Date: 2016-06-30
From: Minerva Hinchley Shelter, VT

To: Cooper Lodge Shelter, VT
Miles today: 13.8
Weather: few clouds

Day 6813.8 miles in 11 hours (includes 2.5 ¢ 3 hour break at the Whistle Stop Caf©)Minerva Hinchey Shelter, VT (1680.8) to Cooper Lodge Shelter, VT (1694.6)Weather: Overcast, humid, hot, 80s to low 90s, thunderstorm in the late afternoonDinner: Thai Ginger NoodlesHikers: England, a few hikers stopping in at the caf©, three SOBOs, two LT women, and two of us in this wreck of a shelterHere I thought Minerva lacked amenities. Tonight's shelter hit a new low and probably not too many steps removed from condemnation. Except this is the AT, and a roofed structure in the middle of the woods, out of the rain, is still considered to be an oasis.Except for expensive gear, finding me in this decaying Poe-like ¢House of Usher,¢ you would swear I was homeless. And I felt homeless¢wearing the same unwashed clothes for four straight days, smelling bad, feeling damp and sticky. I¢m sleeping in a place that is falling apart. The timbers are rotting. The roof leaks. There is broken glass and graffiti. The four bunk beds are tilting every which direction and missing boards. Unthinkably, it even lacks a shelter register. As I write, I hear mice gnawing away at the garbage left in the corner. But it does have a picnic table. And a killer view. And all the stickers, not to mention the ski hill¢s directional signage, suggest it doubles in winter as a snow boarder hangout. Dude!At one time, this four-sided stone building was probably a CCC-built jewel. The composting toilet isn't the worst one on the trail and there are new tent platforms and signage here so I¢m guessing this shelter is up for renovation or repairs, eventually. It is listed in the guidebook, but in its current state, it can barely manage to house two of us. I ended up here both because the promise of the cozy sounding name, Cooper LODGE, (accommodating 16 people!) and it's location atop of Killington Mountain, near another ski hill. Also, I got caught in a thunderstorm and needed to stop at the next oasis.It was really, really humid and hot today. There were several swimming holes, but the thought of hiking and still being sweaty didn't sway me. The goal today was hitting the Whistle Stop Caf©, three miles from Minerva. Breakfast all day, ice cream, electricity. I yogi¢d a ride from sectional hikers who were waiting for a friend to show up. I mean, I¢ll walk hundreds of miles, but don't really want to have to hike an extra half mile¢off trail¢to a restaurant where I can charge my devices¢and eat ice cream. However, I did have to walk on the way back. In the noon hour heat. Uphill. Okay, kidding about that last part. Uphill came once I was back on the trail, of course. The trail followed more beautiful streams through more beautiful piney woods up and over more beautiful views. England and I kept leapfrogging each other throughout the day as did two young women out to hike the Long Trail. That¢s another thing that has been interesting¢the number of people thru-hiking Vermont¢s Long Trail (LT). You can't assume¢at all¢the thru-hikers at the shelter are on the AT. When asked if one is thru-hiking, there is always this additional question of LT or AT? The weird thing is that there seems to be the same number of people nightly at the shelters, but you¢d think there would've be many more with the addition of the LT thru's. But that hasn't been my experience. So where have all the AT thru¢s gone? I must be in the middle of another bubble.I met my first true SOBOs today who had started out in Katahdin. A few other passing southbound hikers started in New Hampshire. Like the end of the season, Baxter Park, home to Mt. Katahdin, has restrictions on when people can hike the mountain. They don't allow hikers up until after the snow melts and the spring ice-off, anywhere from late May or by mid-June. SOBOs starting this early have to deal with Maine¢s black fly season which also coincides with ice-off.I was more than halfway up Killington, when I heard the first peals of thunder. Usually this late in the day, and knowing I've got a few miles uphill, means I'm trudging. But man, did I start booking it. The trail hugged the mountainside and there was no place to duck out and set up camp. And I was getting nervous about heading to a summit during an impending thunderstorm, but had little choice. The forest around me was nothing but blown down trees which did not suggest protection. The fabulous Cooper Lodge Hovel was still 1.6 miles away when the storm broke. Another trail spur, near the top (which incidentally wasn't ever exposed), was slightly more protected and I pulled out my umbrella and hunkered down. Literally. I assumed the lightning position as a loud strike was almost immediately followed by thunder. There are implications to holding an umbrella, but remaining relatively dry during the deluge outweighed the fear of being a tiny lightning rod among the taller pine trees. The storm passed within 15 minutes and I bolted as best I could through standing water reaching the ¢lodge¢ before the next series of storms I expected arrived.And you know how that turned out. I stayed dry only because no other storms came. But the post-storm sunset streaming through the pane-less Cooper Lodge Crackhouse windows was beautiful.