Date: 2019-06-05
From: October Mountain Shelter

To: Red Roof Inn Albany
Miles today: 12.0

This day I wanted to push into the town of Dalton by lunch. That was the plan anyway. I left just before 8am, which for me was pretty good time... meant that I should reach Dalton by 1pm even at a super slow pace. But I wouldn¢t arrive till around 2:30pm... It was supposed to be a pretty easy day, with a really flat trail profile.. maybe 1k elevation gain for the whole day, the whole 11 or so miles into town. But I struggled and slogged. I think it was due to the poor sleep from the night before, but I was seriously considering it may be a tick related disease. Or maybe just lethargy... both knees were only semi functional now... refusing to bend far enough to be able to squat (for those times that involve digging cat holes), and aching more than usual for the few uphill slogs of the day.During the hike I got passed up first by Jersey¢s friends, then by Jersey himself. We have been leapfrogging each other like this for the past few days. He and his friend were going to stop for lunch at the Kay Wood Shelter. That was the last I saw of them.Sat down a few times to snack and drink some water, but despite that I was feeling dizzy again. Not a good sign... another symptom of a tick related disease?Made it in to Dalton finally. The AT goes right through town here, just like it did in Duncannon, PA. I was dutifully following the white blazes painted through the neighborhood when I heard ¢Philosophy! Err... Philosopher!¢ It was the clean guy with perfect eyebrows, sitting with his friend of the porch of what turned out to be Tom Levardi - a Trail angel. He offered me a soda, but I passed - I was looking forward to a drink on tap, and some town food!Unfortunately the pub was closed, so I headed to Angelina¢s Sub Shop. They were super kind and hiker friendly - I left my pack outside and ordered a cheese steak sandwich with A1 sauce and mayo. They offered to fill up my water but I declined... today I am getting off the trail.Wandered around a bit looking for a place that carried picture postcards, but I never could find anything. I also had no luck in Albany. I guess the days of picture postcards are over?Tried to figure out the local bus system, but I gave up after the bus didn¢t arrive in 10 minutes. Of course it passed by in a whirlwind after some 15 minutes, by which time I¢d requested a Lyft to take me to the Greyhound station in nearby Pittsfield. This station and its shady characters were my brutal reverse culture shock, my reintroduction into the land of miserable people. Totally different attitudes out here.Got to Red Roof Inn in Albany and called it a night... was happy skipping dinner since it was late and I was still full from the big sub sandwich I had at lunch.This is it for the time being. Dalton is roughly 550 miles from Harper¢s Ferry, and that marks 1/4 of the total miles on the Appalachian Trail. A pretty nice spot to take a break, exit the trail, and hopefully reenter it soon. I am flying back to LA to help with some family obligations, and it gives me a good excuse to at least recoup a bit. I hope my knees have time to finally recover, more than a single zero day could offer them. I hope to return to the trail in a few weeks. I am already thinking about it, and I¢m particularly eager to see what all the hubbub is about the Whites and the infamous Rocky Mountains further up.