The summit is what drives us, but the climb itself is what matters.
August 1, 2022
AT miles: 17.4
Ascent: 3506’
Descent: 3134’
Weather: low 80’s and sunny
Sightings: one toad
High points: Navigating lots of rocks and roots without a fall
Today the trail was significantly more challenging — lots of rocks and roots and some mud. The trail went up and down all day.
This is a rocky Vermont stream that I got some water from. Entertainingly, the name is Hell Hollow Brook. I’d love to know the story behind that name!
The only noteworthy mountain I hiked today was Glastonbury’s Mountain (3748’). There was no view, but supposedly the view from the top of the fire tower is amazing. I stayed on solid ground — the tower was quite rickety.
I did pass several peaceful beaver ponds, complete with croaking bullfrogs, yellow water lilies, and a beaver lodge with a beaver dam in the foreground.
The woods were full of dark pine trees, soft brown needle litter on the ground, and moss.
After 17 intense miles of looking at my feet and trying to avoid tumbling on damp rocks, I reached my home for the evening. There are about ten guys here, mostly young. Wiz and Cross Check and Wrong Way and Matt (who just started on the LT so he doesn’t have a trail name yet) from the shelter last night plus a few others. I hike much slower than the thru hikers, but I stop less, so we all arrive at the same shelter.
The most important thing to do once you arrive at a shelter is to get water, and mostly the shelters are located near streams. However, sometimes the streams are too shallow to collect water from the pools, so ingenious hiker engineers use a leaf, appropriately placed, to create an easy flow to facilitate collecting water. Engineering at its most practical level!
Today is a great day for a long walk in the woods!