Date: 2013-08-30
From: The Inn at Long Trail

To: Camp spot near Mink Brook
Miles today: 14.5
Weather: light rain

Day 105 - Campsite Near Mink BrookAfter a great night at the Inn, we were rather sluggish and uninterested in hitting the trail right away. We woke up around 8 and packed up before heading back across the street to the Inn for breakfast. It's come to my attention that I talk quite frequently about food, and rightly so. I LOVE it. And out on the trail it's one of the few things at the forefront of my mind at all times. Cheezits, Goldfish, Pop Tarts, Milky Way, Milky Way Dark, Milky Way Caramel, burgers, reubens, sodas, 20 pieces McNuggets - I'm pretty much always in the food mood, and eating is one of the most pleasurable experiences on the trail! So, I gladly continue. Breakfast consisted of eggs, toast, coffee and hash browns, and it was quite scrumptious!After a lazy breakfast, we tried for quite some time to get a hitch down into Killington for a resupply. While waiting, we were duped multiple times by the existence of a fake peacock. Let me explain. There is a large, blue, paper m¢ch©-looking peacock that is located directly across the street from the Inn. And apparently this paper m¢ch© peacock is quite the tourist attraction, because on multiple occasions people pulled over, only to peel out in fear of the three strange dirty men approaching the car who thought they had secured a ride. Denied. However, the prolonged wait allowed us to work on our showmanship, so that was quite nice. We figure, if you won't pick us up you'll at least laugh. And, if you laugh, you're more likely to stop because you trust that we won't rob you. It's a win-win really. Our newest routine is akin to synchronized swimming, where we perform a short sequence of moves that end in a protruding thumb. We were eventually picked up by a younger hippy-looking dude who confessed that our moves were pretty persuasive. Score. The Voice and I got a ride down to town to a deli/resupply place, while Rabbit was dropped off near Kent Pond (a few trail miles farther than us).   We got killer subs and paid the ridiculously high prices for some supplies, then headed back the road to hitch back to the trail. We did our new routine and were picked up almost immediately. Synchronized hitching, 2, unsuspecting motorists, 0.   We hit the trail with some pace since we were starting so late. We went by Kent Pond which was really beautiful, even if a bit too close to the main road. We had a decently tough climb up Mt. Quimby, and unfortunately no rewarding view at the top. Afterwards we were pretty slow for the rest of the day, probably because it has been pretty hot and humid. Ultimately, we decided to call it a short day and camped near Mink Brook. Camping nearby were Salamander and Pop Tart, whom I had met the night of the Rabbit reunion. In the middle of the night, we were awoken by the sound of apparent SOBO night hikers. In the morning, however, we came to find out that Salamander and Pop Tart had been driven from their campsite by a bunch of moose! Apparently they had set up shop in the Moose's bedding area - whoops! Good thing they got out of there alright!Today's song: "Alien" - Bush