Mailing Address

The rain has produced a bumper crop of peepers and we had to be careful not to step on them. The big frogs in ponds sound like plucked rubber bands. Daddy Long Leg spiders are everywhere and easy to spot because the body is orange or red.

We arrived at the lodge on Mt Greylock too late to get food at the lodge. We did get showers and snacks. We slept in the garage with 2 other hikers for $10 each and cooked our own food

At about noon we reached a road. The map said 2 restaurants were close - they were 3/4 mile away. We stopped to eat anyway. It was raining again.
We started up the climb to get out of North Adams and into Vermont, our twelfth state. The trail was starting to dry a bit. Then we caught the biggest rain of the day about 5 pm.

The sky got dark and we entered a hemlock forest. It was hard to even see the trail. Just as well, it was a small creek by now. We hiked on but our pace was slow and getting slower as the trail deteriorated and light failed, still trying to get to the shelter. We did not see any campsites but camping would have been like sleeping on a water bed. We hiked until well after dark.
We arrived at Congdon Shelter at about 9:30. The shelter was pretty full but we squeezed our sleeping bags in at the front of the shelter. We had agreed that we would not try to cook dinner at the shelter and disturb the sleeping occupants. We each ate a poptart and climbed in a sleeping bag very glad that the day was over, hoping that rain didn't blow into the shelter. This was a hard day.

We were up early but didn't get an early start. Since we ate poptarts last night, we ate mac and cheese for breakfast. Seems strange, but we reasoned that we needed the calories to hike.

After a late start we were hiking well. We were approaching the end of a second 1000 foot climb when it started raining again. When we came to a shelter we decided to stop rather than chance another long night. The shelter had plenty of space. As soon as we dropped our packs the skies opened and the rains poured. We made a good decision stopping early. We plan to get a really early start tomorrow.

A southbound hiker in the shelter told us that this is now the second wettest hiking season in AT history. Right after he told us the rain started pouring. Looks like the rain god isn't satisfied with second best.

The trail continues to be frustratingly slow due to water and mud. Even with care, we fell six times in one day. No serious injuries, but we both have small scratches and bruises. They aren't noticeable with all the mud and duff covering our legs.

We ended today at a shelter we have to pay to use. There were lots of hikers at the shelter when we arrived, but there was room for us.

We got an quick ride to town, ate at McD and are looking for a place to stay. More people have offered rides than we can use. It is so nice to be generously welcomed! We can stay in a private house 13 miles down the highway but may opt for town. We have already been offered 2 rides by people in the shopping center parking lot! It seems that people are looking for hikers. One ride was with a grandmother who drives hikers when her grandsons are in town so they can talk to hikers.

Southbound hikers and northbound hikers have been passing frequently on the trail for the past few days and we are now seeing Long Trail (the first long trail that runs the length of VT to Canada 263 miles) hikers, too.   
We are over 75% done!