Date: 2009-07-08
From: Buchanan Mountain

To: William Brien Shelter
Miles today: 13.7
Weather: scattered clouds

The storm passed, morning came, and I awoke feeling better than I had the day before. Since I wasn¢t sure which mountain I was on (the landmarks and times weren¢t matching up), I was worried about where I would get my next water. I only had a little on me, so I had a granola bar for breakfast. As I was packing up, I saw Chance pass by. He must have camped very close to me! Apparently, he told other people later on that he was freaked out when he saw me as he thought he was alone on the mountain, as well! I headed down, crossed a street, soon came to a large river (my worries about finding water were over!) and heard the familiar voices of Squeegie and the twins, who were packing up alongside Sunbeam and Halfmoon. It was nice to see familiar faces. We all took off, one by one, and headed along a nice scenic stretch of water. Then, we started climbing. Again, I started to feel extremely tired and sluggish. I felt like something must really be wrong with me. Maybe I had Lymes? At a ridge, I put my pack down and decided to make a proper breakfast of oatmeal and coffee. (I think I left my vitamins at the mayor¢s). I hoped it would help boost my energy level. Sunbeam and Halfmoon, the last of the group, passed me as I ate. By the time I got going again, I figured they must be a good half hour ahead of me.    However, a little while later, I caught up to them, as they were taking in a view. I was so happy that I wasn¢t as far behind as I had thought, and even happier that they said they were feeling abnormally tired, as well! They said, ¢We¢ve only done 3.7 miles and it is 11 o¢clock!¢ We were all struggling physically in New York. The climbs and descents were not long, but they were much steeper than what we had become accustomed to.    On I went, and soon I ran into Squeegie, who had just returned from a swim in a lake. She was very excited about this lake and the rocks around it, and I decided to check it out. Sunbeam and Halfmoon passed on the lake, as they wanted to keep on schedule and get to trail magic at the monastery the following day.       I was so glad I went to see it. It was one of the most beautiful places I had seen on the AT so far. The only people who were around were dayhikers, and I took the opportunity to dry out some of my wet gear and clothing on the rocks, wash my muddy socks, soak my feet, eat a snack, and enjoy the geese. The clouds and water were breathtaking. Eventually, I decided that I better move on. The lemon squeezer was coming up. Although it was a short stretch, it took some time to squeeze through with my big pack. I¢m surprised my water containers did not rip. After I finally made it out of the squeeze, I was faced with a rock wall with an alternative blue blaze ¢easy¢ path. Not for me. I had to toss my pack up over me and use my arms and hands to get up. Nothing was going to be quick or easy today.    I climbed up beautiful Surebridge Mountain with its abundant blueberry bushes and stopped for a quick break at Fingerboard Shelter. The next reliable water source was located at Lake Tiorati Circle, 0.3 miles off the AT. It was also a beach with a swimming area, and it housed a vending machine. I decided to take the walk down to it and took my second relaxing break of the day. I waded in the water, enjoyed an ice cream cookie sandwich, and rehydrated a shittake mushroom dinner, which I enjoyed with a pink lemonade. Trigger came along and practically emptied out the vending machines. He was extremely low on food, but thought he would be okay until he got to the trail magic at the monastery. I figured I better get going if I was to make it to the next shelter before dark. I passed Goof (who told me my pack was looking unusually full) and his buddies. Goof also told me that my pack was leaning heavily to the left. I don¢t know why it was doing this, but for the past two weeks, I noticed that it was leaning in this direction and placing an enormous amount of strain and pain on my shoulder blade. I continued on and made it to the shelter. A large group of kids and several thru-hikers were sitting around the fire eating. I found a place to hang my hammock and settled in for the night.