Date: 2003-09-16
From: Pinkham Notch

To: Pinkhan Notch
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: heavy intensity rain

zero day in Pinkham NotchI am woke up before daylight by a light knocking on the door. I forget that I have just panties and a shirt on and jump up to answer the door. I am prepared to deck whoever it is waking me up on a day when I can sleep late. It is Indiana Ben. He had gotten up to go to the bathroom and couldn't get the door open. The knob does not pull the catch in all the way all the time. I climb back in bed and the three of us lay there and talk for a few minutes. There is a light rain falling outside. The sound of it lulls us all back to sleep. Later we get up and head over to the cafeteria for breakfast. It is all you can eat and we make good use of our time. Scrambled eggs, bacon, pancakes, cold and hot cereals, toast, juice and hot beverages. We take out time eating then waddle back to the room and collapse on our beds. Just before lunch, a couple named Ann and Jerry come to our room and want to now if we would like to ride into the town of North Conway with them. Would we ever!! We are relatively clean, having showered and washed out our hiking clothes. So we smell pretty decent as hikers go. Soon we are headed into town. The absense of being in a car in a long time, leaves Bog Bridge Tester trying to drive from the back seat. Of course it seems like we are flying ,but Jerry does not exceed the speed limit. In fact, at one point he pulls over and lets someone pass him who was in a big rush to get down the road. He does however have a bit of a problem trying to drive and look at the mountains at the same time. But we arrive in town safe and sound. The first thing on the agenda is lunch of course. We stroll down the sidewalk, peering into windows and reading menus placed on placards out on the sidewalk. We finally decide on a quaint little shop, upstairs over a store. There is hardly room for the five of us, but we squeeze together and soon are munching on an assortment of sandwiches. Then it is off to visit the various outfitters for different things we think we need. I do not find any tent stakes like the ones I have, but I do find a sweet rain jacket on sale. I spend the better part of an hour trying to decide whether or not to buy it. I am unhappy with my FroggToggs. Finally I decide to buy the jacket. It helps that the clerk gives me even more off the price. The store has a consignment shop in it's basement, so Ann and I head down there to see if we can find a bargain or two. The store allows people to bring in their gear and equipment that they no longer want or need and the store sells it for them. I find a nice pair of heavy spandex for the colder weather for 4.00. Can't beat that. By the time we head back to the lodge the sun is breaking through the clouds. The rain is moving over the mountain to drop it's wet gifts somewhere else. We get back to the lodge and end up in the library either working on our journals or reading. I take the opportunity of the quiet to rewrite some journals that got lost in cyberspace . Before I know it, it is dinner time, again. Grilled chicken breast, brown rice with scallions, mixed vegetables, fresh baked bread, a perfectly scrumtious gravy, then ginger bread with vanilla sauce. I have got to get out of this place before I gain 20 pounds! Again we eat with Jerry and Ann. Again the dinner conversation is filled with laughter, especially when Ann asks us about sex on the trail. She asked it on a dare by her husband. The concensus among us hikers is that there is very little sex on the trail. One reason is at the end of the day, you are too tired to even think about it, and another reason is after a day or so on the trail, you smell so bad that any interest at all is quickly lost with just a whiff of yourself or your intended victim! We are all in stitches while the other guests just glance over at us with questioning glances. It is early to bed tonight. Time to hit the trail again. We all lay in our bunks reading until one by one the lights over our beds go out.