Date: 2003-08-21
From: Dalton, MA - Manchester Center, VT

To: Dalton, MA - Manchester Center, VT
Miles today: 81.8
Weather: overcast clouds

Dalton, MA - Manchester Center, VT81.8 miles (1635.1 total miles)After breakfast on day 136 we went to the post office. I got a wicked cool package from Philippe. It was filled with fun stuff. Thanks, Philippe! We walked to the gas station, where Baltimore Jack told us of a local who gave free slackpacks if we wanted to get in on it. We hurried over and arranged a 9 mile slack into Cheshire.It was a pleasant hike. The sun was shining, and it was relaxing to take a leisurely hike instead of hurrying with my pack. We got to Cheshire only to find Last Minute guarding our packs. We were excited to see our hiking partner waiting for us. I went to the post office, just for the novelty of checking 2 post offices in one day. We were sitting outside the gas station, when a stranger came out with bags of candy for us. Trail magic! Then we headed over to the Catholic church, which lets hikers sleep in the basement for free. It was surprisingly comfortable to sleep indoors on the floor.We came up with a plan to leave our packs at the church on day 137. We would slack the 14 miles over Mount Greylock, the highest point in Massachusetts. We left through a field in Cheshire, and slowly ascended. It really wasn't a bad climb, just very long. We passed a shelter, a pond, and the summit road several times. Finally we reached the summit. I got an overpriced lunch, filled my waterbottles, and got post cards.The descent was a lot harder. It went down, steeper and steeper. It was hard on my feet and knees. We finally reached North Adams, where we met Willow's cousin Marnie. She drove us back to get our packs, then to the state park to set up camp. Willow's father and grandfather showed up after dark. We got a nice slack on day 138. It would be 18 miles, making the last 41 without our full packs. We stopped for a quick breakfast, then on to the trailhead. We left town following a creek up the mountain. We passed a few overlooks, then hit the Long Trail, which is the Vermont border. 11 states down, 3 to go!It was a long, muddy day. We stopped only a few times at shelters and for water. We spent a lot of time skirting around the mud. Just before 6:00, we came down the long, steep descent into Bennington. We had dinner in town, then crahsed at the Autumn Inn.We did our chores on day 139, and Henry was nice enough to drive us all around. We had breakfast, then to the laundromat and outfitters. We went to Walmart, then to a Chinese AYCE buffet for lunch. It was 3:00 by the time we got to the trailhead. It was raining sporadically but hard, so we wanted to stay in a shelter. The only realistic shelter option was in just 1 mile. We decided to stay dry by splitting a motel room for another night.It was hot on day 140. We stayed in our room until checkout time, then went for a pizza, and reluctantly hit the trailhead. We climbed steeply, then leveled out after the first shelter. The trail dipped down past a brook, then way up toward Glasenbruy Mountain. It was a good ascent under beautiful pine trees.   We stopped at the shelter with a bunch of friendly section hikers. The tentsites were a little muddy, but it was better than sleeping with mosquitoes.We left Goddard Shelter on day 141, and climbed only .2 miles to Glastenbury Mountain. There was a firetower there, where we could see views of the fog in the valleys below. It was a beautiful morning, and for the first time in months, I felt a little cold. We did about 4 miles to the first shelter. We hiked on, and I drained myself. I was depleted. I stopped and ate as much as I could from my pack. I drank almost 2 bottles of water. My body was getting tired. It took about 6 hours to finish the 4 miles to the next shelter. We decided to press on about 2 more miles. After one, we found a cooler full of cold soda. Trail magic! Then one more lead us to a brook with a tentsite nearby. It was a peaceful evening, until dusk when about 10 other hikers showed up out of nowhere. We all squeezed into the area.I ate a lot for breakfast on day 142, knowing I needed the energy. We did a good 5 miles up to the top of Stratton Mountain, where we found another firetower. The view was incredible: mountains, lakes, and trees all around. We had an early lunch, and hiked down.We stopped briefly at Stratton Pond, where some other hikers were swimming. It was another 4.8 miles to the next shelter, which marked the 3/4 point of the trail! We did 3 last miles to Spruce Peak Shelter. There was a youth group occupying the tentsites, but the shelter was a nice, fully enclosed cabin.We were up and out early on day 143, dreaming of the bagel shop in Manchester Center. We hiked 3 miles to the road crossing. We got a fairly easy hitch from 3 girls going to work. They drove us into the quaint resort town, and gave us pastries. I got the bagels I had been dreaming of for so long in town.With only 1/4 of the trail left to go, I am excited. I am tired, and I know the hardest part of the trail is yet to come. I am also excited but nervous about the end of the trail. Soon it will be time to start thinking about the "real world" again. I wonder how that will be. 537.5 miles to Katahdin!