Date: 2004-08-31
From: Danby-Langrove Road

To: VT 11/30 
Miles today: 17.8

Today was my first real experience at ¢slack packing¢ and, WOW, it was great!After waiting for the rain to stop (¢rain, rain go away,¢ etc., etc.) my friend, Ozzie, drove me north up Route 7 to Danby, then east on dirt roads to intersect the AT. All I had with me was my food for lunch, rain gear, some, dry clothes in case the rain returned, 2 liters of water and my ground cloth to use as an emergency shelter in case I encountered any really bad weather. My pack felt so light, I initially kept swatting at it, thinking it was one of those B-52-size black flies trying to make a carrier landing on my shoulder blades. Seriously, a 5-6 pound pack makes hiking extremely easy, especially going uphill! The day¢s journey was truly unbelieveably¢ a real ¢walk in the woods¢.By lunchtime, my southbound journey had taken me to the summit of Baker Mountain, a journey that brought back many memories of happier days. By the time I arrived there, the sun was shining brightly, just as it was nearly ten years ago to the day when I proposed to Gailey, my second wife, at this exact spot. We had hiked up a side trail from Route 7 and I don¢t think either one of us were even aware of the fact that we were actually on the Appalachian Trail when I got down on bended knee and ¢popped the question.¢ She led all the way up while I kept checking my pocket to make sure I hadn¢t dropped the engagement ring I had purchased (I checked it so often on the way up that I nearly rubbed all the flock off the jeweler¢s box containing the ring!). I now stood alone and was filled with sadness remembering of how our lives had changed since that day those that followed afterwards. I spent a long while there on Barker Mountain wrapped in thought, but eventually pulled myself back into the present and got my feet moving again concentrating on the beauty of this new day and marveling at how the AT reveals itself to those who chose to hike it only one step at a time and there¢s nothing quite like an endless collection of ankle deep mud holes to get one¢s head back to where one¢s feet which was exactly what conditions were on the AT going over Peru and Styles Mountains. It really wasn¢t hiking as much as it was a combination of slogging, sloshing, slipping, and sliding.As the late afternoon sun was just kissing goodbye to the distant valley floors, I arrived at the observation tower at Bromley Mountain was treated to a glorious view of Stratton to the south, to as far north as Killington where the Trail would soon be taking me. After enjoying the company of three delightful young NOBOs I hadn¢t previously met (¢Mickey,¢ ¢Mallory¢ and ¢Rowboat¢) I took off in the fading daylight to meet Ozzie¢s wife, Bonnie at the parking lot below. A quick stop at McDonald¢s and I was soon enjoying the decadence of a hot bath at the Wilson House after which I spread out all my gear on the floor of my room and, inspired by the delight of my slack-packing experience, took five pounds of accumulated ¢nice, but not necessary¢ clothing and junk out of my pack, to be mailed back home to myself. It may now be later than I¢d like (nearly midnight!), but the saving grace is that tomorrow I¢ll be carrying a lighter pack!