Stories from the Trail: Find a Penny, Pick it Up

After I did the math, things weren’t looking so good.

It was about an hour from the lodge to the Mount Cabot trailhead where I’d hike 9.6 miles (book time 6:00) then travel an hour to the Starr King trailhead where I’d hike Mount Waumbek 7.2 miles (book time 4:55) then get in my car and drive half an hour to the Highland Center for dinner at 6pm.

The mileage (16.8) and the elevation gain (5050 feet) weren’t as off-putting as the fact that I’d most likely be missing a BANGING dinner if I attempted both hikes in one day.

On Saturday night I contemplated several options for Plan B. I had yet to reach a verdict when I woke up on Sunday morning. Part of me still wanted to give it a go BUT after waiting an extra half hour for (extremely delicious) coffee to be set out AND being unable to locate the trailhead for half an hour those dreams began to fade.

At 7:35AM I found the York Pond Trail and started my journey to Mount Cabot. Not even a minute had passed when I looked down and saw a penny. It was on heads. I took two steps by it, turned around and picked it up. I dug deep, found an extra gear and crushed Cabot in three and a half hours.

I was off the trail just after 11AM and ate lunch in the car while on my way to Mount Waumbek where I proceeded to crush it again in two hours and forty five minutes. This gave me enough time to drive to the Highland Center, shower and do yoga before dinner.

Miles: 16.8
Elevation Gain: 5050 feet
Time: About 6:15

Stories from the Trail: Dana and Piper

It took me over eight hours to get to the AMC Highland Center. When I checked in it was close to 9PM. The guy at the desk told me that several people had encountered traffic and it was most likely due to the fact that it was motorcycle weekend.

On my way in I noticed a woman (with a large pack and a cute dog) on her phone. She was speaking loudly about the horrible day she had. By the time I had finished at the desk she had made her way inside and was inquiring about a shuttle to a local campground. No shuttles were running and both of the desk attendants were unable to take her. I asked how far away it was (about six miles up the road) and volunteered to drive her.

When we arrived, the campground was at capacity so we turned around and headed back to the Highland Center. I offered to let her sleep in my car. She called her boyfriend (who must be one hell of a guy) and he agreed to make the two hour drive to get her.

At this point I hadn’t even gotten her name (Dana and her dog was Piper) but it didn’t really matter. She was supposed to be spending the night at tent site on trail, but had gotten turned around (due to poorly maintained trails) and ended up on the side of the road (302) by the Highland Center.

I gathered my stuff from the trunk and she thanked me...it was really no problem, if I was in your situation I would want someone to do the same for me. She told me she would not forget this encounter. To me, that is more powerful than hearing the words “thank you.”

A Wild Ride

I hit the road at Noon. My destination was the AMC Highland Center in Bretton Woods, NH. I will never forget that location because I checked the 10 day forecast for the past two weeks.

Thanks to Hoagiefest at Wawa I was all set. If you don’t know what Wawa is, you’re missing out. I opted for a salad instead of chips, grabbed two containers of coconut water and was on my way. As a side note, sandwiches and salads are not the best choices if you need to eat while driving.

There is always traffic in Connecticut. What do people in Connecticut do? Why are there always so many cars on the road there at all hours? Once I hit Massachusetts it was smooth sailing.

It was just before 8pm when I arrived. The man who checked me in gave me an ID card for the dining hall and a key to my room. The room had two sets of double bunk beds. The shared bathroom was in the hallway. I feared that my late arrival would land me on the top bunk, but when I opened the door, there was only one bag in the room. I placed my stuff on the bottom bunk and went to explore. I returned to an empty room and got ready for bed. Someone walked in as I was about to turn off my reading lamp. Her name was Kristen. We chatted and I asked if we were the only two people in the room. She said that another woman had come in briefly, dropped her purse and left.

I said good night, put in my ear plugs and pulled the covers over my head. It was still dark when a noise startled me. I opened my eyes and there was a woman sitting at the edge of my bed, staring at me. She was rambling and none of it made sense. Her hands touched my head and she commented on how pretty my hair was. I turned on the light. She scampered across the room and began hopping up and down on Kristen’s bed. 

The next thing I knew, the sun was up, Kristen was sound asleep and the top two bunks were empty. I grabbed my bag and headed to the bathroom. That was one crazy dream, at least I think it was.