Hanover, NH to Glencliffe, NH (1741.8-1791.1)

Thursday 8/24; Happy Hill Shelter to Red Velvet Shelter (1741.8-1749.1)

A short day spent booking it into Hanover, NH, and then milling around town for most of the day. Things learned in the process? Dartmouth is gorgeous, Hanover is an absolutely precious town which caters to hikers and is full of overpriced everything, and I (Fresh) want to visit again.

We ate at a little place called Lou's which had the best berry pancakes I've had on trail yet. Also a pretty great omelette with Gouda, bacon, kale, and tomatoes, and a few doughnut because every hiker needs one of those. So yummy! We had a free side of pizza each for lunch, and gelato to top it all off. We're now a mile out of town at the shelter, which we're sharing with a bunch of pre-orientation Dartmouth students. Apparently, pre-orientation programming is a thing now. Or is it only at the Ivies? I overheard a couple of the girls chatting and I'm shocked at how shallow their conversation seems to be. Was I this air-headed at 18? Gosh! Anyhow, a great day. Looking forward to tomorrow!!

Friday 8/25; Velvet Rocks Shelter to Trapper John Shelter (1749.1-1764.3)

Wow, the weather! What a gorgeous day to start getting into some bigger climbs again! The climbing sucks as much as I remember, but the views are beautiful already! We wandered through the miles stopping to talk with new people and friends. We met Shaggy and his friend whose name I simply can't remember (sorry!!). They were so nice! SOBOs who we hope will keep in touch! We have camped the last couple of days with Deacon who is going to Maine. Tonight we were talking about Miss Janet and her amazing kindnesses. I wish there was some way to repay her, but there some isn't. She's so very kind to this community and gives so much of herself to us all.

Saturday 8/26; Trapper John Shelter to Hexacuba Shelter (1764.3-1776.3)

I forgot to where yesterday, so I'm making it up today (Sunday). Yesterday was largely uneventful, which was a blessing after the night before. I'll start there...

Friday, after blogging (which I did early), we made dinner, talked with a fellow hiker who want feeling very well, hung out and chatted with a bunch of hikers who were both new and old faces, caught up with GWAG, and we all went to bed. I had read a little, was trying to tune out another Dartmouth group which was very loud, and had almost dozed off Wolfe Dog told us that they were calling 911 for the hiker who didn't feel well earlier. Long story short, they called, got the rescue crew our location, and waited. I didn't get in the middle, as I felt like there were enough people helping. I did help pack up the sick hiker's things when they decided to take her down the mountain, and her significant other was going with her. It turns out she's doing just fine, but it was tiring and scary to take part in. Her hiking partner kept thanking you for helping and telling us not to worry about it, that they didn't want to bother. We had to make them ok with the fact that this is what the community is here for. We hello each other. It's what makes us a great group of people. After they departed, I went down and asked the Dartmouth student group to be quiet. Then we crashed.

The following day (today), we're tired and sluggish, and had our biggest climb in a while up Smarts Mountain. The climb was hard and long, and I injured my knee on the way up. No idea at all what I did, but it hurt so badly at one print that I wasn't sure I could get the rest of the way up. I did, and we rested for lunch at the top. The only view was afforded by climbing the fire tower, which I haven't done in some time as I have become uneasy with rickety things on stilts. We meet Scott and Brynn, day hikers who gave us sweets, fruit, beer, and carried out our trash. They were pretty great!

We made our way down the mountain to decide if we'd push on to the shelter or camp near the stream at the bottom. We decided to push on and it worked out ok in the end. The shelter was neat, built part way up Mt. Cube, it's built on the shape of a hexagon and has a bunch of space. We camped with a couple of SOBOs (Nameless was among them and was super nice!), and two sectioners, Julia and get grown son Chris. They were out for the weekend. Turns out, we met Julia back in Connecticut a couple of times (we recognized her), and Chris graduated from GA Tech. So we found all kinds of things to chat about!

I started feeling a little under the weather and we slept. I hoped to feel better in the morning.

Sunday 8/27; Hexacuba to Stealth Site (1776.3-1786.5)

Well, my knee felt a bit better this morning and has done well today, overall. We walked well, found the omelette man, and sat a while eating extra protein provided by this trail angel. He made us giant egg scrambles with ham, cheese, peppers and onions. We had bananas, doughnuts, and juice. It was amazing! Then...I realized I really wasn't feeling very well. We walked a bit more discussing what the best choice is. There's a hostel we were gonna slack pack from but we aren't sure about bunk space and we certainly don't want to pay nearly $20 each to camp in the yard. Add that to the fact that I'm not feeling well, and we decided to call it an early day and put the tent up here by a small stream. I'm hoping that an extra couple hours of rest will help me feel better in the morning. We're officially in The Whites and I need to be healthy and strong to get through them. I think it was the smartest decision, though it's frustrating. It's a pretty day and we stopped before 5PM. It feels like wasted hours. But I guess a few hours of down time is better than getting sick and being down for days. Anyhow, back at it in the morning.

Monday 8/28; Stealth Site to Hiker Welcome Hostel (1786.5-1791.1)

5 miles today. We were supposed to be here yesterday but...You read how that went. And I'm not feeling any better. Energy level is low and our package with all our winter gear isn't here yet. So we're hanging for the day. The gear will certainly be here today, so we'll head out tomorrow, assuming I'm feeling better. Until then, this place works fine. Lots of beds, a hot shower, and a hiker feed tonight!

Tuesday 8/29; Mt. Mousilake slack-Bean/Zero-Fresh  (1791.1)

I woke feeling all but worse. So I got stressed and cried, Bean was sweet and supportive and told me that it's ok. So, off he went to home over the first mountain in The Whites, and I went back to bed for the morning. Watched some movies, slept some more, set an alarm to send home the gear were replacing with the winter gear we received yesterday, and woke 10 minutes before it sounded to hear Erik's voice arriving from his slack. Meaning...he finished slacking our first White Mountain in 5 hours. He's fast! He says it was amazing and shared photos from the climb and summit. My anxiety over the climbing to come is not helped by this set back.

Wednesday 8/30; Zero at Hikers Welcome Hostel (1791.1)

And...We're both under the weather. I woke early to use the outhouse and recognized that I feel much better, but still need another day to recover. When we woke later, Bean told me he couldn't to hike. So, unplanned zero it is. I felt like the lead caretaker at the hostel was less than helpful (Tricks was AWESOME though!!), So we decided to switch locations, resupply today, and be ready to go in the morning. Hopefully we're both feeling up for it. So we're in North Woodstock, NH tonight, we've had a tasty meal, and we're resting in a private room. We certainly should have moved yesterday. We had a discussion at dinner about how close we are to the finish and how we feel about that. Basically, we simply can't believe it. Neither of us is ready, nor can we figure out how we'll tell you all about our experiences. It's a bit hard to explain. Actually, it's kind of impossible. So we'll be working on this for the next weeks. Until then, hoping tomorrow is a great day!

Great Barrington, MA to Hanover, NH (1520.6-1741.8)

Monday 8/7; Great Barrington, MA to Wilcox South Shelter (1520.6-1532.3)

Uneventful day, today. Our mileage was low moderate and we were finished early. We finally net Kanga, Sherpa, and Baby Roo for a few mins. They are a couple who have their one year old daughter out here. They're super sweet, and Pig-Pen is right, Roo is adorable! It was great meeting them, finally! Pig-Pen has been talking about them for weeks and weeks. It's been chilly with rain and clouds all day. We're all in long sleep clothes, sleep socks, and I'm in my sleeping bag liner for warmth. Tomorrow is a little longer day, but Upper Goose Pond Cabin is said to be worth it! We're excited to see for ourselves!

Tuesday 8/8; Wilcox South Shelter to Upper Goose Pond Cabin (1532.3-1548.1)

Another uneventful day. A good day, though. We made good time and arrived at Upper Goose with time enough to cook down at the "beach" (which is basically a floating dock). Alexis is here (she has a trail name--OG--which apparently has multiple translations), and Bluebird, STAX, Pterodactyl, and Sir Poops A Lot! There was a good laugh had by all when I stepped onto the dock and froze because it felt so unstable. My standard response is, "I don't yike it," While gritting my teeth. Apparently Erik had predicted I wouldn't like it and would, in his words, "Trip out."

The caretaker here apparently makes pancakes for the hikers in the morning. I've craved pancakes on multiple occasions out here and am super excited! Long day tomorrow. We're trying to build a buffer in order to make our goal to Maine!!

Wednesday 8/9; Upper Goose Pond Cabin to Kay Woods Shelter (1548.1-1565.7)

Well we started the day with pancakes. With so many hikers around currently, it was sort of an ordeal getting our turn. Honestly, I'm a little surprised that I can be very grateful and a little disappointed at the same time.

We made great time today, even with stopping at "The Cookie Lady's House." This sweet lady makes cookies and will give them to hikers when she's home and available. She was so stinkin' sweet and had beautiful flowers! We enjoyed our time and continued on, finishing the 18 miles we scheduled for today before 7PM. We promptly are and are now in bed. We've learned a whole new meaning of meaning of "falling into bed."

A short day tomorrow with town lunch and a resupply will be so nice!

Thursday 8/10; Kay Woods Shelter to Crystal Hill Campsite (1565.7-1572.9)

We haven't hiked this few miles in a really long time! Started the morning late and slow (intentionally), which was so nice! Ate some breakfast, had warm drinks, started walking. It was only 2.8 miles to town, though I managed to fall down a flight of trail stairs in those miles. We, of course, found our way to food first. We shared blueberry pancakes and we each got an omelette. It was so good!! I have decided that I LOVE blueberry pancakes! We then took showers at the community center. Nothing feels better than being clean! And we "loitered" all day drying someone things, eating some more, reading, and chatting, before hiking 3.8 to camp. I very unproductive, relaxing day!

We packed out dinner, and as we were finishing, a new face who goes by Purple Rain arrived and asked if she could set up a banquet and take photos. She was working on a task for a giant scavenger hunt in which she needed to "host a banquet on a major trail." We'll, it just so happens she's flip-flopping The AT. It was fun and a nice way to meet a new hiker.

Another pretty short day tomorrow as we included closer to Vermont and Pig-Pen's last day with us. We'll sure miss her when she goes home.

Friday 8/11; Crystal Mountain Campsite to Mark Nopel Shelter (1572.9-1582.6)

A short day and Dunkin Doughnuts = pretty happy hikers. Pig-Pen wasn't feeling well this morning, so we weren't sure how the day was going to go. We knew we'd hit the post office right along the trail, and while we were there, we decided DD was a must. We also happened to come upon a Dollar General for protein, and headed up the first half of Mt. Greylock. We're camped here and will push 16 tomorrow before Pig-Pen's last miles on Sunday. Erik is building a fire currently, at Pig-Pen's request. They are her last days with us, after all....

Saturday 8/12; Mark Nopel Shelter to Seth Warner Shelter (1582.6-1599.1)
Today was a very long, emotional day. We said goodbye to my second trail sister. Pig-Pen left the trail a day earlier than expected. She thought yesterday she wasn't feeling well because of a different food she ate, but it turns out she was getting a migraine. She had been feeling awful and her friends was able to pick her up a day earlier than planned. I'm sad to see her go, but excited to see what comes next for her. Pig-Pen, thanks for the laughs friend! I miss you already and can't wait to visit you and get the grand tour of New Haven! Until then, keep going and remember that you've only extended your adventure!

We said goodbye on top of Mt. Greylock, which is the tallest peak in Massachusetts. We were sucked in with fog and had no views, but the was memorial at the top was absolutely gorgeous! We spent some time with Pig-Pen before heading out to conquer the rest of our 16+ mile day. This was a bit overwhelming given that it was already after 11AM. Definitely NOT our typical. We're usually nearly or half done with our miles somewhere between 11 and about 1. The walking was mostly nice, though there was a lot of climbing in the second half of the day. We didn't arrive to camp until 730 PM, and with thunder sounding above. So we grabbed a tent spot (the shelter is full), and got the tent up just as the rain started. And...We're sleeping in a water bed. The front of the tent is in a puddle and it really sucks. I am overwhelmed tonight and feeling very lonely. Hoping tomorrow goes smoothly and we are able to dry out.

Sunday 8/13; Seth Warner Shelter to 

Bennington, VT (1599.1-1610.6)
An uneventful 11 miles into town and we stayed put. We got pretty wet last night and made a last minute decision to see if we could find a reasonable motel room. We did (The Catamount Motel is amazing--clean room, kind service including am free shuttle to and from the trail, and they do your laundry for a small fee!!), And we don't regret it for a second. It was nice to have a little time together not worrying about that one chore. Anyhow, Bennington is a nice little town. Definitely on the list to revisit in the future! We saw a small protest in town, too, in response to Charlottesville. A small group of citizens speaking out against hate. Very neat to see!

Monday 8/14; Bennington, VT to Kid Gore Shelter (1610.6-1625)

What a great day! We're really into BB King and Bill Murray at the trail head. He does the best trail magic,v which today was grilled cabbage, zucchini, fish, and beer. SO GOOD!! Thanks, guys!! The first half of the walking was a little daunting with a lot of climbing. I'm not a strong climber and it can be a bit frustrating, even discouraging. But we made it to the second shelter, the air was crisp and the light perfect, we met Ollie the dog (a Poodle/Bernese Mountain Dog--amazing!), and saw many friends including OG and BRAVE!! I was so excited to see her. Remember when she named me all the back in Georgia?! So.. we pushed on to the next shelter. 4.2 fewer miles to do later, AND we made our intended can for the night. AND!! I got to hike with OG and pass time super quickly! Excited to have had a really good day. Missing Pig-Pen!

Today 8/15; Kid Gore Shelter to Stratton Pond Shelter (1625-1640)

What a great day! We started by 8 am in drizzly weather with a chance of rain. Took a couple of breaks and then started up and over Stratton Mountain. I was nervous about the climb, but was pleasantly surprised that it was not so bad. So we climbed, completed 15 miles, and were at camp by 5PM. There are a bunch of sectioners here, and all seem nice. I went swimming in the pond which was so nice! Sort of like a bath before bed. We had dinner, are hanging out with OG, and met Chris, the caretaker here. His trail name in 2015 was Varsity, and he knew the girls (Muddy Duck and team). He was SO excited when I mentioned them!! It's been a really, really good day!

Wednesday 8/16; Stratton Shelter to Bromley Mountain Summit (1640-1653.7)

As I write this post, I'm sitting on a rock, on top of Bromley Mountain in Vermont, wrapped in my puffy and me sleeping blanket, watching the sun set over the distant ridges. It's AMAZING! We talked about not pushing the extra 1 mile to come up here, and it would have been such a mistake to pass this up. One of my favorite memories was sunrise at Masada, and now I'll see the sun melt over the horizon on my own coast.

Today was good. Easy, short, enjoyable. I think I have finally found my groove out here, and it's amazing!

Thursday 8/17; Bromley Mountain Summit to Little Rock Pond shelter (1653.7-1670.5)

We're sitting at the pond after eating dinner here. It's been another beautiful day. I think I'm in love with Vermont. We hit a summit today with breathtaking views of hills all around. We're camped with Colwyn who's hiking the Long Trail, and Dana and Jill, also LT hikers. We're all hanging out before heading back up to the shelter. Apparently it's going to rain tomorrow. Which is a pretty big bummer, but I guess we can't have beautiful weather every day.

Friday 8/18; Little Rock Pond shelter to Clarendon Shelter (1670.5-1684.1)

As always, rain sucks. And oh my gosh do Bean's socks STINK! When they get wet, they simply wreak!! Today really was ok, though I genuinely don't like hiking in the rain. We may have not tomorrow, but we'll be in town on Sunday and will have showers and do laundry. So I guess it's manageable.

The infection on my toe is healed, I think. But now I've got the exact same thing on the same toe on the other foot. Darn feet just don't want to cooperate. We've got just over 500 miles to the finish--Joints just need to hold out a little longer.

We're camped tonight with a group of Harvard students on a pre-orientation trip. Everything they have got soaked last night in the rain. It's a little sad, honestly. I hope they're all having fun despite the weather.

Saturday 8/19; Clarendon Shelter to Rutland, VT (1684.1-1700.8)

Big climbs don't ever get easier. Today is no exception. We did decide to push into town today instead of nearo-ing tomorrow. The down wasn't so bad, even if the up took 45 minutes longer than typical pace. But, we hit 1700 miles today which means we've got under 500 to hike. Do you have any idea what that feels like? We can't even figure a way to put it into words yet (and I'm writing this two days later!)!

But! We made it down with about 25 minutes before the local bus arrived to take us into town. What a fantastic service! Were sleeping tonight at the Hostel at The Yellow Deli. Some call the community a cult, but we hear really good things, so we're going to check it out for ourselves. We'll let you know...

Sunday 8/20; Zero in Rutland, VT
The Yellow Deli: A Beautiful community of caring, generous people who live communally and work well together. I'm certainly intrigued. We didn't hear much about the believe system which seems to be some form of Christianity. They call themselves part of the twelve tribes, Wikipedia mentions Messianic under affiliations, and they all have Hebrew names, so we presume some form of Messianic-like Christian something or other. Two Step apparently had a conversation with Aysh about the religion and learned that members believe that a good soul, a person who faithfully tries to be good, is more important (or at least as important as) than the technicalities, which I understand do include Jesus in some way. Anyhow, the never if the community welcomed us with open arms and genuine care for our needs. The hostel is donation based, and they ask for guests (ie hikers) to help by folding clean laundry, stripping beds when we leave, cleaning/tidying common space, helping to prepare meals, etc. The community has a farm nearby (more on that below) and runs a deli, presumably for income, with fresh, homemade food. We arrived on Saturday evening, showered, and were invited to join for dinner. We were served a fresh, vegetarian meal that was like a taco salad of sorts and was so good! We learned that the power company was going to cut power for a while the following day for maintenance, and that the deli's Sunday prep would largely be completed on Saturday evening. As the meal finished, all members set to work with their assigned tasks. It really was something to see. A group of us hikers helped to cut bananas and strawberries which would be used in smoothies. We enjoyed talking and singing and generally goofing off while spending some time helping our new friends prepare for the following day. We ate lunch at the deli (with a 15% discount because we're hikers) and it was AMAZING! The homemade bread is so good! I'm very interested in spending a day on the farm at some point and seeing what that's like. All in all, the community was very welcoming and we're beyond grateful for our time there!

Otherwise, our day today was exactly what we like on a zero day...A whole lot of nothin'! We read, dried/UVed gear, washed clothes, and caught up with friends, and unfortunately said goodbye to New friends TRex, Jet, and Colwyn. Good luck on the Long Trail, friends. We'll be in touch! We made a short visit to the bookstore across the street which was pretty neat. They had a whole table with political reads, a wall dedicated to race, a young adult book written by Jazz (a prominent transgender teen)...I loved the controversy there! And the t-shirts with screen prints of classic books' cover art, of course! It was a perfect zero day!

Monday 8/21; Rutland, VT to Stony Brook Shelter (1700.8-1710.8)

As usual, getting started after spending time in town was later than usual. As a result we cut 15 mile day down to ten which means we have to make up the 5 at some point in the week. Oh well, tis life, I guess. It was a decent day. A pretty gnarly climb, but we'd better get used to them. So we stopped early-ish, made dinner, and now the blog is caught up and it's time to read for a minute and then sleep. We'll told in Hanover in a couple days (meant to do that in Rutland--oops!).

Tuesday 8/22; Stony Brook Shelter Pomfret Road stealth site (1710.8-1728.9)

A challenge, today was. I had hoped that FINALLY seeing U-Turn and The Colonel this morning would mean a fantastically great day! But...(sorry gentlemen) PMS had other plans. I was slow and sluggish despite the joyful reunion. It was so great catching up a little, though, and I can't wait to do so after the trail when we'll both have service and be able to have a full blown conversation!

We found our way to "The Lookout" and climbed up to have a view. I thought maybe it would help cheer me up, but instead, I got lost after missing a junction (I'm a bit over the poorly marked trail, Green Mountain Club--fix it, please!). I sort of freaked out for a minute and then took the phone out and used the trusty Guthook's to find my way back. But not before tears of panic set in.

We went through the day, breaked for lunch, walked a while more, wandered to a farm store where our array of treats we're all drinks, and included Sprite, chocolate milk, maple soda, and Gatorade. Cravings are real, people. And I've realized there's nothing that chocolate milk won't fix.

We agreed to push a little further (2 more miles) over the next "hump" and stealth there at the stream. Well, we climbed the hump of a mountain and Bean asked if we could go over this hump to the next stealth spot 2 more miles. I added as long as he promised not to be mad that we would get to camp at 730 or later. He agreed and we started walking. Well, he started walking; I trudged. Then, as if on cue, it began to sprinkle. I sent Bean ahead because he's faster than I am and I knew he could get to camp and get the tent up [hopefully] before the rain started. We apparently didn't communicate well because I crossed the next road expecting to see him and the tent, and I couldn't find him. I got super upset thinking I'd somehow missed him and turned around. I finally pulled the guidebook out and realized he was ahead, so I turned BACK AROUND to go find camp. I was sobbing by the time I got to him.

He did already have the tent up, though, and the sky was just starting to let loose, so that was a plus. It's now thundering and pouring, we're dry, but I have to pee before I go to sleep.

All that said, I'm pretty proud of the fact that we did 18 miles without even realizing it today. I somehow though we had only done 14. But knowing we pushed out 18 makes the very long day a little more worth it. Here's to a better tomorrow...

Wednesday 8/23; Pomfret Road stealth site to Happy Hill Shelter (1728.9-1741.8)

Have I ever mentioned how amazing the sunshine is after a rain? Today's sun was so gorgeous! The morning sky was fall clear with glittering light shining through the leaves as they whispered in the wind. It was certainly a better day than yesterday, but then we only walked 13 miles today. It's pretty incredible what a difference a few miles makes. We took our time and had a long break mid day near a river for lunch. The hiking wasn't easy but wasn't too bad, either. Getting us warmed up for the remainder of the trek. We will make it way into New Hampshire tomorrow. Another state down, now only two to go.

We were reminiscing with Bluebird tonight about the experience thus far and all the amazing people we've met and the changes in ourselves we've had the privilege of fostering. I'm just blown away by all of this. I'm sure a part will come which will touch on some of it, but for now, let me just say "Thank you" to all of you who have made this journey such an amazing one. I really am blown away.

Delaware Water Gap, PA to Great Barrington, MA (1307.3-1520.6)

Friday 7/21; Delaware Water Gap, PA to Campsite at 1307 (1293.6-1307.3)
A leisurely day spent walking 14 miles, and included a long lunch at Sunfish Pond. We love NJ so far. The views are pretty and the terrain reasonable. we took our time and arrived at camp about 5 PM to find a large gaggle of young girls camping here. Many would be irritated by the noise and pre-Bean bickering, but I'm super excited to see a bunch of young ladies out here backpacking. We'll go talk with them shortly. They're excited about our journey and have a bunch of questions. Hope tomorrow is equally enjoyable!

Saturday 7/22; Campsite at 1307 to Brink Shelter (1307.3-1318.4)
I've decided that I really enjoy hiking/backpacking on short days. Like today. We walked 11 miles, and while part of me feels like I'm going to go nuts with an entire afternoon and nothing in particular to do, the other part of me says, "hey, you chased a couple of frogs, enjoyed some views, will read some, what more do you want?" The shelter here is pretty nice, and there's a bear box for our food which makes for easier evening chores--no bear line to hang. Just hoping for some company to keep the bears away. Tomorrow we'll make up for the short day today, but we'll worry about that tomorrow.

Sunday 7/23; Brink Shelter to Highpoint Shelter (1318.4-1338)
A tiring 19 (closer to 20) mile day in the books. We talked about cutting it short at 15, but opted to keep going. We made good time, had an argument, set up in the shelter (it's going to rain tonight), saw a mouse running around in broad daylight (which means they'll be crawling at night), decided to put the tent up despite the coming storm, and are now in the tent easy for a mouse free night. One of the guys name the mouse Peepers. Apparently the little guy has big eyes.

Tomorrow we'll stop through town and resupply, then head back out. If we can find some WiFi, we'll upload the last couple of days.

Monday 7/24; Highpoint Shelter to Pochuck Mountain Shelter (1338-1350.4)
Backpacking is no fun in the rain! We stayed dry last night (inside the tent), and put away A VERY wet tent and ground cover this morning. Spent a few hours walking in the rain this morning. BUT! we made it into Unionville, NY to resupply and have lunch, and we managed to hike 13 miles on top of that and arrive in camp by 4pm. Really, it was a good day. Looking forward to reading a bit, drying out, and getting a good night's sleep!

Tuesday 7/25; Pochuck Mountain Shelter Wawayanda Shelter (1350.4-1361.9)
A short and pretty great day! Can we say board walks? We found them in a bog/wetland area and walked on them for quite a while. We also found a farm store called Haven Hill Farm where we got treats in the middle of the day! Ice cream, apple cider doughnuts, a peach, and drinks were enjoyed before crossing the road and ascending the the Stairway to Heaven to view a gorgeous view, and then wander the rest of the way to camp for the night, but not before finding a cooler with trail angel sodas! I think I've got a little infection on my toe and am hoping that it clears up on its own.

Wednesday 7/26; Wawayanda Shelter to Campsite at Mombasha Road (1361.9-1379)
Holy rocks, New York! Yes, you read that right. We're in New York! And oh my gosh we scrambled. We're talking rebar ladder up a rock face scrambling. Fresh does not like! All in all, though, it was hard, and we hurt, but we're so proud of us! We hiked 17 miles today, got to camp at 6:30, AND stopped for hot dogs and ice cream! I'm exhausted which is nice. It makes me feel like I've accomplished something in a day's worth of walking.

Thursday 7/27; Campsite at Mombasha Road to William Brien Shelter (1379-1393.7)
And we're now convinced that all of the AT in New York sucks. Not really. But almost. We began today Rock climbing up the face of a boulder outcropping. The first half of the day was up, down, and back up, all rocks, and very challenging, over and over. The second half really want so bad. Still a lot of up and down, but manageable without the rock climbing. Harriman State Park is beautiful and has afforded a few picturesque views. We're rented tonight at a neat shelter built into the hill and, you guessed it, rocks. But the site is very pretty with lots and lots of space for tenting, and even some privacy as each site is well spaced. We ran into Yard Sale and Mishap tonight, along with others we know. They pushed on to the next shelter where there is said to be a view of Manhatten. We arrived earlier and both were tired and sore, so we decided to stay put. As the clouds cleared though, I began to second guess that decision. Hopefully we'll get some views of the city from above tomorrow sometime. Currently, in super excited to see Pig-Pen on Saturday!!! She's been missing an injury and is coming back out and will hike with us for a bit!! AND... We get showers! Guys, I'm disgusting! Shower time is surely overdue and I am so exited!

Friday 7/28; William Brien Shelter to Hemlock Campsite (1393.7-1406)
The terrain was a tiny bit better today. Still a lot of up and down, but somehow it wasn't quite as bad as previous days. Don't be fooled, though! I had a meltdown and Bean and I fought pretty big. This game happened too often, but a couple of times for sure. Being out here as a couple has its challenges!

But, we visited/walked over Bear Mountain and saw lots of tourists. Being so close to NYC, a lot of city folk find their way up here. It's kind of entertaining, really. I came across a couple of kids barreling down the walkway and moved aside for them. They ran past without any acknowledgement whatsoever. I pulled a dad and blurted out, "You're welcome!" Still nothing. So I loudly thanked another couple of young people who had thanked us, to which the ride children finally turned around. Never did hear anything from them. We ran into Yard Sale later and shared the experience, and she agreed that many of the people we encountered today shocked her, too. Maybe we've just been loving in the woods too long?

Anyhow, we wandered through a "zoo" on trail today. It's quite sad as far as zoos go, with small enclosures and a bunch of ridiculous people beating on glad fronts (which I told the kids next to us looking at the frog to stop doing--the girl asked me if we aren't supposed to do that, to which I responded, "would you want him tapping at you?"). Yeah, we've definitely been in the woods too long. After the zoo, we walked across the Hudson River on the Bear Mountain Bridge. That was sort of a neat experience! I wasn't even afraid--at least until we we're finished with the water and began walking over the trees. We then had to walk up from the road and saw a few days hikers who really we're there first people of the day to ask us questions about our journey. A change from the little trail towns where everyone knows what we're doing all the time.

We meet back up with Pig-Pen tomorrow and eat lunch at a "deli." I'll get back to you on the deli's authenticity...

Saturday 7/29; Hemlock Campsite to Clarence Fahnestock State Park  (1406-1424)
Pig-Pen's back and we're gonna go hiking...Pig-Pen's back! We met up with her at the deli this morning (so, SO good!) And hiked out. It's been a pretty good day with moderate terrain/elevation, and GORGEOUS weather! It felt like fall in Georgia with cooler temps and a perfect breeze! So nice to hike in. We're camping tonight at the state park where they give us AT marked sites at no cost. We're ordered pizza and salad delivery which was tasty and wonderful, and had showers here at the park. Clean and full and in bed blogging. I just don't know what to do with myself. Don't know just what to do with myself. Ha! That one's from My Best Friend's Wedding. You know when Cameron Diaz is singing karaoke...Anyhow, I'm supposed to note that two nights in a row a few days ago, we heard coyotes singing at night. I heard them over night, Bean both nights. When I did, they were very close and a little scary. But they sound neat. Different from dogs. It's interesting.

Sunday 7/30; Clarence Fahnestock State Park to Morgan Stewart Shelter (1424-1438)
Wow, what weather!! What a BEAUTIFUL couple of days we've had! Low humidity, breeze, cooler temps...We know better than to think this will last. But we'll take it for now! We woke this morning and cleaned up camp, and then went to AT Joe's campsite in the state park for breakfast. Apparently, he spends every other week there making breakfast for hikers and chatting with us. He's from Yonkers and is the epitome of a New Yorker with his accent and such, but he was so nice! With a genuine love for the hiking community (which surprisingly, he's never been a part of), he showered us with praise for the strength that we have and told us (especially the "females") that he hopes we stay safe!

We're looking forward to checking out Pawling's Garden Center and Nursery tomorrow, as that's where we're sending a package. We'll camp somewhere near by, and then stay with a friend of Pig-Pen's the following night! Gonna be a good couple of days!

Monday 7/31; Morgan Stewart Shelter to Pawling, NY (1438-1448)
Thank goodness for short days! A 10 mile day into town in which we had literally nothing to do. We hung out with friends, relaxed, ate food, and I talked to family. Tomorrow will be another short day at 11 miles, and will do laundry AND shower, in a house, on the same day. It's the little things people. We hope that two short days will allow enough rest that we can about a zero for a bit and build up those miles. We've done a pretty good job so far and have brought down or average necessary to be our goal. This buys us a few days when we start into the hard climbing in New England. Morale is ok, though I'm very daunted by what's coming. On one hand, we've come this far and I know we/I can finish this, but on the other, I'm very unsure of my abilities. We've come too far to quit now-I think I can, I think I can....

Tuesday 8/1; Pawling, NY to Bull's Bridge In Kent, CT (1448-1459.9)
That's right, we're in Connecticut, people. The gateway to New England! We knocked out 10 miles by 1 PM, and met Mrs. Lisa (Pig-Pen's friend) at the Bridge. She promptly loaded us in the car, had cold water for each of us, and took us the short ride to her home to stay for the night. We had showers, did laundry, and resupplied (which included fancy, expensive, exceptionally tasty ice cream from the not-so-outdoor outdoor store; lavender honey blueberry for Pig-Pen and lemon poppyseed for me), all by 4ish PM. We had a home cooked meal (burgers, salad, and fettuccine Alfredo are hits among starved hikers), and watched Finding Dory while eating lots of ice cream, and went to bed to sleep like babies after not sleeping last night with the train going all night long. All in all, it's been a GREAT day!

Wednesday 8/2; Bull's Bridge In Kent, CT to Stewart Hollow Shelter (1459.9-1474.3)
Pig-Pen lost her apple pie. If you find it on the trail, please return to Pig-Pen c/o AT 2017.

Eliza is a friend/coworker of Pig-Pen's, and she came out to home with us for about 8 miles today. She's very sweet and we enjoyed meeting her! We are now in the shelter avoiding the rain. We beat the thunder storm here here and are just hanging out.

Thursday 8/3; Stewart Hollow Shelter to Iron Bridge (1474.3-1492.5)
We have two experiences today. Bean hiked with Pig-Pen, her boyfriend Tim, and his friend Dexter. I'm told the day was long, hot and humid, and relatively ok.

I...had the meltdown of the century. I woke up crying for a list of reasons. Erik was at a loss and could only hug me and ask me to tell him what on Earth was going on. Which, of course, I couldn't answer. So I decided that I would ask Pig-Pen if we could change the plan a bit. I took the car to, I hoped, find a coffee shop and reflect on things for myself quietly. I wound up in New Milford, Connecticut at an urgent care getting that infected to looked at. NP Kim was FANTASTIC!! She assessed me so quickly and found a simple infection which only needs antibiotics. She was helpful in keeping costs down for me, and happened to ask if I every want to quit on this day when I most wanted to quit. Thank you, Kim, for your kindness and your interest in our journey. It means more than you'll ever know!

After this, I ran errands to resupply, get Pig-Pen an apple pie (see yesterday), and talked to the one and only Allison who told me nothing I don't know, and everything I needed to hear.

Basically, I need you all to know that we post happy photos, and tell you fun stories. But the reality is that this is so hard. Mentally, emotionally, physically, the hardest thing we'll ever do. I can't speak for us both, but the driving force for me at this point is that this is too long dreamed for, and we've come too far to quit now. I think. If you'd caught me this morning, you'd have been sure I'd be on the next plane. We're looking for a rest day coming up very soon and I won't make any decisions before that. I can't promise I won't be a complete basket case until then, though.

I do have to say that Connecticut is absolutely beautiful! I will most certainly come back this way and do some site seeing in the future. Food, inns, camping, rivers... We're camping tonight in a small park in Falls Village near a hydro power facility. There's a shower head near the building and we took bored baths tonight. I can say definitively that this experience gives me a new understanding of the homeless population. We just hiker trash in posh New England.

Friday 8/4; Iron Bridge, CT to Laurel Ridge Campsite  (1492.5-1507.9)
Rain and thunder storms arrived today, but my mood was better. Thanks in no small part to all of you Rockstar supporters out there egging us on! I thank you from the deepest place in my soul for your kind words of encouragement yesterday.

All in all, I call today a win. My mood was quite good, the rain only sucked a little, we hiked into Massachusetts, I currently have a mosquito dive bombing my head (have I mentioned the bugs?), and Erik's air mat has a leak in it. But another state in the books is something to celebrate! We have under 700 miles left to hike. Some days (like yesterday) this feels like more than I/we can possibly manage. Other days we marvel at how much we've accomplished. Into Great Barrington tomorrow and a zero on Sunday!!

Saturday 8/5; Laurel Ridge Campsite to Great Barrington, MA (1507.9-1520.6)
You know those days when everything seems to take twice as long as planned? Today was one of those days. It took us nearly 8 hours to hike 12 miles. Granted there was some trail magic in there from Pterodactyl's parents (Amazing--thank you!!) Which pretty much was the trail don't what the trail does...providing. BUT, we made it, wet rocks and all. And tomorrow...We ZERO!

Oh, and I got to talk to U-Turn tonight! I'm super glad she's doing well and hiking on! I had honestly forgotten how much I miss her!