#26 Great Barrington to Manchester Center

8/10: My mom, Jack, and I stopped at a deli before getting on trail. We got bagels and packed out sandwiches for lunch. Then we were off like a herd of turtles! The first climb up Becket Mountain was steep at points, but it wasn’t too bad.

Mom said “it wasn’t fun.” Yes, sometimes the AT can do that. We saw some more salamanders as we hiked, and mom got some inch worms on her shirt. But no snakes! So that was a bonus. There wasn’t a lot of elevation change besides the big hill at the start, but there were a lot of roots, so we slowed down a bit. We made a little picnic lunch by a little stream and a bog and ate our deli sandwiches. It was a long day of hiking. We stopped at a shelter, and Otter was there taking a nap! Which I filtered water, he woke up and chatted with the rents. We finally got to the road where we were supposed to be picked up at, but our shuttle driver had called us and said that their van broke down. Luckily, I called an Uber and we got back to the motel. Because it was so late, we hurried out to dinner at a pizza place that had yummy brick oven pizzas and then I resupplied at a grocery store. It was late, so I was sleepy and wandering around the aisles. Luckily my mom was more awake, and I got everything that I needed. I took a shower when I got back and then went straight to bed, leaving the packing for tomorrow morning because I was so tired after a long day.

8/11: Oh boy, what a morning. I woke up early but I all of my stuff was everywhere and I putzed around for a while trying to get my poop in a group. Anyway, eventually we left the motel 2 hours later and took a quick stop at a Walmart for a fuel canister and turkey pepperoni. Luckily we found both! I said goodbye to mom and Jack, and they told me a bunch of nice things before I started hiking. Well, I hiked for 50 yards and then had to stop and go in the woods. But after that, then, I was really hiking. It was a quiet start to the day after running around in the morning. I was walking through the hemlock forests that cover most of the area in MA that I’ve hiked in, and there’s a certain hush from the soft carpet of pine needles that befalls the forest.

A little ways in, I walked through the city of Dalton, and even though there were places to eat in town, my pack was so full of food that I decided to eat on a picnic table at a trail angel’s house. He gave me banana bread and it was wonderful. It was a long road walk, but not unpleasant. And then I ran into Otter and Sunshine! They had stopped for a while in town, and we decided we were going to the same place for the night. Yay! So we hiked up and down a bunch of hills until we got to Cheshire where we camped at a local church. I stayed up and chatted with Snake Eyes and Lucky Penny, a couple who I’ve seen on and off since North Carolina, and then went to sleep in my tent, happy to have a flat place to rest.

8/12: The condensation was so bad on my tent in the morning because I camped on dewy grass. It was like it rained, but it didn’t. Anyway, I took a slow morning to let my tent dry out in the sun. I ate a big breakfast and hung out for a bit. When my tent was mostly dry, I packed it up and started hiking. It was another beautiful day and it was great hiking weather. Cheshire was another town the AT passed through, so I walked through some neighborhoods in the morning and wondered what it was like to live in a house and not worry about taking all of your trash with you until you find a garbage can, but then you also have to mow the lawn, so I think it evens out. Anyway, the trail went up after Cheshire. And by up, I mean the beginning of a 6 mile ascent up Mt Graylock. There were breaks between the inclines, but I felt so slow trudging up that mountain for however many hours. There was a shelter part way through that I stopped at to get water and eat some food, and saw that Otter was taking a nap. I was jealous, but I knew if I stopped my momentum, I might never get up. Anyway, I left the shelter and started at it again. More climbs, ugh! But I made it to the top around 3. It was beautiful up there.

And it seemed like everyone who was up there just to visit wanted to talk to me because I was thru hiking. I was like a very smelly celebrity. A guy even gave me an extra cookie he got from the store up there! I got a free cookie! Anyway, it was great. There was a beautiful stone tower and great views all around. I started going downhill, but it was technical and steep. I realized I was hungry and sat on the side of the trail to eat a tortilla. There were a lot of bugs and I wished I hadn’t been so hasty to leave the summit. But it was fine, and I listened to podcasts down the steep mountain, which I moved at a pace comparable to an inch worm. I finally straggled into town and after unsuccessfully sneaking into the motel room, I hung out with Sunshine and Super at a Mexican restaurant. We paid the fee for an extra person like civilized people and I gratefully crashed for the night on a bed.

8/14: Yesterday I zeroed! Hygiene wise and physically, I didn’t feel like I needed a zero, but everyone else was taking a zero, so I said why not. Quick recap- I watched Avengers Infinity Wars Endgame because I haven’t seen it since I’ve been on the trail and it just came out on digital. Anyway, back to 8/14. We all went to Dunkin Donuts for breakfast and Super and I were pretty much ready to go, but otter and Sunshine still had to pack. We waited for them so that we could all get a ride to the trail together. As we were talking about our options, a gentleman who was also staying at the motel said that he would be happy to take us! We were grateful he offered and we piled in his car to get on trail. Because weed is legal in MA, Otter bought some at a dispensary and I ate a small edible with Otter and Sunshine before we hiked. Unfortunately, it hit right as I was going up a steep and rocky section that reminded me of Pennsylvania, and I hiked really really slow. I got to the top and ate the donuts that I packed out, and they tasted like the best donuts I’d ever eaten in my life. Anyway, I took a long break in the shade of a small pine tree and also depleted my goldfish supply. Oops. I started hiking again and listened to the rest of a podcast called S-Town, and that was really good. I took a break at a shelter with Otter and Sunshine. Otter looked like he was about to nap. There were some cool beaver dams and the little lakes were really pretty. I passed into Vermont! And I hit 1,600 miles! When I got to the shelter, I pitched my tent and made ramen with velveeta cheese sauce. It was about 8:15 and getting dark when Otter finally showed up. Apparently he napped until 4 this afternoon. It felt good to hit a new state and another landmark, and I felt satisfied after another day and I listened to the river nearby before going to sleep.

8/15: Another wonderfully cool morning! I assumed August was going to be super hot, but I’ve had some of the best temperatures out here on the trail the past few days. I started hiking with a big group of people but we eventually split up and hiked at our own paces. I hiked up to the summit of Harmon Hill and called Survivor while I had good service. Usually I get good service on top of mountains. Anyway, I ate some snacks and then continued on my hike. I ran into Timone, who was slackpacking SOBO, and he told me that there was trail magic at the bottom of the mountain! I was excited, but then it was incredibly steep to go down and I inched down the rocky steps. But I finally made it to the gap! And Snake Eyes and Lucky Penny we’re there, so I hung out with them and ate donuts and salt water taffy. I bumped into those two on and off before I got to the shelter. After the big climb out of the gap, I was moving! That rest day must have finally kicked in because I was feeling great and hiking quicker than normal. I got to the shelter, filled up on water, and hiked up to the fire tower where a bunch of people had already set up camp. 14.8 more miles in the books. I joined in and while my dinner was rehydrating, I walked up to the fire tower to check out the views. It was a beautiful 360 view of the mountains up there. I even saw the mountains that I was going to hike over tomorrow! And there was a storm to the north where I could see the rain cloud dumping over an area. It was incredible.

I ate a rice side with more velveeta cheese sauce and then went to lay in my tent and get an early night before a big day tomorrow.

8/15: I woke up early to watch the sunrise from the fire tower. Once I got up there though, the clouds obscured the sun, but it was still a gorgeous sight. There was mist in the valleys, so it looked like a lake of clouds with mountains peeking out, and the moon was bright over in the west.

I packed up my stuff and was on the trail early because I had 19 miles to walk, and I wanted to get a head start. I took a break 4 miles in at a shelter, which would’ve been nice, except there were flies everywhere. I chatted with some friendly Sobo’s before I hiked again. I took a lunch break at a shelter 9 miles in, and ate a tortilla with cheese and turkey pepperoni. Then I kept hiking. Just like Pennsylvania, Edmonton has a nickname for the state. At first I thought people were over exaggerating. Why would the terrain change so drastically over a man made border? But alas, Ver-mud wrings true. There were so many mud pits on the trail. Shin-deep mud pits that I had to scoot around carefully so I didn’t get my feet stuck. The mud slowed me down more than any incline today. Finally, the trail started going up again, and I was out of the mud! I climbed Stratton Mountain up to another fire tower and checked out another amazing view. The rest of the way to the shelter was mostly downhill, and I went quick to make it before sundown. Then I gathered what I needed to make food, and headed to the lake to watch the sunset with Sunshine. Otter joined as he walked by. Again, the clouds obscured the sun, but it was peaceful by the lake. Overall it was a long day but I’m glad I took time to make some moments for myself along the way.