I slept until almost six, which is great considering how late I got to camp last night. The sun is rising over the valley, and I get up and pack quickly and I'm on the trail 30 minutes later.
Almost immediately I pass the Big Branch Shelter. The shelter is perched over the river, but it's old and dark, and I'm thankful that it didn't rain and I was able to camp out in my beautiful spot.
The weather this morning is delightful, in low 70's with tolerable humidity. I am literally bouncing on the relatively flat trail for the next 1.5 miles, as I listen to music.
The trail follows USFS Road 10 and crosses a bridge over the fast-moving Little Black Branch stream. I remember this area from the last time I hiked this section, where, after a downpour the night before, Becky and I spread out the entire contents of our packs all over the parking area to dry in the sunlight.
I turn my phone off airplane mode and I'm delighted to see that I have service as long as I stand in the middle of the bridge. I call home and talk to Rich, and then call my parents to talk with my aunt and uncle who are visiting.
After reassuring everyone back home that I am alive and well, I continue on the trail for lovely two miles of easy incline to Lottle Rock Pond. The pond, a very popular local destination, is dazzling in the morning light.
The pond has beautiful campsites with a caretaker living on the premises, employed by the Green Mountain Club and the US Forest Service. I don't see any movement from their tent, so I turn down the volume on my music as I pass. Try as I might, I don't see any moose lingering around the pond.
The next four miles is a steady climb 1,000 feet up White Rock Mountain. The top of the mountain is studded with beautiful white rocks, of which many have been stacked artfully into tall cairns. I remember the last time we were here the cairns were so large and prolific they were almost obscene.
The trail is delightfully soft underfoot it winds through a large spruce forest for the next mile. Just before starting a steep descent, I am greeted by the sight of another rock garden. The cairns have been a source of great debate in the hiking community, with some hikers feeling the need to deconstruct the unnatural stacks of rocks.
The trail then loses 1,000 feet of elevation over the next mile as I drop to Bully Brook, where I stop to take in some small but pretty cascades and waterfalls. I stop to filter water since this is the only water source for the next five miles that isn't right next to a road. I also indulge in a huge portion of trail mix, making it a lunch break.
The trail follows rolling hills for the next mile, when I cross Russell Road with another beautiful stream. I take a quick picture but I really need to keep moving in order to make the miles that I would like to hike today.
Just past Russell Road, I crest a small hill approaching Vermont Rte 140 when I see the strangest thing ever on the trail. A sign warns of the vortex, and another sign behind it with a chime and a hammer attached saying to give the bell a good whack. The hammer is quite heavy and I do my best to give it a good whack as requested. I'm holding my poles so I don't think I do a very good job, but then the hammer bounces and actually rings quite loudly. I continue around a bend in the trail and come out at a parking lot with some wonderful trail magic.
I don't have time to take off my pack before two men are offering hot dogs and soda. I'm really bummed that I ate not too long ago and I request one hot dog and take a bag of chips and a Dr. Pepper. Trail Magic is the only time I ever drink a sugary soda! Before I sit down a man offers to charge my electronics at a mibile charging station and I plug in my cell phone, thrilled for the top off.
I spend entirely too long enjoying the respite; almost 45 minutes. I had really planned on trying to go without stopping until I reach camp, so I'm going to be getting in late yet again!
I say goodbye , and I'm glad I didn't eat too much because the trail leads immediately uphill to gain 1,100 feet over the next two miles. I still manage to do a decent pace, probably energized by the food and the sugar.
When I start to come down the other side of the hill I pass the Minerva Hinchey Shelter. I can see someone sitting inside the shelter reading. I have hiked over 14 miles, and as much as I would like to, I can't afford to stop at this point because I still have four more miles to go to my intended destination and it's already 4:30 PM.
I climb 600 feet over the next ridge and the trail levels out for a little. I'm relieved to be in flat ground, but I'm walking on a narrow path between thick stands of stinging nettle on both sides of the trail thigh high in places. I do manage to find some that hasn't yet flowered and I nibble on the leaves as I walk. I'm glad to see that the younger plants are still quite tender so I can add it back into my diet as a fresh vegetable source.
I go up another 500 feet to a nice view that looks west to the Taconic Range of New York. A small airfield is nestled in the valley between me and the mountains.
The climb down from the mountain is quite steep and slippery with pine needles, and it really slows me down. I've done 16 miles so far, and my legs are starting to feel a little bit like Jello.
At the bottom is the magnificent Clarendon Gorge. The trail crosses the gorge via a suspension bridge. The bridge swings unnervingly as I cross, with rapids crashing below. The water level is relatively low, but the chasm of rushing water is crazy beautiful, nonetheless.
The trail then crosses Virginia Route 103, which takes me a few minutes to cross as cars are loterally whizzing by. The road to the right is on a curve, so when I see a clear spot I run across as fast as possible.
I knew looking at the elevation profile that this next section was going to be steep but sheesh, it is a crazy rock scramble over a jumble of canted boulders. I gain 400 feet of elevation in three tenths of a mile. Now my legs are really screaming!
15 minutes later I'm at the Clarendon shelter. I set up my camp behind the shelter, where there are seven or eight people congregated. I walk up to the shelter to sit and eat dinner in front of an impressive fire in the fire pit.
A woman looks at me and says "I know you!" I look at her thoughtfully; she looks familiar but I can't place where I met her. She says she met me in the Smokies. My first thought is she must be mistaken, since I haven't hiked the Smokies in a few years. But then she says her name is Croft and I remember her! Oh my gosh, I spent one of the worst nights of my life on trail at the Brown shelter with her, Kelly, and GG!
I can't believe that in all the places I could run into somebody that I met several years ago it would be at this shelter on this night! Kelly and I even talked about that crazy night just recently, as it was trauma bonding at best.
We were caught in a terrible rain which raged all afternoon and all night, dumping over three inches of rain. We made it to the Brown Shelter, which was absolutely disgusting, and where we sheltered from the rain crammed together like smelly sardines. Poor Croft got stuck camping outside of the shelter as there was absolutely no more room inside. The shelter had a huge hole in the middle to prevent porcupines from entering, but the smell made it obvious that past residents had used the hole as a urinal.
We chat for a while. Croft is doing a section hike with her son and another woman and her son. She is planning on continuing solo after Killington. I promise to stay and exchange numbers in the morning, as I am dead on my feet.
I say good night and on my hammock at 8:30 PM.
Today's Stats: 18.1 miles, 4,003 feet gain
Trail Stats: 1,692 miles, 329K feet gain
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