Date: 2013-08-22
From: Betsy & Bill's House, Elm St. Norwich, VT

To: Tigger's Tree House, Etna-Hanover Center Rd
Miles today: 8.3

I didn't sleep terribly well, but I'm not sure why. Maybe it was Ranger Rick's snoring and talking in his sleep. I can't say that I heard it, but Pressure-D and Hobo did. Who knows? We claimed out clean laundry from a laundry basket on table, and I got my pack reassembled. I was headed downhill before 7:00 a.m. I felt good. I was headed for New Hampshire! State #13.There was a thick rose colored fog that coated the morning sky. It muted out the sun's orb. The morning had a soft edge to it. I made good time, and right as I was coming to the I-91 underpass, Pressure-D, Hobo, and Greybeard passed in a car. They honked, and we all waved at each other. They had hiked into Hanover yesterday, so they caught a ride in the car back to the center of town. Hobo sent me a message saying they were headed to Lou's for breakfast. I found out later that it's listed in the "1000 Places to See Before You Die" book. So I can check that one off my list!I crossed the Connecticut River. There were two crew boats gliding smoothly across the water. They cut to the center of the river as smoothly as a knife through warm butter. I stopped at the center of the bridge and took some photos with the VT-NH granite marker. I was officially in New Hampshire.There was a bit of a climb to get up into Hanover. Several college students were heading in the same direction, but they were moving much faster than me, but they also weren't carrying their life on their backs. LOL. Soon I found myself at the Green of Dartmouth College. Students and professors and locals moved about. I headed to Lou's and found Pressure-D and Hobo sitting at a table by the window. Hobo told me to go tell the guy behind the counter that I was a thru-hiker and he'd give me a free donut. I followed his directions. He guy pointed to the large cabinet of tasty looking pastries and told me to pick one. I pointed to a large glazed donut twist covered in chocolate. He handed it to me without hesitation. I love Hanover and New Hampshire. I munched on my large appetizer while I ordered a HUGE andoille & fresh veggie omelet with a side of homefries and an English muffin. I took have of it to go for dinner later.The three of us discussed our plans for the day, and it would seem that we were headed in different directions. I was headed to the Dartmouth Outing Club (DOC) to get my trail journal updated. Pressure-D was headed to the athletic department to find a picture of his daughter- she'd played softball for Dartmouth a few years prior. Hobo was headed out of town. I called home, and then headed for the DOC. The nice lady at the reception pointed me in the direction of a computer. New and current students passed through doing student stuff. Tangy and the Flying J's came through. They were waiting for happy hour and $2 margaritas as local bar. That sounded dangerous. I thought of joining them, but then realized there wasn't a big enough spatula in the world to scrape me back up off the floor after an hour of $2 margaritas. I finished up journaling and headed back out. The streets were really bustling now. I picked up a book a little used bookstore and listened to two girls discuss "trail angeling". I stopped by the local 'bookstore' and picked up a pair of lightweight running shorts. I sent my hiking skirt home, and my current convertible pants are too hot and too heavy. The only catch is that my new shorts have "Dartmouth College" written on the leg of the shorts, and the rest of the day anyone who passed me on the trail asked me if I went to Dartmouth. I said, yes, I went to Dartmouth, but I didn't attend any classes. I just used the computer. I made pit-stop at the outfitters to see if they had any bras, but no luck. The girls will continue to flap freely for a bit longer. Finally, at 2:00 pm, I made my way out of town, past the soccer fields. There was a guy tending to an already manicured soccer pitch. As soon as I hit the woods, I saw two tents pitched. It was such a sudden "switch" back into trail life, it felt strange. Had I really just been in such a 'civilized' place, or was it a dream?I hiked the next 6 miles, but my heart just wasn't into it. It was too late in the day and too hot to get too excited about hiking. There were some neat rock-walled allies that the trail passed through, but mainly I just wanted to get to the hostel. The mosquitoes swarmed and sprayed myself with bug spray. I knew I'd get a shower soon, so I wasn't too worried about it. I passed over a marsh and boardwalk that the guidebook had listed as a "pond". And I thought "swim", but it was chock-a-block full of cattails. I stopped to watch them sway like bodies in a dense crowd. Hypnotizing.I made it to the road, and hoofed it over to the cemetery. It was the only spot around that you could pick up cellphone service. The guidebook said so, and so did the nice lady at the hostel. I called the hostel to say that I was at our meeting place. Ralph answered the phone, and all I could hear through the crackle was "15" and "red Jeep." And then more crackling. I set down my pack and did a little stretching and yoga. I wondered if it was considered disrespectful to do yoga in a cemetery. Soon Ralph arrived and I struggled to get my pack in the back seat. Geeze, it was heavy!He brought me to his and Karen's house. He pointed out the RV (aka the Tank) where I'd be sleeping. The whole thing was mine for the night! I was thrilled! Inside the house, I was guided through the washer & dryer, hiker food, the bathroom & shower, the TV & movie selection, and the computer. Karen brought down a 2 liter bottle of root beer just for me. She and Ralph as are so incredibly generous and hospitable. I told Karen the story about burning my bra, and we both had a good belly laugh about it. Then she said that she might have one that would fit me. If it did, I could have it. Wow. This lady was seriously giving me the bra off her back. We chatted and laughed for a long time. I forgot that I'd only met her hours before, not years. She's just that sort of wonderful person that makes you feel comfortable and at home immediately. She's lovely.It started to rain, so I headed back to my RV. I got a message from Dreamer that she and CC Rider will be in the White Mountains this coming week. Hopefully we'll be able to link up, at least for one night. The rest of the evening I spent catching up in my written journal and chatting with friends online. The morning will come soon, so I best get some sleep. Tomorrow I'll face some hills and hopefully get a new pair of boots (and a bra!)