Date: 2007-08-16
From: MOOSE MTN SHELTER

To: LYME-DORCHESTER ROAD
Miles today: 8.6

From: Moose Mtn Shelter To: Lyme-Dorchester RoadToday's Mileage: 8.6Total Mileage: 1751.7Mileage Left: 422.3I actually walked 10.6 miles today but will explain that later. It was the first night in a shelter in a while so with all the various noises I did not sleep that well, but it was great to have people around. We were all up around 6:00 AM and I was packed up ready to go at 7:30 AM. I only had a little over 8 miles to go so I was in no hurry and just walked slowly along the trail.As I was walking, this southbounder came into view, and I couldn't believe it, he was Dirty Ernie. I had last seen him in VA or Maryland, I can't remember, but it has been awhile. He got off in PA. close to where he lives, flew to Maine, and is going back to his home. This is called doing a flip-flop when you start one way and end another. He wanted to walk home twice and says he will walk the 30 miles to his house and right in his front door.It was really great to see him and we talked for a long time, and took each other's picture before we moved on up and down the trail. We passed a peregrine falcon rookery on Holts Ledge, and Flying Turtle, Billy the Kid, Alpine, Pony Whisperer, and I all took a break but did not see any birds. They all went on, as they still had to climb Smarts Mtn but I went to the Trapper John Shelter for lunch. Which turned out to be a good thing in the long run. There was a family, grandfather, his daughter, and her two boys (grandchildren), there that live on the Dorchester Rd. and they are offering water and ice cream to hikers. I might not have stopped if I had not met them. Also there was Shakespeare, a young southbounder, who I talked to for over an hour and Marco Solo came in and also stayed. I left there around 2:00 and headed for the pick-up point where my friend Woody, nickname, was going to pick me up. She lives in Barre, Vermont and we have not seen each other in years.I got to the ice cream house and Marco Solo was there so again I sat and talked. At 3:00 I decided to walk on but when I got to the road I noticed that it would be very confusing for Woody as there was a fork in the road and really no sign to let her know to take the left fork. So I went back to the house and asked them if I could leave my pack there and I walked the two miles to the meeting place and then walked two miles back on the road picked up a lawn chair from the house and sat down at the fork to wait. Around 6:00 the sky darkened and a lightening began to crisscross the sky. I got out of the metal chair and put my rain coat on as it started to rain. Around 6:30, Woody pulled up and I was very glad to see her.When she lived in Roanoke we were very close so we talked non-stop on the drive back to her house. We also passed three or four very large trees that had been blown down on the road and businesses that had lost electricity.She lives in Barre, VT about an hour and a half from the trail. We ordered pizza and continued to talk until almost midnight. I think that was the latest I've been up since I started this trip. I crawled into a wonderful soft bed and called it a night.