[Me + my new shoes, on Deer Leap overlook above the Inn at Long Trail, Aug. 4, 2009]
I'm on the trail again after a nice little vacay at the Inn at Long Trail. When I got there on Friday, after virtually swimming down the mountain, a lot of hikers who were previously ahead of me were there on their third night.
Saturday and Sunday, the place was very quiet. Not "The Shining" quiet, but quiet.
The Packadivas showed up Monday night, and then Early Bear and Lil Dipper arrived - finally - today, along with Goof and Mr. Buffalo Man. I thought I had been going slow. Apparently they had all participated in a trail rescue op over the weekend when a teenage girl in a summer camp thing got stung by a bee. The girl had an allergic reaction, and the thru hikers helped a 20-year-old counselor get the girl three miles down the mountain, but not before bees attacked again and stung pretty much everybody. Then the hikers walked back up the mountain to retrieve the other day campers' day packs, which they'd abandoned in a panic.
Early Bear said he didn't get to bed until after 11 p.m.
Bees. Not a fun creature to encounter on the trail.
On Thursday I was hiking up a hill when I looked down and saw a hole in the trail from which issued bees every second, just a moment before my shoe landed right on it. A number of bees swarmed around my leg as I ran. Thankfully, only one got the stinger in.
At the next shelter, the Clarendon, I read numerous entries about hikers getting stung in the register, so I left a message for the trail maintainers imploring them to bomb the hive.
Anyway, it was good to see everybody again and rest up and fatten up [I've been told I've definitely lost weight]. I got caught up on movies. "Funny People" I saw on Saturday. I liked seeing Adam Sandler play a rich, jaded Adam Sandler-esque character, but some of the melodrama involving Leslie Mann and Seth Rogen was awkward to watch, a lot like parts of "Knocked Up".
With regards to my phone, the woman at the Verizon store in Rutland yesterday gave me a deal I found easy to refuse. My phone, she said, was no longer usable. There's no sim card, no way to salvage my contacts, photos, anything. I could sign up for two more years of Verizon and get a free phone, or a least a heavily discounted phone, or I could not renew and just buy a phone, starting at $200.
I'd like to get an iPhone in the fall, so a new contract didn't interest me, nor did splurging on another Samsung or LG.
The third option: I could wait and see if I can get an old phone, pay a $10 fee to switch my number to it and go from there. Which is what I'm doing. A replacement is coming next week, and I'll need everybody's number again.
I feel a little better about losing a phone to rain after hearing from at least three hikers who have done the same thing. Early Bear said he even dropped his iPod in a hot tub while on the trail.
See you in Hanover, NH, the home of Dartmouth. There's a campsite next to the soccer fields there. I'm going to see if I can get into a pickup game. It's been a while :)
-Ink
p.s. do you realize how good Ben and Jerry's is?!?
I was wondering when the Grizzly Adams beard would make an appearance...looks good!
ReplyDeleteNice shoes and all but you're blocking the view of the rocks!
Hey Jeremy! It's Pazit. I hope you're having a good time. The trip sounds amazing. I just wanted to tell you don't forget the hot tamales and trail mix.
ReplyDelete