Bubbles Day 77 (Sunday, June 12th, 2016)

We got packed and I was sad to leave our besties again. Karma and I hugged for a long time and both cried again. She said, "goodbye is real this time" and that really made me cry. I cried on and off for the remainder of the day.

We decided to stay at the Cookie Lady's house. It was a cold and wet day. We were sitting on the porch when Marilyn invited us into their garage for hot chocolate. When we got into the garage they then invited us into their beautiful home. We had hot chocolate and boiled eggs, and of course cookies. We enjoyed their company and had great conversation. I really enjoyed hearing how the Cookie Lady became the Cookie Lady. She kept the tradition going from a neighbor who made cookies for all the thru hikers back in the 50's and 60's.

They let us cook dinner in their old home and offered to let us sleep in there too. We wanted to sleep in our tents though. It was a cold night but I was happy to be here with the Cookie Lady and her wonderful husband.

Mountain Man helping Sprout one more time with Whiskers in the background

Sprout getting back on the trail

Sprout Day 77 (Sunday, June 12th, 2016) (NEED PICTURES)

Today was a tough day for us because we left Mountain Man and Karma before their road trip across the USA. We've had fun with them the past couple days.  They have been slack packing Bubbles, Whiskers, and I for the past two days.  We went to Dunkin’ Doughnuts before they dropped us off at the trailhead. It took us awhile to say our goodbyes, we are really going to miss them.

Our hike wasn't too bad but it was a little difficult getting back into the swing of things with a full backpack on. We made it to the Cookie Ladies house today and met Roy and Marilyn, they are really nice people that live 100 yards off the trail. They're known for having cookies for the hikers! We got to the house and I saw Whiskers on the front porch. Roy came out and introduced himself and Marilyn came out and asked if we wanted some hot chocolate. They even invited us into their home to drink hot chocolate and eat our cookies. It was nice getting to know them and talking and sitting in a warm house for a little while. They were the nicest people and she can make some good cookies! We bought a can of coke and some hard boiled eggs too, delicious!

Day: 77
Miles hiked: 9.5
Total Miles hiked on the trail: 697.9
Bears: 0
Bluegill: 2
Butterflies: 8
Chipmunks: 3
Cows: 24
Crawfish: 1
Deer: 20
Donkeys: 2
Horses: 12
Hummingbird: 1
Inchworm: 1
Really Big Dog: 1
Mice: 2
Nest of bugs: 2
Newts: 2
Owl: 1
Rabbit: 1
Skunk: 1
Snail: 1
Snake: 2
Squirrels: 11
Toads: 3
Trout: 2
Turkeys: 4
Turtles: 107

Vultures: 6
Woodpecker: 1

Bubbles Day 75 (Friday, June 10th, 2016)

We woke up and I was instantly sad that we would be leaving my besties.  We made cowboy coffee and came to the conclusion that we needed more time together!  Karma and Mountain Man offered to slack pack us, if we could get another campsite at the state park.  We got a campsite and were super excited. We had to move campsites but we didn't care.  

We got on the trail around 11:00 am and hiked about 14 miles.  I just wanted the hike to be over so I could spend some time with my besties.  My left knee has started to bother me, a lot. Hopefully it gets better.

Cool rock formation on the trail

View today

Right before I got to the road I received a video my brother-in-law, Frederic, playing Fernando on his guitar.  We put the video on in the van and all listened to it together.

We went to the grocery store and Whiskers, Robby, and I bought the food for the night.  We wanted to provide some trail magic to Karma and Mountain Man since they have been so wonderful to us.  We spent another night together laughing and enjoying our time together.

Karma and Mountain Man getting ready to enjoy some popcorn!

Bubbles Day 74 (Thursday, June 9th, 2016)

View from the trail today

Today we hiked 11 miles.  While I was hiking I got a text from my bestie, Karma, asking where we were and if we wanted to meet up. I was so excited for the opportunity to see Karma and Mountain Man I wanted to sing!  My trail family reunited and it feels so right.

They met us at a road crossing.  Before we loaded up the van we all hugged each other.  My hug with Karma was one of the longest and tightest hugs I've experience in my life.  I didn't want to let go of my trail sister.  I may have cried a little bit. :)  

After the hellos and hugs they swept us away to Beartown State Park.  They loaded Sprout, Whiskers, and me up with all kinds of delicious trail magic.  Hotdogs and chips galore, veggies and gatorades, and everything a hiker could want!!  The even brought bubbles!!  I love them!!   All the trail magic was incredible, but what really made my heart soar was being with Karma and Mountain Man again.  We learned that Karma had a nueroma.  That is when there is a painful growth of nerve tissue in the foot.  Her foot pain was actually more than the average hiker!  We spent the night together laughing and being beyond merry. I will miss them when they drop us off at the trail tomorrow. I hate saying goodbye to my besties!

Karma with bubbles in front of the van they rented

Bubbles and Karma reunited

Bubbles, Mountain Man, and Karma

Sprout Day 70 (Sunday, June 5th, 2016)

We had a rough start to the day because today was the day we separated from Mountain Man and Karma. It was time for their journey to take them down a different path and they decided to get off the trail and rent a car to travel the United States. We completely understand where they are coming from and wish them the best of luck! It's going to be weird not hiking with them because we've done almost 300 miles together on the AT. I know we will see them again in the future and look forward to it!

We got up and made one last batch of cowboy coffee and ate a small breakfast before parting ways. We lost Mountain Man and Karma but we sort of gained a new partner, Whiskers. We have been hiking together for the past few days and we hope it continues.

The terrain was steep up and down all day and it was slippery because the rocks were wet and there were a lot roots too. The roots are extra slippery so you really have to watch your step here. Earlier, right before a squeeze (the trail runs through boulders which have cracked in half) we took shelter right next to a big rock over hang. It was a perfect spot to stay dry and, while the heavy rain passed, we had lunch. I had two packs of tuna with crackers and an apple.

Wet trail today

View from the trail

Bubbles is watching her step!

Bubbles on the trail

It felt good getting to camp. We were happy we did 12 miles today. That puts us closer to Salisbury, we have 9.6 miles tomorrow. It will feel amazing to get a shower and to wash our laundry. When we arrived at camp today it was raining so hard. There wasn't too much we could do about it so we just set the tent up and made dinner. Our tent was soaked but we managed to dry off and get into some dry clothes. Hopefully the sun is shining tomorrow and we can dry out!

Day: 70
Miles hiked: 15.3
Total Miles hiked on the trail: 627.7
Bears: 0
Bluegill: 2
Butterflies: 8
Chipmunks: 3
Cows: 24
Crawfish: 1
Deer: 20
Donkeys: 2
Horses: 12
Hummingbird: 1
Inchworm: 1
Really Big Dog: 1
Mice: 2
Nest of bugs: 2
Newts: 2
Owl: 1
Rabbit: 1
Skunk: 1
Snail: 1
Snake: 2
Squirrels: 11
Toads: 3
Trout: 2
Turkeys: 4
Turtles: 107
Vultures: 6
Woodpecker: 1

Bubbles Day 70 (Sunday, June 5th, 2016)

Today we got up and had our last pot of coffee with Mountain Man and Karma. It was a very difficult morning for me. I packed my things slowly and headed over to wake my trail family up to all have coffee together and say our goodbyes. When it was time to go I hugged Mountain Man and Karma. When Karma and I hugged I started to cry, and not the graceful one tear down your cheek cry, but an ugly Kim Kardashian cry (if you don't know what that means type in Kim kardashian crying on Google).  When I hugged Karma I could feel how much she loves me and I hope she felt my love too.  We hugged tight and long and then some more!  Then I turned and walked out onto the Appalachian trail, softly sobbing.  I felt like I left a big chunk of my heart with them. I literally experienced heartache. I don't think I can explain how close we got. I don't think unless you have long distance hiked, that you can fully understand the friendships.  The trail brings all sorts of people together that may have never interacted in the "real world" but we all share a common goal out here.  We all go through the same problems.  And knowing that I am not going to be sharing these experience with two members of my trail family hurts.

Mountain Man, Karma, Bubbles, Sprout, and Whiskers last morning together

As soon as we got on trail it started to rain. I told Karma the gods were weeping today because we were splitting up. I cried as much as the sky did, I couldn't help it.  Whiskers hiked with us today and that made me feel a little better and I tried not to cry as much in front of him. We are grateful to be hiking with him. It makes it easier.

I love the wildflowers on the trail

Moss covered rocks

Whiskers traversing a stream

When it really started to rain hard we sat under an overhang of rocks right before a cracked boulder on the trial (it’s similar to the Lemon Squeezer)  Robby, Whiskers, and I ate some food and relaxed, trying to wait out the rain.

The rain didn't let up. When we got to the campsite it started to rain even harder.  Putting up a tent in a torrential downpour is a challenge.  We figured it out by putting the rainfly up first and then got underneath and put up tent.  Everything was wet.  I sat on a hemlock stump and cooked dinner.  Water was streaming off both of my knees and the hood of my jacket like I was a gutter.  I was laughing until the Lightning started. Then, I started to get scared!  Not because of the lightning, but because I looked up and all the trees were swaying way too hard for me. I thought to myself "I'm going to die tonight"  We didn't die though and the rain let up.  I went to bed thinking of my dear friends and how much I missed them.

Sprout Day 69 (Saturday, June 4th, 2016)

Today was a good day in Connecticut. The trails were tough but nice. We met a couple of ridgerunners and saw a group of people volunteering to do trail maintenance. We also saw a group of people doing some sort of race where they run through the mountains and go to different locations that are marked by a GPS. It was crazy how fast they were moving. A couple of them had team USA uniforms on, maybe they were trying out for the summer olympics? There was also a group of people canoeing down the river. We saw them at a shallow point where they were getting stuck.

Bubbles, Mountain Man, Whiskers, and Karma getting ready to take off today

Mountain Man and Karma decided to get off the trail tomorrow. They are walking an eighth of a mile down the trail and then walking a seventh of a mile to a motel down the road. We are sad they are leaving but wish them the best of luck for the rest of their time in America! I know we will see them again before they leave but we wish it was everyday like it had been!

View from the trail today

It has been hot and humid the past few days and it's going to rain all day tomorrow. It's supposed to start raining at midnight and keep raining all day. I hope we wake up early with a break in the rain so we can pack all our stuff up dry.

We went down a section today called the ledges. It was a steep decline, it basically felt like we were rock climbing down. I had fun maneuvering my way down the mountainside. I'm glad we walked this part today instead of yesterday. It was way too slippery yesterday to try to make it down!

Bubbles getting ready to climb up

Bubbles new fried, Linus, a ridgerunner (trail maintainer)

Bubbles on a cliff!

Going up!!!

Bubbles coming down now!

Bubbles traversing the terrain

You got this Bubbles!!

Kids canoeing

Mountain Man hanging a bear bag

Day: 69
Miles hiked: 7.3
Total Miles hiked on the trail: 612.4
Bears: 0
Bluegill: 2
Butterflies: 8
Chipmunks: 3
Cows: 24
Crawfish: 1
Deer: 20
Donkeys: 2
Horses: 12
Hummingbird: 1
Inchworm: 1
Really Big Dog: 1
Mice: 2
Nest of bugs: 2
Newts: 2
Owl: 1
Rabbit: 1
Skunk: 1
Snail: 1
Snake: 2
Squirrels: 11
Toads: 3
Trout: 2
Turkeys: 4
Turtles: 107
Vultures: 6
Woodpecker: 1

Bubbles Day 69 (Saturday, June 4th, 2016)

Today we were happy to hike in weather that was brighter.  Oh happy day!!  The rain cleared and my spirits were high.  I thoroughly enjoyed my hike today.  I love the trail in Connecticut. People says it’s "flat" but it's not.  It's been challenging but glorious.

We hiked over some pretty interesting spots today.  St. John's Ledges was wonderful and I was blessed enough to hike from Caleb's Peak to St. John’s Ledges with a ridgerunner.  I may have spooked the guy a little, but I was so excited to meet a ridgerunner!  I attacked him with questions.  I've only read about them, so to meet one was beyond exhilarating for me. His name is Linus (https://happyonthetrails.wordpress.com/)  Just in case you don't know what a ridgerunner is, they hike the trails, some as volunteers, and some in paid positions.  They make sure our trails are safe and that people respect the rules and regulations.   For example, no fires in Connecticut. He said that the burnt part of trail we had just come through wasn't a controlled fire, but a fire started from a hiker.  That burnt part of the trail made it clear why fires are prohibited.  He went ahead of us, but we caught him quickly because he had stopped to clear leaves from the trail on a very steep part of the trail (St. John's ledges) wow.  What incredible people to volunteer their time to this trail we love so much.

Volunteers on the trial building and repairing stone stairs

At the bottom of the steep hill was a beautiful river walk along the Housatonic River. It was easy easy walking.  We made a pit stop at the shelter we were passing and were happy to see Karma and Mountain Man.  I sat and talked with Karma and Mountain Man and they confirmed that they were getting off trail in the morning.  I had sensed that they were going to get off soon, but I didn't think before Salisbury. (Where our food drop was and their bounce boxes). I was again devastated.  We have a strong connection and it was hard to not fight with them and try to convince them to stay on trail.  I tried to be playful and made a fortune origami out of paper with all the Fortunes saying that they should stay on trail.  It didn't work but we laughed.

Sprout on the trail

The rest of the hike to camp was hard thinking about how our dear friends were leaving the trail. I knew we would eventually split up, but I had this dream or fantasy of all of us summiting Katahdin together.  I thought maybe they would hike on faster than us or vice versa and it would be a game of catch up.  With them getting off trail I knew that this dream was no longer an option.  I’m not going to lie either, it crushed me and my heart to see their defeated looks.  I understand, if they aren't having fun, why put themselves through misery?  Also, it is selfish of me to want them to.  I will cherish our times together and never ever forget the memories.  Good and bad. They are my solemates (pun intended). I mean, Karma is a founding member of the splendid sore sole sisters after all!  They will be missed dearly. We are hoping they will get off trail and miss it and us so much they come back.  A girl can dream. :)  We hiked 283 miles with them and every mile is a mile I would repeat and relive.  They helped make our experience on the AT so much more vibrant and loving. I would be silly with Karma and tease Mountain Man like a brother.  They are our trail family and that is a love that will last a lifetime.  They will still be hiking the AT, because we hold them near and dear in our hearts. We will have our last cowboy coffee together tomorrow and I am going to try to hold it together and not bawl like a baby.  They will be missed dearly on the trail. Northern we shall go, just missing some of our Besties.

Beautiful day today!

Time to filter water

Trail today

Sprout Day 68 (Friday, June 3rd, 2016)

We woke up today with the intentions of getting up early and getting a good start before noon ... but, we woke up and hit snooze a couple of times. Laying there half asleep I all of a sudden heard rain hitting the tent. I immediately flew out of the tent to grab our clothes hanging on a line right by the tent. We got in the river last night and rinsed all of our clothes off and swam for a bit. I was getting all of our clothes in the tent and grabbed our food bags so they didn't get soaked and looked over to see Mountain Man doing the same. I was gonna yell over to Whiskers to make sure he was awake but as soon as I looked over his tent was shaking. He was obviously awake and trying to get out of his sleeping bag.

Rainy day today

The rain put a damper on our early start and the 15 mile day we had planned, but I was happy to get the extra sleep! It took a couple of hours for the rain to stop but at least our clothes weren't getting soaked and our food bags were dry. We got up and decided ten miles would be perfect since we were getting a late start.

With all the rain from early in the day we had a slippery wet hike, it was humid too. I fell 3 times today. Walking over huge rocks when they are wet is just asking for a couple falls throughout the day. I think everyone in our group fell a couple of times today. Even though it was a slippery tough hike (the elevation change was up and down all day) it was still a great day. We hit our 600 mile mark! It ended up being at a lookout spot right on the trail, it was perfect. I'm so happy and thankful we have made it this far! It's such an accomplishment to make it 600 miles! I'm very happy with both of us for being strong and continuing on this journey together. I am lucky to have such a wonderful hiking partner.

It was a foggy day today

Bubbles on the trial

Beautiful spot to fill up our water

Boulder

Slippery rocks

Trees and fog

More fog today!

A map on the trail

Trail today

After our 600 mile point I decided to push on ahead of Bubbles to get our camp set up. I was planning on going to town with Whiskers to get a few more supplies from the store. I made it in time to set my tent up and hang a clothesline. Whiskers was in the middle of setting his camp up too. I got all of the food out of my backpack and got the tent situated. Mountain Man wanted to go too (when a town is nearby it's hard not to go and get something.)

It was a .8 mile hike to the town of Kent, Connecticut. It was a small rich town and I'm not too sure if they were hiker friendly. We went to an outfitters store, I didn't need any camping supplies but the ice cream was good! We couldn't find the store at first so we went to a gas station and basically got kicked out. The guy obviously didn't want us in his store. He yelled as soon as we walked in with our day packs. We skipped past that and asked if he sold tuna or pasta sides. He responded with a mean, “Have you ever heard of a store!?” No buddy, I haven't. I'm just walking the Appalachian Trail and have never been to a grocery store before. He did point us in the right direction and proceeded to tell us to go to a grocery store if we wanted food. I don't really get it. We would've been happy to shop in his little convenience/gas station but I guess I'd rather give my money to someone who wanted it. We found the IGA and all bought some snacks and food to get us by.

Kent is a small town. The guy at the hot dog stand told us it's a town with a lot of money. We were told that when 9/11 hit NYC a lot of the wealthier people made their way towards Kent. Money doesn't buy happiness and it definitely doesn't guarantee quality nice people. The town was still a nice town and I'm happy we went down. It was only a 1.6 mile round trip. 

Kent, CT

  We got back and hung out by the shelter to eat dinner and talk with everyone before we went to bed. I'm glad I'm not the only one who loads up on too much food from stores. Whiskers had a few too many things too. It's hard to not get too much when you haven't been in a grocery store all week and you’re getting low on food! It was a great evening being with everyone and I’m hoping to get some sleep tonight so I can get up early in the morning. Hopefully I can get up before everyone and get coffee and breakfast started so we can get out as early as possible.

Day: 68
Miles hiked: 8.4
Total Miles hiked on the trail: 605.1
Bears: 0
Bluegill: 2
Butterflies: 8
Chipmunks: 3
Cows: 24
Crawfish: 1
Deer: 20
Donkeys: 2
Horses: 12
Hummingbird: 1
Inchworm: 1
Really Big Dog: 1
Mice: 2
Nest of bugs: 2
Newts: 2
Owl: 1
Rabbit: 1
Skunk: 1
Snail: 1
Snake: 2
Squirrels: 11
Toads: 3
Trout: 2
Turkeys: 4
Turtles: 107
Vultures: 6
Woodpecker: 1

Sprout Day 67 (Thursday, June 2, 2016)

We got up and on the trail earlier today, we're trying to get going earlier everyday.  We were hiking by 8:00 and went 12 miles today!  We made it to Connecticut towards the end of the hike.  It feels great to be in a new state!  On the way to the shelter we stopped for a break around 11, I walked down to Tony’s Deli with Mountain Man.  When I got to the deli I drank an iced coffee, a Sunkist, and a bottle of water.  Then, I took a turkey sub back to split with Bubbles and a couple more cold drinks.  We got back on the trail and stopped at the next shelter for a quick break.  

A couple miles into our hike we got to see the oldest oak tree on the trail. It's huge about 6 ft diameter and estimated to be over 300 years old! It was crazy how big this tree is.  By far the biggest tree I've ever seen.  We walked through a bunch of pastures today too.  It was nice walking through the fields but it was a huge temperature change.  We were out in the open and it was just too hot.

Oldest Tree

Oldest Tree

Bubbles by the massive tree!!

Boardwalk trail today

It's much cooler to walk through the shade provided by trees in the forest than to walk through fields

Beaver?

Bubbles in a field

Farm Structure

Bubbles going over an electric fence

Whiteblaze in a field

Back to the forest!

Bubbles and I hugging the huge oak!

When we made it to Ten Mile River Shelter I was relieved.  It was a long hike and I was ready to sit down for the day.  A local was sitting at the shelter with some cold brews, which was a nice surprise! I sat and had a couple of drinks.  I didn't stay long because I had to get camp set up.  I was thinking on the way to the shelter how nice it would be to cool off in the river.  I got down to the camping area which is right next to the river and noticed Mountain Man was just getting out of the water.  I set up the tent, hung the bear bag, made a clothes line, and jumped in.  It was such a great feeling to get into the river cool off.  Bubbles and Whiskers jumped in too. We rinsed all of our clothes off and cooled off for a few minutes.  We couldn't stay in too long because we still had to eat, make dinner, and get ready for bed.  

Camping at Ten Mile River Shelter

Bubbles cooling off in the river

Whiskers and Bubbles cooling off

Bubbles, Karma, and Mountain Man

Tomorrow is going to be a long day.  We're planning on doing 15 miles tomorrow!  I'm going to try to get up at 5:00 and get moving.  It would be nice to be on the trail by 6. I think we are  passing Kent tomorrow.  We might go into town depending on what time we get in the area.

This is such a beautiful spot to camp because we are right by the river.  There's a bunch of flat spots for camping, and the sound of the river is so relaxing.  I don't see how I couldn't get some great sleep tonight! Life is good on the trail!

Day:  67

Miles hiked:  12.8

Total Miles hiked on the trail:  596.7

Bears:   0

Bluegill:  2

Butterflies:  8

Chipmunks:  3

Cows:  24

Crawfish:  1

Deer:  20

Donkeys:  2

Horses:  12

Hummingbird:  1

Inchworm:  1

Really Big Dog:  1

Mice:  2

Nest of bugs:  2

Newts:  2

Owl:  1

Rabbit:  1

Skunk:  1

Snail:  1

Snake:  2

Squirrels:  11

Toads:  3

Trout:  2

Turkeys:  4

Turtles:  107

Vultures:  6

Woodpecker:  1