~*~ Long Trail Journal ~*~

“Is This Section Rugged?”

8-25-06 Montclair Glen Lodge to Bamforth Ridge Shelter

8-26-06 Bamforth Ridge Shelter to Mama Bower’s, Richmond, VT

8-27-06 Richmond, VT

8-28-06 Richmond, VT to Puffer Shelter

8-29-06 Puffer Shelter to Taylor Lodge

8-30-06 Taylor Lodge to Top of the Notch Lodge

8-31-06 Top of the Notch Lodge to Long Trail Tavern, Johnson

8/25/06

Montclair Glen Lodge to

Bamforth Ridge Shelter Today’s miles: 5.4

Only a little sore today from last night’s rain induced fall but it’s all good – we planned an easy one. Relatively speaking of course.

We made hot cocoa, chatted with Motorboat and Evil Red and packed up before finally heading up Camel’s Hump (doing the Humpty Hump!). Only 1.9 to the summit but VT definitely makes you work for it. Our calves could be replaced with softballs by now. I’ve been on this mountain before, but never via the LT. Other approaches are a bit less brutal. The trail really doesn’t offer much forgiveness as you climb as the rocks seem to get larger and larger, which means stepping higher and higher as you go. Thank God for Leki’s (insert random trivia: Leki is officially pronounced LAY-kee). Thanks to the Leki’s, not only were my legs sore…so were my arms.

We stopped at the Alpine Trail Jct., .2 from the summit so FM could check out the DC-10 plane crash site. I have seen it before so I decided to hang out at the junction and wait for his return. The moral of the DC-10 is: beware of the Humpty Hump in the fog! Before long, he returned and we were ready to finish the climb. Fire Monger set off for the summit but I waited a few minutes readjusting my pack. Finally, I began ascending. As I made my way up the first part of the huge rock slab, an older man said “you must be with the guy I just passed.” I smiled and said “yep, I am”. I will never forget what he said to me at that time: “That happens when I hike with my wife…women are just slower.” WHAT?!? ^$@%!! *&$%##*!!!! That pissed me off. Male chauvinist friggin’ pig. It took all I had not to a) shove him off the edge of the mountain and b) challenge him to a slackpack up the freakin’ mountain. I just glared at him and hiked on. I was so steamed at what he said, I think that’s what fueled me right up to the summit where I immediately went into a rant.

It was an absolutely breathtaking day on the Hump! We snacked and relaxed and chatted with people for the better part of 3 hours. There was a slew of dayhikers that ended up on the summit. At last count, I think there was at least 20 at one point. A particularly obnoxious family showed up and proceeded to bust out the cell phones and started making calls to everyone in their phonebook. Equally annoying was the fact that they paid no attention to the alpine vegetation and were walking all over the grass despite warnings from the caretaker and other hikers who kept yelling at them. Ignorant people should be locked up. Other than that, it was the perfect place to spend mid-day hours. Mt. Marcy was visible again to the West, along with most of Lake Champlain and the Champlain River Valley. To the north, Mt. Mansfield loomed and way north – Jay Peak (our last “hurrah”). The Whites to the East and as far south as Killington were popping out against the blue sky. We really could not have asked for a more beautiful day to be up there.

It was hard to leave but we finally did, quickly descending to Bamforth Ridge. We continued in and out of the woods, up and over some prominent rocky knobs (what views!) before settling in the woods at last and reaching Bamforth Ridge Shelter. Only .2 from the trail to the shelter but it felt like forever. That’s what I like to call the “VT 10^th”. Meaning, 1/10 mile in VT is a hell of a lot longer than 1/10 mile in any other state. It’s a known fact. The Bamforth Shelter is a beautiful cedar structure and completely free of any graffiti whatsoever. There is a nice picnic table and a bench that runs the entire length of the back, perfect for organizing gear or laying out in the shade. However, we set up our tents at a platform, ate dinner and then settled in for the night. Up early tomorrow to hit the Jonesville post office before closing time.

8/26/06

Bamforth Ridge Shelter to

Richmond, VT Today’s miles: 6.1

Actually, 9.1 miles – but 3 don’t count. Which really sucks because we had 6 miles of road walking included in that 9.1 miles. Upon getting up and checking the time, I realized I messed up. The P.O. closes at 10:30am, not 12:30pm. We won’t make it in time. <insert cursing here> I was a little miffed because no mail drop means we are stuck until Monday when the P.O. opens up again.

So…we hit the trail for our trek down the mountain. We lost a lot more elevation over the next three miles and it was a really pretty descent. At one point, we seemed lost in a field of beautiful greenery with little yellow flowers. They were at least shoulder height and seemed to cover the entire side of the mountain. The trail wound its way through these pretty little flowers, making for a lovely stretch of hiking. When we finally reached the trailhead, a 3.2 mile road walk awaited us. We both hate road walking but away we went. About ½ mile into it, a Jeep Cherokee came by and stopped and rolled down its window. I think “hell yeah! We’re getting a hitch!” No…it was a young couple looking for the Camel’s Hump trail head. BAH! I should have sent their asses the long way up the mountain.

We reached Jonesville at 360’, the lowest point on the Long Trail. The P.O. was, of course, closed so we decided to walk to Richmond for a bite to eat. What is another 3 miles of road? Hitching did not make sense because the road is twisty with many blind corners. A car wouldn’t be able to pull over even if they wanted to. Fortunately, ¼ mile down the road was a motorcycle place with a soda machine. Time to get some bubbles, baby!

Once we reached Richmond, on foot, we had a great lunch at the Bridge Street Café and checked in to Mama Bower’s B&B for the night. Shower felt good and we relaxed and read for the afternoon. I read the Trapp Family Singers – much more detailed than the movie! I’m ready for bed and a forced zero day tomorrow since the P.O. is closed on Sunday. Frustrating, but what can you do?

8/27/06

Richmond to

Richmond Today’s miles: 0

What a lazy and rainy day! Since Mama Bower couldn’t accommodate us for a second night, we were taken to “Marion’s”, a lovely older woman who sometimes aides hikers. Her son is an outdoorsman so she spends a lot of time doing trail magic and taking overflow from Mama Bower’s. She was a generous and very kind hostess, considering we were in her home. It reminded me very much of my grandparent’s house in CT when I was young. Old woodwork, old wallpaper, old bathtub with claws, et cetera. I proceeded to take a hot bath, which meant running out the yellow water in the tap. It surprised me that a woman of her age, living alone, would be so willing to take in random hikers.

We did our laundry and then Marion walked with us to show us the “Round Church” (actually 16-sided). It was a beautiful little place and Marion was a pleasant tour guide. When we got home, there was more reading, watching “The Notebook” (and crying). There is really nothing in Richmond but a gas station, small grocery store and a couple of little restaurants. At least we aren’t on Mansfield for this crappy weather.

We had pizza for dinner, watched some of the Emmy’s and are now calling it a night. Getting out of here tomorrow! Yay!

8/28/06

Richmond, VT to

Puffer Shelter Today’s miles: 11.5

After a nice breakfast, Marion drove us back to Jonesville and the P.O. to get our maildrop and send us back on the trail. Two familiar faces were loading up their backpacks when we arrived. I couldn’t place where I knew them from at first…but then…

Holy hell! It was Lumberzac and Sherpaman! We were very surprised to see them – but it’s great to see someone you know and have hiked with before. Ironic that the last time we hiked with them, we were spreading our DNA all over the High Peaks. They were 2 days behind us and saw we got stranded because of our mail drop so they weren’t surprised to see us at all. Sneaky little TT’ers that they are!

All four of us reorganized our food, got our packs together and were ready to set out. On to Puffer Shelter! ALL up! There is nothing like going from the lowest point on the LT to the highest in two days. It may only be 4000 feet…but let me tell you, you will climb/descend at least twice that just to get there. That is the beauty of Vermont.

Almost right away we were climbing up underneath the powerlines, keeping a close eye for the trail in the overgrown grass. Though it wasn’t raining, we were soaking wet from the humidity and fog that completely surrounded us. Stupid weatherman – that lying bastard promised we would have sun for the next few days. We stopped at Duck Brook Shelter for water, only 1.7 miles in. The stretch from Duck Brook to Buchanan seemed to take forever. Lots and lots of ups and downs – VT style. The damp air and yesterday’s rain made for lots of slippery wet trail (rocks/roots) to negotiate. The 3 of them in their gaiters and me & my skirt. Sounds like a sitcom: “Three Gaiters & A Skirt”. Fire Monger and Sherpaman are fast. I was over trying to keep up with them after about 3 miles. Actually, I was over trying to keep up with them about a year ago in the Daks.

After Buchanan we climbed and climbed and climbed some more. I reached an opening where Sherpaman and Fire Monger said “this is the summit of Bolton”. Woo Hoo! My proactive “putting-on-of-the-raincover” even brought a bit of sun. Sherpaman (who lost his pack cover to the Wind God on Camel’s Hump) joked with Lumberzac that we only had 500’ more to climb. We didn’t! We had 600’! Unbeknownst to us, we were on a mysterious unnamed summit. Not Bolton! Son of a… That last 600’ almost killed me. So much for only a ½ mile to the shelter like I originally thought. LZ said it best when we finally made it to the real Bolton summit a bit less than a mile later: “Just one more reason to hate Michael Bolton.” Yes, indeed.

From there, it was just one giant steep descent to Puffer Shelter. Steep and dangerous with all the wetness. This is where I slow down immensely because I’m so leery that I am going to fall and really put myself out of commission. I was ecstatic to see the privy…and then we dropped another 100’. Geezus! When will it end? When will it ever end?

We all changed into warm and dry clothes, cooked dinner, chatted and called it night. SM and LZ actually went to the creek for a bath – crazy kids that they are. I gotta say, staying warm and dry is way more important to me then smelling nice and being clean. I could care less about how I smell or look…I just want to be comfortable. I tried to read but that only lasted about 10 minutes.

We saw a light somewhere in the distance that looked like a giant beacon. The air was warm, the fog was lifting. Yeah for sunshine and Mt. Mansfield tomorrow!

8/29/06

Puffer Shelter to

Taylor Lodge Today’s miles: 3.4

No sun for us on this AM, just lots of fog and lots of drizzling. None of us were in much of a hurry but we headed out just before 9am. I think FM and I threw off LZ and SM with their schedules. Apparently, they are in the camp that prefer to be up and at ‘em at the crack of dawn to be finished hiking by 3pm. We, however, are not.

A nice steep climb up Mt. Mayo warmed us up rather nicely. Then we had a good 1200’ to drop. I decided to take up the rear, in no hurry to bust my ass trying to move to quickly for my comfort level. Hence, I brought up the rear of the group as the three of them jetted down the hill. The good news is that I did not bust my ass. I did, however, do a number on my left arm which swelled up like a goose egg and rendered it useless for support with my trekking pole. It made the descent miserable and painfully slow, to the point that FM came back looking for me to see if I was okay. I was very happy to see him. LZ and SM were snacking when we finally reached Taylor Lodge. LZ was kind enough to give me some Vitamin I (that’s hiker slang for Ibuprofen for those who are wondering). They are planning to be at Sterling Pond Shelter tonight – another 13 miles away. If the sun was out, I’d be willing, but, both FM and I aren’t eager to climb the highest mountain in VT in the rain and have no views. That’s definitely a perk – no timeline.

Truthfully, I don’t mind the wet climb but the descents are not my forte in this weather – especially now that I am blessed with a bum left arm and unable to use it for support.

So we bid farewell to Lumberzac and Sherpaman – might see them further up the trail but I doubt it. FM and I decided to wait a bit and see what the weather does but it did not look good. We’re planning on early AM departure to get over Mansfield and I’m hoping my arm feels better by tomorrow morning. Feel wimpy with 3.4 miles but I think it’s for the best, ultimately. All things considered, it’s definitely the safer choice at this point.

It was great to see LZ & SM out here…hope their day went well. Bastards will be drinking beer in Johnson tomorrow afternoon…damn them!

I’m going to bed…thought it would be quiet. Not so much. A husband and wife arrived with their 10 year old daughter and 2 dogs. Then, two older and slightly grumpy gentlemen arrived. I overheard that they’d been hiking for 12 hours. That sucks. Here’s hoping for no snoring, crying or barking from any of our sheltermates. D’oh! There’s a bark…well, let’s hope for 2 out of 3.

The stars are out and I’m ready for clear skies and Mt. Mansfield.

8/30/06

Taylor Lodge to

Top of the Notch, Smugglers Today’s miles: 12.3

What a night. Grumpy Old Men snored so loud last night that FM went outside to sleep at ½ past midnight. The hubby and wife did the same thing awhile later. I should have gone too because every time I was about to doze off, he’d let another one rip. I have never heard snoring like that in my entire life and hope that I never do again. It’s one of the many reasons that we typically avoid shelters to begin with. We were awake and moving at 6:30am. FM insists that snoring like that should be a fineable offense with the GMC. After last night, I tend to agree.

We hit the trail at 7:20am; the weather looked promising for Mansfield. Although we ascended a lot in the first 3.4 miles, we arrived at the junction to the Butler Lodge by 9am. Time and miles had flown by. From there we had .8 to the summit with a 900’ gain. Oh yea! After passing through Needles Eye (a split boulder/cave) we had some fun scrambling. There were a couple of ladders which FM, naturally, refused to use. At a “death to the left” type place, I passed my pack to FM – my balance just isn’t trustworthy enough. After shimmying on my tummy under the boulder, I loaded up again and we were off. From there it was mostly rock slab to the forehead.

We were treated to a show upon arriving on the forehead – a giant helicopter airlifting huge pieces of a new radio tower to the nose. Well, the weather station. At first we thought it was either a rescue mission or some kind of training for a rescue, which didn’t make a lot of sense since you can all but drive the whole way to the summit of Mansfield. It was quite a sight to see (and hear) although sad because a pair of peregrine falcons were clearly disturbed by the raucous in the vicinity of their nest.

Despite some clouds and fog, we had nice views and predominantly blue skies. We stopped a bit at the Visitors Center (they need a snack bar!) before heading up the chin (the highest point of Mansfield). It’s a sad little visitor center with a sad little caretaker who looked positively bored out of his gourd. There was a great sign in the center advising people to “Do the Rock Walk” and avoid alpine vegetation. Hell, we are always doing the rock walk…that’s what PA is all about!

On the way to the chin, we passed Profanity Trail which we promptly took some appropriate pictures of. We also munched on lots of wild blueberries that were scattered along the trail. Mmmmmm.

The wind was whipping on the west side of the mountain and it was chilly. About 5 minutes before we reached the summit, a whole lotta fog rolled in. Go figure. So, naturally, when we got to the chin, we bundled up, had some snacks, and waited. Dayhikers galore made their way to the summit, most having driven to the visitor’s center and walked a mile. About an hour or so later, the fog cleared up to the north and the east. We were treated to some gorgeous views from VT’s highest peak. It was worth the wait to be able to see Stowe and Smuggler’s Notch. We never did get a view to the West, but that’s okay – I’m sure we will be back to Mansfield some other time. There are a lot of great trails that lead to the summit, I wouldn’t mind coming in from a different direction at some point.

I was freezing so we finally took off. 2.3 miles to VT 108 and almost 3600’ of descent. The first .3 down was the hardest. Not really scrambling but definitely some serious negotiating with really bad consequences if you negotiated wrong. Without a backpack, it wouldn’t be nearly as scary. We were lovin’ it either way!

Taft Lodge is gorgeous! I wish we had a chance to stay there. It’s only .6 from the chin with a beautiful view and really nice lodge. I’m not sure what’s up with the hobbit-sized door but I did love the front porch and rocking chair. There were a bunch of books inside which we thought about taking with us, but unsure if they belonged to the caretaker, we decided to leave them there.

By the time we reached VT 108, I think my knees were jammed up into my hips. One hell of a descent. Thankfully, my arm is tender to the touch but I am at least able to use it to support myself as I hike.

We had a long break and late lunch at the Smuggler’s Notch Picnic Area. In fact, we putzed around and laid in the warm sun until close to 5pm. Only another 3 ½ to the shelter. Ahhhhh…life on the trail.

Of course, we immediately had to climb back up another 1400’. Tough to do when your knees are in your hips so your legs are just over a foot and a half long. We stopped briefly to check out Elephant Head Cliff (a 200’ descent on a spur), then climbed back up to Sterling Pond. It turned out to be a gorgeous day. I was immediately grateful that we had stopped at Taylor Lodge and given ourselves the chance to have a nice day on VT’s highest peak. I wondered how LZ and SM had fared in the sketchy weather from yesterday.

We are staying at Top of the Notch, a Smuggler’s warming hut. It’s a beautiful post and beam structure and the sun made it so warm and cozy inside. We are able to enjoy a sunset from the warmth of the hut. We also have it to ourselves. A GMC caretaker from Sterling Pond came over to collect the $5 fee…dang! A dayhiker also stopped by with his dog, “A Boy Named Sue”.

I plan on eating and then reading myself to sleep. We had a lot of elevation change today and I’m definitely feeling it. Roughly 4200’ gain and 3000’ loss. Yup, I’m going to sleep like a baby – especially since we have the place to ourselves. The warm sun of the day has left the lodge cozy and warm inside. There is music coming from somewhere in the valley, but it’s not too loud and it’s kind of nice to listen to.

8/31/06

Top of the Notch to

Long Trail Tavern, Johnson, VT Today’s miles: 11.2

When I woke up to blue skies, I thought for sure it was already mid-morning and I had overslept. We haven’t had a clear AM in so long. Imagine my surprise to discover it was only 7:02am! I’m getting better at being an early riser. That and I am finally getting some really good sleep at night.

Today’s big hurdle was Whiteface, but first we ascended up to Madonna Peak on Smugglers. I’ve seen more chairlifts in the past few weeks than I’ve seen since high school, when I used to ski every weekend. We had a quick break and as we headed out, the lift began to move. D’oh! I’m glad we weren’t sitting on it as we sometimes do. Especially since the lift stopped after a minute or so. Stranded on a chairlift in the middle of summer would have been a little embarrassing.

We dropped steeply into Chilcoot Pass, which instantly brought back memories of my first ever backpacking adventure on the Chilkoot Trail in Alaska. Who would have ever thought I’d become such an enthusiast?

From Chilcoot, we had a steady ascent up Morse Mountain which gave us a terrific view of Whiteface. The Whiteface Shelter, .4 miles from the summit, gave us one of our last glimpses of Mansfield in its entirety. It was a cozy log shelter that would be fun to camp at.

The .4 up Whiteface was more of what we’ve been doing – high steps and steep, steady ascending. My legs are still getting accustomed to it. I’ve learned that when FM says “we’re almost there”, we’re not even close. Or “I see the top” means “I see the first of six false summits”. Nevertheless, we reached the top and were once again rewarded with some stellar views. Kinda makes you forget the pain. Kinda.

With 3200’ to descend, we were on our way down once more. The first 2500’ were the most tiresome. I don’t know why our knees aren’t screaming for mercy. The constant negotiating and jumps off rocks is getting crazy. Sure, it may only be 2.5-3’ at a time, but do it 20 times in a mile and let me know how you’re doing. I seriously think that when I finish with this hike, I’m going to be about 3 inches shorter than when I started.

Finally the trail leveled out and what a great feeling! We hit cruise control around 3.5 mph and were at Bear Hollow Shelter before we knew it. Nice place to get water and take a break. We like breaks. I wouldn’t have minded camping there but a mere 3.3 miles away was the Long Trail Tavern which meant, yes, burgers and beer. I am 100% addicted to bacon cheeseburgers. We opted out of the “tradition” at the shelter. If anyone has been there, and has read the first page of the register, you will know what I am talking about. If you haven’t, well, I am not going to tell you.

It was very easy going from the shelter, including a 1.7 mile stretch on an old gravel logging road. FM hates road walking even more than I do, but we plodded along until we reached VT 15 at precisely 3:40pm. With a hitch into Johnson, we were even able to pick up our maildrop and grocery store supplements before the P.O closed at 4:30pm. On the way back, we didn’t even have to hitch. A nice man offered us a lift.

The Long Trail Tavern offers tenting in their backyard. A gorgeous grassy site with room for probably 25-30 tents, as well as a fire pit. We set up our tents, put on our less stinky shirts, and headed up for some grub.

We promptly ate way too much. Buffalo chicken tenders, bacon-cheese fries & a cheeseburger. And of course, some beer. A slightly annoying couple was at the bar. I guess they were headed SOBO but Miss Annoying wasn’t having a great time because she didn’t realize “how hard it would be”. Mr. Annoying claimed he’d marry her if she hiked the entire AT and PCT with him. Yea, good luck with that one, Buddy. Though we first thought they were thru-hiking, we quickly overheard Miss Annoying talking about how they were going to get off the trail and go somewhere else. Something about a year off to travel, I don’t know. Either way, we won’t have to see them again so it’s all good.

When the karaoke guy showed up, that was our cue to go to bed. Poor FM had a hell of a bellyache. It will be nice to sleep in a tent again – and especially nice to sleep on a soft, grassy surface. Ahhh.

I can’t believe Canada is so close. Only 50 miles! I’m proud of how far we’ve come given all that has been thrown at us. It’s going to be an amazing and special moment when we reach the end. We’re long distance hikers…and that is a great feeling. What a wonderful life.

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