Vermont and New Hampshire...Part 2

(Remember you can click on the title above for a larger interactive map.)

7/2/11 Things are really moving for Pace and Porter. After a visit back home and being dropped off in Bennington, VT, Dreamer drove half-way to Manchester and got on the trail to hike in 6.5 miles to meet Porter and Pace. (Don't tell, but Dreamer went the wrong way for about a half-hour until she saw some hikers and asked which way was south.) Meanwhile Porter, Pace, Deva, and Mike St. Pierre of Hyperlite Mountain Gear,  hiked 20 miles to  Kid Gore Shelter, mile 1,615.7, elevation 2,795 feet.

I, Dreamer, has to admit that my 7 miles which should have been 6.5 felt like 20 miles since I haven't been on the trail in so long. It was good to be on the trail again and finally arrive at the Kid Gore Shelter where everyone was waiting for me. I would have beat them if the trail had been labeled north or south. Compass you say?

On 7/3/11, Porter and Dreamer were up at 5:30 a.m. to get an early head start. As Deva pointed out the night before..."no offense, but Dreamer hikes slow." She got slugged with a pillow but she's right, I sure do hike slow! I blame it on my short legs...it has nothing to do with being out of shape!

It was a great hike out with Porter and we dodged some light rain. Porter and I were lucky to get to our vehicle just before it started to down pour. We waited in comfort while Pace, Deva, and Mike slugged through the rain. We all met briefly and I sent them off to meet them in Manchester later that day. (Dreamer drove, I was pooped.)

The gang stayed at the Red Sled Motel in Manchester the night of the 3rd and on the 4th we moved down the road to The Chalet Motel where we had a cookout. It appears that Mike St. Pierre is a rather good cook. So after a zero-day on the 4th, we packed up and Dreamer sent them on their way again on the 5th. They hiked while she and Mike went back to work. That just didn't seem fair. Oh well.

7/5/11 Porter, Pace, and Deva hiked over Stratton Mountain where there is a fire tower open to hikers. Mile 1,627.7 - elevation 3,936 feet. The trails were muddy and wet.

Porter keeps his hiking shoes dry and washes his feet the AT way!

On 7/6/11 they saw this beautiful view off of Bromide Mountain.

They hiked and hiked, climbing Bromley mountain where they viewed five states from the observation tower, mile 1644.4, 3260 elevation, then down to Mad Tom Notch, elevation 2,446.  They hiked up. They hiked down. They hiked back up and you guessed it. Back down. That's the story of the AT/Long Trail in Vermont.

Along the way, Porter, Pace and Deva stopped at the Inn at Long Trail just off the Shelburne Pass trail mile 1,693, elevation 1,690 ft. Porter's sister Debbie came out to meet them and stayed overnight at the Inn with Porter. They had a great time.

Of course, it was back on the trail again the next morning and they climbed Killington Mountain. They had a really rough hike down to get hamburgers. Hmmm, is this cheating?

The view from their chair lift down Killington to get some hamburgers for lunch, then back up and on the trail again.

View from Killington Mountain 7/6/11, mile 1,694.

On July 7th, things got desperate and Pace and Deva bravely dueled for the last cookie. I'm not sure who actually got it though, but Pace sure has good dueling form.

Pace and Deva duel it out with their hiking poles for the LAST COOKIE. Watch out!

The trio were moving quickly through Vermont and toward their next state, New Hampshire.

On July 8th, they crossed the VT-NH border at the Connecticut River. Mile 1,736.8, elevation 400 ft. 

AT Wolf in Hanover NH across the street from Dartmouth College

They had a long hike on July 9th before they met Dreamer in Hanover, NH, home of Dartmouth College.

They resupplied and Deva bought new insoles for her shoes and Pace bought new rain pants in anticipation of colder weather in the White Mountains. Dreamer met them at an outfitter and then as they continued to follow the trail through the town, Dreamer went ahead to the Hanover Food Co-op to pick them up. The trail markers are on the telephone poles in Hanover. They resupplied with interesting trail food and by now, boring Cliff Bars, a staple on the trail. They were thrilled the bars were on sale!

Yes, this is part of the AT. Going through Hanover, NH

They were sweaty but happy to find rooms in the nearby town of Norwich, VT at the Norwich Inn. Porter and Dreamer stayed in the Victorian house and the rest of the gang, which now included Mike St. Pierre who came in from Maine, stayed in a new room that had a fireplace. The prices near Hanover, NH are high.  Unlike some of the other motels they've stayed in, there were actually clean sheets on the beds and no graffiti on the bathroom wall. Amazing!

The Norwich Inn has great accommodations and food. They also have a delicious dark porter beer that they brew on location. That evening Mike from Hyperlite Mountain Gear (HMG), supplied Porter and Pace each with their own ECHO I Ultralight Shelter System to test. The entire tent only weighs 1.31 lbs (21.0 oz.) Porter sent his original Big Agnes tent back home with Dreamer and dropped a pound in weight from his backpack that is also from HMG. Mike also supplied Dreamer with a Hyperlite backpack...I can't wait to test it out. Thank you from all of us!

Deva relaxes near their ECHO I Ultralight Shelter System. Porter's is the camo print tent which is a test model.

On July 10th Pace, Porter,  and Deva were getting ready to head into the White Mountains of NH and were getting closer to the Presidential Traverse with every step.

More to come tomorrow!

Happy Hiking!

Ground Control a/k/a Dreamer

Porter and Pace Appalachian Trail 7/14/11

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