Date: 2008-07-20
From: Story Spring Shelter

To: Green Mountain House, Manchester Center
Miles today: 22.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Torrential DownpourStory Spring Shelter to Green Mountain House, Manchester Center VT: 22 Miles Right now I am completely waxed. I did 22 miles today in the Green Mountains, not to mention the last four or five was in the POURING rain, on muddy mountain rocks and pregnant streams. I really wanted to get in to this city; Manchester Center, Vermont, for two reasons: One, I¢m completely out of food except for a ramen packet and some coffee and pepper. Two, so I could pick up gaiters at the Mountain Goat outfitter they have here. It¢s the only place in hundreds of miles that has the gaiters I want, the OR Flex-Tex Gaiters. Oh mama, are they sweet! Hopefully they will keep the sweat out of my boots a little so I don¢t have to wring my socks out every four miles on tough days. Even if they help a little and I only have to wring my socks out every ten miles, it will help me out tremendously. My feet take the hardest beating once the socks get wet because they lose all their padding properties and my skin gets pruney and vulnerable to blisters and other weird conditions when they stay wet all day (or several days when it¢s really rainy). Last night it rained a little but I didn¢t notice. It looked like it was going to be a really good day. ¢Perfectly Overcast¢ I like to call it. No rain but not sunny enough to overheat you. I got out of camp early at around 0920. The Scarlet 7 (-5) had left just before me. Beanie was getting off for his family vacation (to Maine of all places) and his family was picking him up at the next road. Soon it would be The Scarlet 7 (-6) AKA Croc Hunter, or Vince. I¢ll probably hike with him a bunch till he gets off at the end of the month. I got down to the road and Beanie was just about to leave. I got to meet his family and then I headed up the trail toward Mt. Stratton. Croc Hunter is faster than me so he¢ll catch me. We talked about doing 22 miles today in order to make it to the next major highway and then hitching in to Manchester Center but it looked like there were only hotels to stay at and they were all expensive. Ahead of me was an 1800 foot climb to Mt. Stratton, a popular ski resort in the winter, it had an observation tower on top and I psyched myself up for the climb. Croc Hunter passed me on the way up and it was tough but I finally got up there. There was a Caretaker, Jean, staying in this cool little white hut. I had to wring out my socks and underwear when I got to the top. Since Vermont doesn¢t have a nudity law, I just did it right there. Croc Hunter was up in the tower but I don¢t think he was looking. He was trying to get service since it was the highest point anywhere around. After I climbed the tower and got some footage of haze and barely discernable mountains, I came down and all of a sudden people started showing up like crazy. There was this huge family from Atlanta and all these young girls and I was pretty glad they hadn¢t come up about fifteen minutes earlier while I was standing there on a big rock, naked except for my untied boots, wringing out my underwear and socks. Now that would have been a moment! Anyway, I shamelessly promoted the website and moved on. I had a big day and the caretaker said there were huge storms on the way and flash flood warnings for the whole area. I had to get down there before the storms hit and night fell or I was never going to hitch a ride into Manchester Center. Croc hunter mentioned he might go with me but only if we could find a hostel. There was a shelter 3 miles before the road. We would meet there and figure it out then. I got to Stratton Pond and decided to jump in for a dip. It definitely smelled like a pond but I didn¢t care. It felt good to rinse off the sweat and leaf particles and mud and whatever else was all over me. As I was getting ready to go, these three kids showed up. I can¢t remember their trail names except for the one without a trail name who was Sean or Shawn or Shaun or whatever. He didn¢t have one of those text bubbles over his head when he spoke so I couldn¢t tell. They hipped me to a fabulous place that has just opened up: The Green Mountain House, a hostel that was super cool. They gave me a business card for the place and I called when I got service and made a reservation for me and Vince in case he wanted to go. I would have to catch him though, he¢s fast. If he gets to the shelter to far ahead of me he¢ll have time to eat and unpack and he won¢t want to go. It looked like it might be dark before I got to the road which makes it hard to hitch. I started to haul ass. I had to wring my socks again and I opted for totally new ones which were fresh and dry. As I was trying to get to the shelter the ominous thunder and lightning began to play its game with me. I knew it was going to be close and I didn¢t want to stop to get my raingear on cause I sweat a lot more with it on; however if I made it to the shelter before the downpour, I could keep my socks relatively dry and then don the gear for the final three miles in the downpour. I didn¢t make it. The sky kept teasing me with sprinkles and thunder off in the distance. It never seemed to be in front of me though so I kept going. I wasn¢t sure how far it actually was to the shelter but then it got so dark that I should have turned on my headlamp. Suddenly the rain started to really pour and I was getting soaked. I tried to hustle but it¢s tough when everything is all slippery. I saw the sign for the shelter and didn¢t realize it was still several hundred yards downhill. I ran down the path but I was still getting soaked. My socks still seemed semi dry though and when I got to the shelter, Croc Hunter and Greenwood were there. They though I was coming in for the night but I really wanted to make that hostel. I told Croc Hunter about it but I know he was reluctant. Eventually he broke down and got packed back up. We left during a lull that we hoped was going to be a long one. It wasn¢t. As we were gong down the first hill he said, ¢Just for the record, I think this is a dumb idea, but what the hell, I could use some more adventure.¢ The trail was very wet, very muddy and not at flat as the map led us to believe. He cruised way up ahead of me and it got pretty dark again. I finally made it to the road and I was really worn out. Just as we crossed the road this Minivan was coming at us and I just threw my thumb out there as a joke and the guy pulled right over and picked us up. It was AWESOME! His name was Brian and he was from Jamaica. I thought he had stolen the car ¢cause he didn¢t know how to open the back hatch or unlock any door; but at that moment, I could care less who or what he was. He was giving us a ride in the rain and he was alright by me. In fact, if they asked me to go to court to speak of his character, I¢d have to fly all the way back here to do it. ¢Your Honor, that man is a saint and I don¢t care how many bodies I was sitting on in the cargo area when he drove me into town!¢ For a moment I thought it was going to be a Great Adventure and then we got to the McDonalds and he wouldn¢t even take a sandwich for his trouble; not even a shake! I, on the other hand, had two Double Quarter Pounders with Cheese, Large Fries, a 32oz Orange Juice and a 20oz coffee. Paul Newman does McDonalds Coffee, man! I calculated the total calories and it was 2470! Yeah man, I needed it. Jeff picked us up to take us the hostel and when I got there I weighed myself: 155 lbs I haven¢t weighed 155 since I was 20! This Hostel is the nicest place I¢ve stayed yet on the trail. It¢s a very nice house and I can¢t wait to drop into that fabulous bed!David AKA ¢Mister Gentle Spirit¢ Website http://www.wbafinc.org Photos: http://www.photobucket.com/brotherproofVideos: http://www.youtube.com/WBAF1