8/07/01
I was the first guy out of the shelter this morning as I was hoping to beat the heat and get some miles done before it became unbearable. The New Hampshire mountains are usually cool this time of year with normal lows in the 40s and 50s. Such has not been the case since we left Hanover! The goal was Glencliff for a food pickup at the PO so I wasted no time getting up to the top of Mt. Cube as the sweat poured off my body. Even going down the other side I sweated profusely in the late morning heat. The profile showed fairly easy terrain all the way into Glencliff, but the hiking was tough due to rocks and boulders along the way. I was frustrated and in a bad mood by the time I climbed Ore Hill, which showed on the profile map as an insignificant climb. The heat was nearly unbearable and I felt sick as I hiked on, despite drinking an enormous quantity of water. I didn't feel like eating lunch in the heat, so I snacked briefly before moving on down the trail. One final climb up Mt. Mist in mid-afternoon was extremely tough due to the heat, though the climb itself was gradual and easy. Finally the trail dropped steeply to the road crossing at Glencliff and I trudged the .3 mile to the PO in the hot sun. I arrived at the PO at 4:15 p.m. with 45 minutes to spare until closing. As I walked by I saw that Priceless had already arrived at the Hiker's Welcome hostel across the street from the PO, as he had taken a shortcut and skipped part of the afternoon hike. Greenlight was at the PO sorting his packages so he and I engaged in conversation while repacking our food and gear.
I mailed a package home, then hiked across the street to the hostel where I found Priceless relaxing and Phantom working in the yard to earn a "work for stay". A work for stay allows the hiker to stay for free by earning his keep. I volunteered to do the work for stay (what was I thinking?) so far an hour I moved rocks from the yard to an established rock pile for later wall construction. Obviously the heat had already destroyed my smart brain cells or I would have gladly forked out the $12 hostel fee and relaxed. But no, I had to jump in along with Phantom, Redneck and Finn, who also participated in the work for stay. The hostel is owned and managed by two former thru-hikers who also own a custom backpacking equipment company (Moonbow). They had set up in the yard many custom tarps and shelters featuring the ultralite sil nylon material with bug netting. They invited us to spend the night in any of the shelters displayed in the yard if we wanted to as an alternative to the bunks above the garage. After our work was completed (there was no time limit, we only had to work as long as we wanted), we waited for a shuttle ride to nearby Warren, NH to the deli in the convenience store. At 6:50 we piled into a van (Finn, Phantom, Red Neck, Bad Moon, two Sobos, me and the driver). When we got to the convenience store they refused to make us sandwiches even though we were there before the 7 p.m. closing time, so we all bought frozen foods and snacks to take back to the hostel. Soon we had the microwave going. I ate two meals and drank a quart of chocolate milk for my dinner. The hot shower located outside felt great, but ultimately I switched to cold water to cool down before getting in my tent for the night. The heat from the day was still affecting my body as I continued to feel sick from its effects. I lay in the tent motionless while trying to cool off as darkness fell. I was too hot, too tired, and too puny to journal as I fell 6 days behind on the never ending process. I contemplated quitting the journal, then decided that I would regret not capturing the memories if I stopped. I studied the profile map in the tent and got myself pumped up about tomorrow's climb up the intimidating Mt. Moosilauke. Finally I drifted off to sleep in the stifling New Hampshire heat. Today's stats: low 72, high 90. Partly sunny and hot. Today's mileage: 14.7; cumulative mileage: 1769.6 (less than 400 miles to go! Yippee! ! !
