Day 23 on the Vermont Long Trail

I did not get much sleep last night because dreamer left a protein bar in her backpack and the mice wanted it. I did not know what they were after until this morning when we found the hole and the protein bar. We also found the mice made it into the bear box! They made it into our food. They did not eat the protein bars but went after the candy bars. Tiny Turtle was furious they ate his Kit Kats.

We packed up around 6:30. Our socks and shoes were wet and cold. The rain was supposed to come in this afternoon so we wanted to get over Camels Hump before it hit. Camels Hump has been portrayed as the monster of the trip. It brings doom and black clouds. Hikers had horror stories of the climb. It was important to get up and over before the weather turned bad.  As we were saying our goodbyes to the other hikers the sprinkles began. Immediately Family Mule yelled at us to get moving quickly. We wanted to head up as far as we could before it become worse. Luckily the rain stopped for the moment but looked as though it could start again any moment. As we neared closer to the climb we saw the black cloud over the summit of Camels Hump. This was unnerving. We took a break and filled our bellies with water and food before pressing on. Tiny Turtle became very reluctant to move forward because he understood the danger. It was hand over hand climbing and if he fell that would be the end. Family Mule gave him a pep talk. He told him that it is amazing how an 8 year old boy and a 12 year old girl is completing this trail. Carrying their own backpacks and completing obstacles that many other people can not or don’t attempt. He also told him if as we are heading to the summit at any point we feel it is absolutely to dangerous we can turn around and take a side trail. Tiny Turtle felt better and agreed to move forward. We placed him in front and I followed closely behind him. Dreamer followed closely behind me and Family Mule took the back just in case of slips. Tiny Turtle did wonderful. He had no problem climbing up. It was not near as bad as previous hikers stories perceived it to be. Thank God! I’m not saying it was not dangerous because it was but as long as you follow the marked path, watch your footing, grab strong holds, and pay attention, you will be fine! It is not a climb I would suggest in the rain however!

When we reached the summit, the view was the best we had yet to see! It was a complete 360  view. We could see Mt. Mansfied, which is our next big obstacle. It is even taller and has some climbs and obstacles similar to Camels Hump. We met the caretaker on the summit. We talked with him and enjoyed the view. His job is just to protect the vegetation on the mountain.  You have to stay on the marked path because otherwise you could destroy the vegetation on the summit. The vegetation growing is rare therefore is protected.

After spending some time just enjoying the view and taking pictures we proceeded down the mountain. Needless to say, the descent was an easy walk to a parking lot. The parking lot is how tourist can easily access the summit without hiking the dangerous side. Once we passed the parking lot the trail had more ups and downs. We stopped and had lunch on one of the overlooks. It was very peaceful and relaxing. We wanted to stay longer but needed to get moving to find a water source. We did not carry much water from this morning because we wanted to be as light as possible for the climb. We knew we had a shelter not far up the trail and could get water there hopefully because we were now out.

We came to a section of the trail that descended using built in wooden stairs. The stairs were logs. I was in the back and before I knew it, I was stung three times on the shoulder by yellow jackets! Between the pain of my knees and ankles, the bee stings, mother nature visiting, and looking for water….I was mad!  I put my trekking poles down and just took a little break on the stairs for a minute. I knew I had to get over it and be happy. Attitude spreads to everyone. As Family Mule says, “If momma aint happy, aint nobody happy”. Family Mule knew I was not happy. He took Dreamer and proceeded onward to find water and give me a little time to myself. That was a smart move. After over 13 years of marriage he should know me and I think he does! Tiny Turtle did not leave me. He stayed back because he was worried for me. He gave me a pep talk. It was so cute because it was basically the same talk we gave him after he was stung by the bee’s. He told me we just have to keep moving one step at a time. He said the pain will stop and I would forget about it later. He took my hand and we continued on the trail. He is growing into such a little gentleman. I am so proud of the little guy.

We came to Dreamer and Family Mule about 15-20 minutes later. They found a water source and were filling up the bottles. The trail was mostly descending after this point. The trail had lots of roots and rocks. Some parts we had to hold on to the trees to keep from slipping down. We made it to Duxbury Window, which had a bench  to rest on while enjoying the overlook. We decided to take a rest and have a snack while we enjoyed the view. We all had a good laugh about the days events. Shortly after we were there, a nice couple hiked in SOBO. They were out for the day and this was their final destination for the day. The man hiked the LT with his teenage children the year before! They were known as The Fam! The mom, an elementary school teacher, had not yet had the privilege of completing the hike but they had plans to do it in the future. He was taking her on parts of it to familiarize her and get her ready. They offered us a ride to town. He remembered how hard it was at times to get into resupplies. He felt indebted to help other hikers as people helped him. We were extremely grateful and we proceeded down the trail together towards their van. We passed a gorgeous waterfall and a bridge as we neared the parking lot. It was about 2-3 miles from Duxbury Window to the parking lot, where they were parked. This was a blessing. We knew we had to make it to the road and then into the town. This was our trail magic and they were our trail angels. We plan to help other hikers in the future as people have helped us during our journey. The nice couple took us to two different hotels to find a room. We ended up staying at the Best Western. It was $180 a night. It had a pool and hot tub. We had dinner in the restaurant, which was delicious and the price was not bad. The staff was very friendly and our room was clean and comfortable. We are looking forward to a good nights rest.