The sunrises on Bromley Mountain are almost as nice as the sunsets. I enjoyed this one, then set off down a long descent off the northern flank on a clear, cold, blister morning. The terrain was bouldery and muddy, the theme for much of the day, but I made good time on this first section, as it eventually leveled out.
I emerged on a forest road, took a moment to snack and enjoy the sunshine, then started the climb up Styles Peak, which was under 2k feet but felt more like 3 — steep, rocky and unrelenting. Styles did offer a small view, unlike its neighbor Peru Peak along the uneven ridge to the north.
I was navigating a precipitous little drop between the two outcrops when I encountered “McGoober”, a woman hiking SOBO and attempting to best her previous LT completion time of 15 days by one day to finish in 14. That’s 272 miles in 14 days, or almost 20 miles a day on average, if you’re keeping track at home. That’s not unusual for thru hikers on some other popular trails, but it blows my mind on a trail like this. She was full of encouragement, hinted at a trail name for me, mentioned a bubble of NOBO hikers about 2 days ahead, and then was off like a shot up the steep rocks I’d just picked my way down. Curse these old knees.
My knees also had a laugh at the climb straight up a band of bedrock to the top of Mt Baker. A bit gratuitous, but I could imagine the twinkle in the eye of the trail designer. And there was a small view. I also encountered my first bag weather bypass, which thankfully I did not require.
From there, a long stretch of green tunnel, mostly downhill, led me through the Peru Peak Wilderness and then the Big Branch Wilderness. So much green. Lots of rocks and roots and mud, lots of boards in various states of disrepair through bogs, and a few sublime flat rolly sections. It all kinda blended together. There was one really nice pond, with a few trees on the far shore turned brilliant colors. But mostly a lot of slog.
I came across the Lost Pond Shelter, which I’d been considering as a bailout option, as my energy waned. It was a bright, recently rebuilt shelter near a babbling brook, and I was sorely tempted to set up there. But I really wanted to get a couple more miles, to make Fri and Sat a little shorter, given some weather predicted to move in.
This is something I spend way too much time thinking about: How to link together shelters and tent sites to get the right number of miles each day to get to my rendezvous with my partner Liz, who’s joining me at the Inn at Long Trail near Killington on Sat to hike the rest of the trail with me. It’s a lot of miles, and it feels more forced march than woods wander at the moment. I’d had this idea that I’d take the first 100 miles to warm up with lower mileages, but somehow I’ve ended up hiking a lot further each day than I’d intended. Maybe losing that first afternoon to iffy weather cost me, not sure. But I’ll keep putting one foot in front of the other and see where that gets me.
I’m currently camped by the Big Branch, which is a proper stream, with a suspension bridge and everything. It’s a serene spot and a good night for tenting. The shelter nearby is not rated very highly. I grabbed water and hung out by the stream for a while, watching the waning sun dip behind the tall trees lining the gorge downstream.
When I motivated to start working on dinner, my lighter didn’t work, not even generating a spark. For whatever reason, I forgot to bring a backup ignition source. I used to always carry a ferrule in my infamous pink possibles bag, for years and years, but I left that at home this time to save weight. So I started figuring out what I could eat to get some calories in me (chicken packets and peanut butter) while problem solving how I’d be able to get another lighter or some matches out here (beg other hikers, few and far between or try to hitch from a trailhead 1.5 miles away). Meanwhile, I’d stuck my lighter in my pocket to warm it and possibly dry it, and sure enough, when I tried it one more time after pretty much giving up on a hot meal, it lit right up. Whew. Just wet from the pot where I’d been keeping it, never a problem for me in the dry West.
So I cooked up some carbs and got them in me with little joy. Now I’m in my tent listening to the stream and still feeling a little on edge. I’m absolutely smoked, and it would be advantageous if I could put in 14.4 miles and a little under 3k feet of vertical tomorrow. I don’t know if my body is up to that again, but I suppose we’ll see.
Really nice weather today.
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