7/25/01
This late morning's questions were how to spend a zero mile day in Manchester Center, Vermont, and where to spend the night tonight. I needed to sleep in after another rough hour of coughing outside the motel room last night between 1 and 2 a.m. At least it was a warm night while I hacked on a picnic table outside our shared motel room. I finally woke the three sleeping thru-hikers around me at 10:00 a.m. since official checkout time was 11 and we had two illegal immigrants in the room. OK, they weren't illegal, but it seemed ludicrous to pay the motel an extra $20 for two people sleeping on the floor when we had already forked out $75 for the first two of us. Beatle, Animal and Redneck slipped out while I went to return the room key. Fortunately the free shuttle bus to town ran from the clinic next door at 11:08 so the timing was perfect. Minutes later Redneck and I visited McDonalds for lunch while Beatle and Animal went their separate ways to do things in town. McDonalds seemed like a great place for me to chill out for a few hours to catch up on the journaling, so I did just that while watching our backpacks for a couple of hours. From there Redneck and The Mighty Finn (another NoBo thru-hiker I just met) and I went to the outfitter. My backpack has been giving me problems still with improper fit and some discomfort. Anne, co-owner of the Mountain Goat, did an excellent job refitting the shoulder harness and I switched out the hip belt from a men's medium to a woman's small. Hmmm...what's the opposite of the saying, "I outgrew it"? I ingrew it? I outshrunk it? Anyway, my darn waist is now too small for the medium size hip belt to properly grab my hips and handle the packs weight, so Anne got me all fixed up.
I then bolted from the Mountain Goat to the PO before it closed to mail a box with journals, film and a used hip belt to Mom and Dad Rabbit. I then tried in vain to get a haircut at two different salons. I know it's hard to believe, but the skinned Rabbit's hair grew back and is getting a little too wild for my taste. Besides, I kinda miss the corporate look...have I been in the woods too long? Going back to my roots? or just starting to think about the real world (work...ugh) after the trail journey ends? In any case, chagrined that I was unable to get the haircut, I meandered the streets of Manchester center gawking at the dozens and dozens of outlets, thinking how much fun Red Pepper and Mom Rabbit could have in this town. I found my way back to the outfitter to retrieve my pack and see what the guys (Finn and Redneck) were up to. They were still inside flirting with the employees, Laura and Anne, so I dragged them out because my ever present hunger said it was time for dinner. By the way, we had learned earlier in the day of a brand new opportunity for lodging, available to hikers just out of town and I had already called Sara and Peter (managing proprietors) to reserve us a space. The Sirloin Saloon was calling our names, so Redneck, Finn and I made tracks getting there by 6:30 p.m. Since we had just passed the 3/4 mark on our journey, I was in a festive mood and sprung for a nice bottle of Firestone Merlot to go with out steaks and seafood dinner. We enjoyed a great salad bar and bread prior to the entrees but were a little disappointed with the quality of the entrees themselves.
After the dinner we returned to P.T.Nelsons for a couple of cocktails before calling Peter and Sara to pick us up. Around 9 p.m. Peter arrived and drove us to "The Olde English Inn" in the countryside away from town. As he drove, he shared the unique and interesting history of the inn with us. The original house was built by an Englishman as a gift for his intended wife, who instead ran off with the coachman, leaving the poor Englishman heartbroken and the 28 room house empty for 35 years. The 9000' structure then passed through several owners from the 1901 date it was built to the present. It has served as a boarding house, an inn, a facility for elderly folks, and most recently has become a boarding house again, primarily housing music students and apprentice chefs of local fine restaurants who are learning the trade. Peter gave us the grand tour, starting on the first floor where we found Beatle and his girlfriend Sara in the TV room watching Starwars. Sara flew from her home in Paraguay to New York, then took a bus to Manchester to meet Beatle to hike with him for the next month. From there we saw a large kitchen and foyer, then were led to the 2nd floor and finally to the third floor where our rooms were located. Redneck and I took the corner room with two twin beds and a half bath while Finn took the next room. I took a nice long shower, then got ready for bed to get a jump on sleep since I knew that my cough would soon return. The nights quarters were fabulous, our hosts Sarah and Peter most gracious, and it was exciting to sleep in such an interesting and history laden mansion. The adventure continues and the best is yet to come.
