When the going gets tough, you're almost close

Yesterday, we crossed the border from Vermont into New Hampshire.  We have less than 500 miles to go.  This may seem like a lot, and it is, but to us it means we are getting close.  We are in Hanover, NH.  Dartmouth college is here.  It is an extremely hiker friendly town. So far we have had free pizza, free snickers, free donuts and there is a free bagel waiting for us! 

 The forest in Vermont has been lovely.  You can't find a better mix of coniferous and deciduous forest.  It seems to change with every 0.2 of a mile.  The trail goes up and down, not too much, just enough. Enough to make me sweat where it drips off of my pack onto the back of my legs on the uphills and then dry off on the downs.  It is about to get difficult.  We are heading into "The Whites".  We have heard since the beginning of the trip that the White Mtns. of NH are the hardest, yet most beautiful part of the trail.  Lots of it are above tree line.  The weather can change at the drop of a hat (much like Montana).  It is steep.  When the trail was originally laid out through these parts they did  not try to find the easiest way up the hill.  Thoughts at the time were not about switchbacks or graded paths.  It was about getting to the top as fast as you can, meaning straight up.  Then down.  This type of hiking is not easy on the knees.  It will be a test of the shoes. 

We stopped in North Adams, Massachusetts for the better part of a day to check out the Mass MOCA (Museum of Contemporary Art).  It was HUGE and awesome!  A day of Art is needed every once in a while. The Sol LeWitt retrospective is definitely worth checking out if you find yourself in the NE.

Crossing into Vermont the AT runs concurrently with the Long Trail for 100 miles or so.  This is a trail that runs from the southern border of Vermont up to Canada.  Lots of folks hike the "Long Trail" and it is always somewhat funny from our perspective to ask upon encountering them whether they are hiking the "Long Trail", or the "Longer Trail".  We do not, however, take it for granted that we are able to take the time to complete what many consider to be the "dream hike".  Though it may be tough, we are enjoying every step.

We intended to stop at Upper Goose Pond only to refill our water and take a quick dip.  It was early in the afternoon and we wanted to do some more miles.  The shelter here is a lovely two-story cabin with a working wood fireplace and a caretaker. They let you take canoes out to cruise around the pond.  We tailed a Beaver for a bit, back to his lodge. The place was full of our trail friends.  The weather forecast was for rain that night and the real kicker was that the caretaker feeds you blueberry pancakes and coffee in the morning!  We ended up staying the night, and so it goes.

We have hiked over several ski areas now.  The one pictured above is Bromley Mtn.  They let hikers sleep in the ski patrol shack at the summit.  A few section hikers carried a 30 rack of cheap beer up there along with a bag full of cheeseburgers.  We had a lovely evening with a gorgeous sunset and a sky full of stars.  We passed over Stratton Mtn and Killington as well.  It would be fun to come back sometime in the winter and do some snowboarding on these hills that we have already conquered. 

We got off the trail in Killington, VT to visit some of Butch's friends, Devin and Kiki.  They put us up for a night and we spent a relaxing afternoon just chilling out in their little cabin with their animals.  It was like having a day off from work.  Or something.  It is hard to describe the feeling of working hard all day, every day, but not actually going to a paid job.  Devin is a chef at a top-notch inn just up the way.  He made us a dinner that any hiker would go extra miles to devour.  Big filet mignons are not common fare in the woods.  We felt spoiled. 

There is little civilization left ahead of us.  The trail itself doesn't go directly through another town for quite a ways.  We still cross roads every now and then and if we need supplies we can generally hitch in without a problem.  We don't want to go out of our way too much at this point.   The nights are getting chilly and snow does fall here in September from time to time.  It is, however, worthwhile to detour for waffles served with ice cream and real maple syrup when you have the opportunity!  So long for now.  See you in Maine!