Hi folks!
This will be a quick update, but I am presently cooped up in a shelter on a rainy evening in Vermont! I’m currently at the Little Rock Pond shelter at mile 1677.9 of the AT, which leaves approximately 522 miles left of the trail to complete! I’ve got to say, just being up in the third to last state is giving me very “near the end” vibes, despite still having so many miles left to go. The weather, too, has been much more mild and pleasant, hanging around highs of 70°F and really starting to give that chilly autumn night/morning feel.
Much like the AT in Pennsylvania is notorious for rocks (earning the nickname Rocksylvania), the AT in Vermont is known for its mud, earning it the nickname Vermud. Fortunately for me and the other hikers here, it’s been pretty darn dry (up until this rainstorm going on right now), so the mud hasn’t been that bad. There are plenty of muddy sections of trail, but they have been mostly manageable by rock hopping and strategically stepping on dryer sections of trail. We’ll see what tomorrow’s trail brings after this fresh rain!
There is another famous trail that runs through Vermont called the Long Trail. The Long trail is 273 miles, and runs from the MA/VT border to the Canadian border. For the first portion of the Long Trail, it runs concurrent with the AT. That means there are suddenly a lot more hikers. It’s funny, every person you meet now, you must first shake out their credentials; are they AT or LT, NOBO, or SOBO? So many options… It has been nice to have more folks around, though. I’ve had a lot of fun conversations with LT hikers I’ve met at shelters.
Downhill skiing is a pretty big thing in Vermont, and the ski lifts still run in the summer to service bikers, hikers, and other such folks. The ski gondola at Stratton Mountain allows thru hikers to ride for free, which meant I was able to take a nice lunch break to the ski village at the base of the mountain to get some soup and coffee! It was pretty neat, having never ridden a gondola before. On Bromley Mountain, there is a hut that is used in the winter for ski patrol, but is opened up for hikers in the summer. I had a great, warm night’s stay at the Bromley ski hut, complete with electricity (a true trail luxury)!
The trail in Vermont has certainly become more difficult than the trail in previous states. I’m pretty sure it really just gets harder from here, as New Hampshire and Maine are considered the final bosses of the AT by most. Ive been able to maintain an average mileage of at least 20 miles per day recently, something that I’m not sure the White Mountains in NH will allow. I guess I’ll soon see, as I’ve probably only got a few days left in Vermont before moving on.
That’s all I’ll have for now, folks! I’m guessing that I’ll still have about one month left on trail, and I’ll certainly keep y’all posted as I close in on the finish!
Tingo Hikes! 