Day 154
Start: Stony Brook Shelter
End: View Stealth Site
Miles Hiked: 18.6
Miles on AT: 1736.8
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When I awoke this morning, I was nice and cozy in my tent. I love waking up and feeling warm and comfy in my quilt, but I hate having to get out and face the chilly morning air. But, I did anyway.
Most of the other hikers were up and almost ready to hit the trail by the time I had packed up and headed to the shelter for breakfast. A few of us were stragglers, including a northbounder who had come in late last night. After eating my breakfast, I said goodbye to the remaining hikers and headed north.
The trail wasn’t too bad this morning, but, I did encounter something I hadn’t seen before. I had come to a small, rocky cliff of sorts on the trail. There was no way to go around the large drop, but luckily someone had placed a 10 foot ladder and strapped it to the rock so that us hikers could descend in a somewhat safe manner. Oh, the AT; it never cease to amaze me.
As I moved on, I had to climb a bit, but it was nothing remarkable. The trail moves through the quiet forest, the sun shine here and there through the leaves. My lunchtime goal was to make it to Luce’s Lookout, a private cabin that was just off trail and open to AT hikers. Hikers on FarOut mentioned that it had spectacular lunchtime views, so I didn’t want to pass that up.
When I got there, I wasn’t disappointed. The climb to the top was a bit scary. A long wooden ladder stood on the outside of the cabin and reached up to a sort of bird’s nest platform on the roof. As I climb, I had to remind myself not to look down; I was high up!
When I reached the top, I wasn’t disappointed. The view was amazing! I could see the Vermont mountains spread out in front of me, and the shining sun warmed my skin. I had the place all to myself for lunch and I made the most of it.
When my lunch break was over, I carefully climbed down and continued on the trail. The trail was actually pretty nice in this section. I sped through most of the day listening to podcasts and enjoying the warm air.
Eventually I reached a road that led to a small town store and, of course, I had to take the detour. My fuel can was running low, so I was hoping that they might have a few in stock, but when I got there, they didn’t have any. No worries, I bought ice cream, kombucha, and snacks instead and hung out on their porch, enjoying my sweet treat. The cashier had been very eager to talk about the trail and the Whites. When he confided his dream to hike the trail one day, I told him, “Do it. You won’t regret trying.”
Fueled by sugar, I road walked back to the trail to finish my last few miles before setting up camp. The spot that I planned to stop at had a wonderful sunset view, so I needed to get there before dark. On my way up the trail, I ran into another SOBO hiker. She said there were still a good number just across the border in NH, and she had seen a bunch of NOBOs as well. I wasn’t out here alone after all!
Eventually, I made it to the top of my climb and found my stealth spot right behind a perfectly placed bench. I still had enough time before sunset to set up my tent and cook my dinner. I enjoyed the show of colors as I ate my warm meal on that bench. I couldn’t have asked for a better evening.
As night fell, I hung my food bag, crawled into my tent, and chatted with Janitor until it was time for sleep. Another great day in the books!
And that’s day 154.
A version of this post originally appeared on TheTrek.co.