7/29/01
With great anticipation today has been a day I've been waiting for for a long time. Killington Peak was today's destination, a place I have visited on more than one occasion when snow skiing. Only this time, I would have to face hiking from the bottom to the top instead of enjoying the comfort and convenience of a car and a chairlift to the top. Phantom and I were the last to leave the Clarendon shelter this morning with a 9:30 a.m. start for me and a 10:00 start for Phantom. Beacon Hill was the first challenge, a steep climb followed by more ups and downs (translation: PUDs) before descending slightly to Gould Brook. I caught up to two Nobo thru-hikers at the brook (Patrick and Badger from Oxford, England) who were enjoying some trail magic sodas left in the brook by the Hiking Gnome. I eagerly joined them for a brief moment before they pressed on, leaving me alone to enjoy a cool soda and a candy bar at the picturesque spot. I didn't linger, knowing that a huge climb awaited just ahead. At the Governor Clement shelter I caught up to Finn, Redneck, Patrick and Badger, who had all stopped for a snack. I decided that an early lunch would give me some additional energy for the 2000' climb over the next four miles to Killington Peak. As we all sat enjoying food and sunshine, we heard a crackling sound in the forest. At first I thought it was Phantom catching up to us, but instead, it was the first moose I've seen on the journey. He was a huge bull moose complete with tremendous antlers. We all fumbled for cameras on impulse and collectively exited the shelter area for a better look at the big guy. He didn't take too kindly to a crowd of thru-hikers with cameras pointed at him and he departed the scene very quickly, with the sound of branches and foliage crashing under his tremendous weight as he fled. It was a thrilling moment and we all were excited by the moose sighting.
Phantom arrived just after the show ended and I was disappointed that he didn't get to participate in the fun. I waited until Phantom was ready and we departed the shelter together to tackle the climb to Killington Peak. The first 1000' were fairly easy despite a steady climb for two miles. Then the trail became rugged with lots and lots of roots and rocks to negotiate, which made good footing cumbersome and the progress slow. Finally, after feeling beat up and stopping for a couple of minutes to rest, we emerged to the Cooper Lodge shelter and tenting area at 3900' and located directly below the summit. The blue blazed side trail to the summit was only .2 mile, but it was, I believe, the steepest climb we've faced on the entire AT adventure, similar in distance to the rock scramble way back on Mt. Albert in NC, but consistently steeper all the way up. At the top we popped out by an old fire tower and an awesome rock outcrop offering tremendous views to the south, west and northwest. After collectively catching our breaths, Phantom and I descended several feet over the course of a couple of hundred yards to the Killington Gondola and Summit Restaurant and snackbar. The area was littered with cyclists who were enjoying mountain biking all over the mountains multitude of trails, many of which follow the ski trails used in the winter months by skiers. Inside the restaurant we found the rest of the gang. We bought a snack and a soda (at ridiculously high prices) and sat down with the gang to relax and soak up the views. One advantage to scaling the mountain as thru-hikers was a free gondola ride to the bottom and back, so Finn, Redneck, Phantom and I piled in a gondola car (built for four) and made the roundtrip ride before returning down the steep blue blaze trail to Cooper Lodge shelter.
From there we continued north on the newly re-routed AT. At the junction point with the old AT, we debated whether to hike new or old, but ultimately all decided to stay on the white blazes (I've gone too far not to be a purist the rest of the way to Maine!). Finn took off ahead of us, but Redneck and Phantom and I hiked the next six miles to VT Route 4 at Sherburne Pass together. Upon reaching the busy highway which connects Rutland, VT to Killington and points east, we attempted a hitch to save the mile of hiking on the road to the Long Trail Inn. I had already covered a half mile on foot while Redneck diligently continued thumbing and was barely in sight when he successfully snagged a ride. The pickup stopped to pick me up and a minute later we were at the Long Trail Inn parking lot. Redneck, Phantom and I went inside and split a two room bathroom suite for the night. We knew that Finn was doing some extra mileage but would return to the Inn, so we went to our room and took those fabulous showers we all look forward to so much. We saw Finn from our window and soon he was with us for the night as well. The evening was very enjoyable, with the four of us as well as China Girl and Lucky Duck, Stray Cat, and Patrick and Badger, all in the bar, as well as some Sobos. The four of us stuck together through the evening at the bar, enjoying Guinness Stout and Guinness Stew as well as nachos and other delectable foods. We called it a night by 11 p.m. and the four of us quickly found our beds for the night. Despite the tough terrain and large climb and descent, the evening together at the historic Long Trail Inn cured all our pains and made for a great day on the trail. Today's stats: low 55, high 70 (top of Killington), 80 at the Inn. Sunny to partly cloudy. Today's tough miles; 16.5; cumulative mileage: 1681.4. Wow, less than 500 miles now left to hike to Katahdin! Onward to Maine! ! !
