this year. But now that I've seen how pretty VT is, I'm glad I didn't skip it. Once I realized I probably didn't have enough time to reach Katahdin this summer, it took the pressure off. Now I can concentrate on enjoying the Whites and look forward to coming back to do the hundred mile wilderness and Katahdin with Mr. AT-AT Walker.Anyway, back to now. At this point on the trail, several bubbles are converging. You have the AT northbounders who started in Georgia in March, the AT southbounders who started on Katahdin in June, and now SOBOs and NOBOs on the Long Trail (which, despite its name, is considerably shorter than the AT). The Long Trail is 273 miles, and for this stretch of Vermont, both trails run together. So I'm meeting all kinds of hikers.There are currently nine of us in the shelter, drying out from the rain. We're talking about black flies ¢ Duct Tape and I think that's what was biting us last night. They're the size of gnats, but draw blood ¢ I had one on my face this morning and when I smacked it, it left a vaguely-lightning-bolt-shaped pool of blood on my forehead.I am The Hiker Who Lived.Will the Long Trail hiker is reading The Fountainhead. Ireland (Co. Donegal!) is swinging in the hammock he set up in the shelter. Jeremiah is in his bunk, cooking Ramen. Duct Tape is playing Eddie Vedder ukulele songs for us all. Stumbleina is cooking her dinner. Easy Goin' just came in, along with the SOBO named Barbecue.Now we're discussing the Doyle (an infamously decrepit hiker hotel in Duncannon, PA), norovirus, jalape±o popper chips, the difference between peanut butter M&Ms and Reese's Pieces (Easy Goin' gave me some. The M&Ms are bigger than Reese's Pieces). Now we're trying to remember what day it is.I'm glad I'm a light sleeper for nights/mornings like last night in the ski hut. Can I just share how that was one of the best nights I've had this trip?! Seeing the storms, the rainbow, the sky....Even though I had earplugs in, I heard Duct Tape when he got up in the night, and it reminded me to go out and check the stars. So I put on a vest and jacket and out I went. WOW! I felt so insignificant seeing the vastness of space above. The big dipper was low on the horizon. I could see the Milky Way above. It was breathtaking. By far the best night sky I've seen on the trail. And when I got cold and went back inside, I could still see stars out the window from my sleeping bag. Wow!Then in the morning, around 5:15, I heard some people outside getting up to watch the sunrise. So I scurried out too, and took a spot on the second chair lift. It was so restful to watch the islands of land above the low fog clouds and the sky pinken.When I finished, I headed back in, where Duct Tape was still sleeping.  (It ended up being just the two of us in the hut - everyone else hiked on or tented outside.) I wanted to start my day, but it's hard to pack up anything quietly ¢ everything is wrapped in Ziploc and trash bags. We were joking about the quintessential sound of every morning on the trail ¢ the PFFFFFFFFF! of Thermarests deflating.Once he awoke, I made breakfast, shared my coffee, then hit the trail.There was a fun rock scramble today on an unusual white rock that had pinks and sparkles in it. There was a perfect stream to soak my feet in and then, not long later, I began to hear thunder. Uh-oh. I busted out my pack cover, jacket, and rain skirt and kept heading to the shelter. It's been on and off raining ever since, hence, all of us in here.Atlas had made a joke about all the best AT stories beginning with "so we were all stuck in a shelter during the rain..." It's so true. With no phone service or other entertainment, we have only ourselves.It's still on and off raining, and more people are arriving. One woman is going to sleep on top of the picnic table, because it's the only space left. Normally I'd tent, but I just can't set up the tent in the rain when I've finally dried off. I'm also wondering how morning will work, with this many folks. Will is going to share the bunk with me. Please please don't snore!