Early birthday present.

Day 100 - 7/29/10
Into the triple digits for hiking days. Almost can't believe it. Then
again that also means I'm getting closer and closer to being in Maine,
and then Katahdin, which is just as crazy to believe.

Anyway, it was a good decision to stay in the shelter last night. It
poured in the middle of the night, so hard and so loud that I couldn't
even sleep. I actually had a terrible night, tossing and turning the
entire time. It was tightly packed in there to the point where I
couldn't get comfortable. I guess I'd rather be a little groggier in
the morning then have a wet tent to put away though. There was a funny
moment in the middle of the night too. Rainer must've been having some
sort of vivid dream because suddenly he let out this loud yell that
woke everyone up. Maybe a nightmare of some sort. I think he was a bit
embarrassed, but actually it seems to be a common occurence out here.
I've heard a lot of people have dreams to the point of yelling. Not
sure why though, perhaps it's the abrupt change in lifestyle. Who knows.

I left Winturri shelter at 8, heading downhill to route 12. On the way
I passed the happiest blaze I've ever seen. Someone carved a big smile
and two eye slits into it, which made it seem like it was saying,
"Right this way, hiker. Come along, don't be shy. I'm happy to be of
service." I took a picture to remember the little guy. When I got to
route 12 I saw a sign on the AT billboard saying a farm was close on
down the road with all sorts of treats. I walked to it, was the first
customer of the morning, and bought a nice mixed berry mini-pie and a
soda. Now the pie in Deleware Water Gap was good, but this was
absolutely "gorgeous", as Churchill would say. I enjoyed that, then
went in and bought some buffalo meat sticks that were great as well.
All in all an excellent stop.

I was lounging for a while when I realized suddenly how much time I
had spent there, so I quickly got my pack on and booked it up the
trail. It was tough going from the farm, and when I had caught up to
iTrod around 12:30 I saw I had only done a measly 7 miles. I think it
was because the day was so tough, much like yesterday. Up and down, up
and down, again and again. I'm not complaining, I'm just saying it was
tough and slow-going. When I started up from that break things seemed
to pick up a bit, and by the time I had made the 11.6 miles to Thistle
Hill shelter it was 3pm. Rainer & Dewlap, iTrod, and Fireball all
rolled in right around when I did. I parked my stuff in the shelter,
met a SOBO from Richmond, VA, filled up on water, then headed out to
push for West Hartford like everyone else. We were all excited about
hitting up the convenience mart in town for sandwiches and ice cream.

I started moving really slow, and pretty soon I was alone. It was nice
though because a majority of it was downhill, and that 5 miles also
took me through some diverse locations. I went through thick pine
forests, so dark because the canopy was overgrown, a giant wide open
field atop the mountain with wind whipping around, and hordes of
overgrown sections. In those parts there were lots of raspberry &
black raspberry plants, so I was slowed down a little because of the
snacking opportunities.

I eventually made it into town about 6 and quickly hustled to the
store. The others had already made it and were eating delicious
looking sandwiches. I went with a buffalo chicken, bacon, cheese, and
ranch dressing sub called the Pomfret (named after a nearby town).
Delicious. After I ate I asked if there was a place nearby where
hikers could tent because I'd heard some folks in this town allowed
that on their property. There was one a few hundred feet down, and
when I went in to ask the lady instantly said yes. Her name was Kathy
and she was totally cool with it. Her and her husband have a big
backyard and they said anywhere was fine. It ended up being iTrod,
Rainer, Dewlap, Fireball, Phynious, and myself that set up tents. A
good amount definitely. Kathy and her husband have a nice big firepit
in their backyard so they got a fire going, then joined us as we sat
around it. Rainer and Dewlap had bought me a cupcake for my bday, and
everyone ended up singing "Happy Birthday" to me as I held it, a tiny
twig in place of a candle. The stick wasn't flaming, but the end was
burning, so after they wrapped up the song I extinguished it with my
pointer and thumb, then scarfed. Was actually a very good cupcake, but
just having that moment out here was even better. The singing and all
that I mean. It was so kind of them (R & D) to think of me like that,
and to have the song sung was like having an actual party. A great way
to end my day, especially after being another tough one. On to Hanover
tomorrow where I'll be spending some time with Mom and Christie. Can't
wait. Almost 11, gotta catch some zzzZZZs!

Total miles: 1727.5