The Granite State: Live Free or Die

Well, I've made it to New Hampshire! I crossed the border this morning on my way into Hanover, and am now at the library. I'd say at least half of the cars are subaru's and prius's. License plates have 'The Granite State' motto written on them; Live Free or Die! Today, Hanover is very lively with Streetfest, a festival on main street with lots of vendors and live music. Upon arrival, I went to the Dartmouth Outing Club to obtain information about where to go. Dartmouth is still busy with activity, and I have been able to park my stuff at a hiker friendly fraternity house, Phi Tau. They let me take a shower, do some laundry, charge my cell phone, and eat some cookies. Most of the time they let hikers stay, but tonight they are hosting a cookie event with several hundred people, so I will be finding another place to stay in town. Later this afternoon I'll be going to the bookstore, hanging out on campus and at the festival, and enjoying a short day.

The last two days have been strenuous. I hiked 20 miles each day, but for some reason they were harder than normal; I'm blaming elevation. It was difficult to get myself motivated to hike yesterday though. I really just didn't want to, and it didn't help that I had a ripped pack to worry about either. I stopped at this farmer's market on VT12 to eat. They let me use the phone there because cell service is hard to find in rural Vermont. Six Moon Designs, the gear company they manufactures my backpack, is sending me a loaner pack while they repair mine. So, I should have my old pack fixed in a couple of weeks no problem. It is a hassle to mail this stuff back and forth, but that is the way Six Moon wants to handle it...whatever. Anyway, I had 12 miles down yesterday by 3P and was taking a break at Thistle Hill Shelter wishing I could just stop there when I saw a cheeseburger joint in my guidebook, right on the trail, 5 miles away! I didn't need much more motivation than that, and had a burger, fries and an orangina in front of me 2 hours later. It was delicious!

My boots are now broken in, and much more comfortable to hike in. I think my left foot may be slightly bigger than my right because only my left foot had problems with blistering. I've been wearing my glasses now for a month. I think the last time to wear contacts was in Worthington State Forest in northern Pennsylvania. It's much easier to throw on glasses everyday than mess with putting contacts on. As for other gear issues, there are not many. I'll be switching out to a warmer sleeping bag soon for the higher elevation areas of NH and ME. Everything else is working out well.

I have been meeting a lot of SOBOs (Southbound thru-hikers) the last few days. It is nice to hear their experiences and stories from the two states I have coming up. I spent last night at the shelter with a SOBO named Mountain Goat and his dog Lou. It was good to get some advice on where to stop and what to check out further up the trail Hopefully I'll recognize a couple southbounders that I'm meeting now when hiking south from WV; that would be cool. The trails have continued to be well kept even out of the Green Moutain National Forest. The Dartmouth Outing Club (D.O.C.) is in charge of maintaining the trail from VT12 to Kinsman Notch (start of the White Mountain National Forest). You know you are near Dartmouth when the sign hanging from the shelter at Happy Hills is comprised of mosaic tiles. Eastern, rural Vermont was gorgeous, and I really enjoyed hiking through the open fields, pastures and ski slopes. It was nice to duck in and out of the woods every once in a while to catch a glimpse of barns and country life.

Hope you are all doing great! I miss home, friends, and everything else. Today is day 42 on the trail, and I am very much looking forward to late August when I get to see everyone again. I'm still enjoying the hike very much, and am anxious for what is coming up; treeline in 3 days!! As always thanks so much for the support and interest!

Sam the Kid