VT Long Trail Days 16-17
Day 16
It was a typical morning for me other than it being summit day for the tallest mountain in Vermont! Up at 0615, breakfast, pack, and out by 0720.
Since I was partly up the climb, the trail started out all uphill and wasn't long before it turned into sporadic scrambling.
I really enjoyed the morning climbing up Mansfield. It was clear, cold, and beautiful.
The farther up I got the forehead section (Mansfield I guess looks like a guy laying down? forehead, nose, chin, adams apple), the more scrambling there was.
I also reached the little bridge that had been hyped up for the SoBos, but I hadn't heard any mention of until they said it was overhyped. I can see how it could scare some people. If you slipped, you’d be going down a cliff, but it was only about 7’ long, though wet wood, which is slippery.
A few more small and fun scrambles and ladders later…
And I was on top of the forehead where the trail evened out and got much easier for a while.
The view was expansive. I could see the Adirondack mountains I had climbed a few months before.
I stopped at the visitor center, but it was still closed, being only 0830. Maybe next time.
I kept on towards the summit walking on the occasional wood planks to keep people out of the water. Turns out it was cold and windy enough for them to be icy. I stepped on one and my foot slid all the way to the other end. No idea how I didn't fall.
The summit was perfect. It was cold and starting to get busy, but plenty of space still. I stood on the high point, briefly being the tallest person in VT.
I took a bunch of photos on the summit.
I also took some for others getting mine taken in return.
After getting my fill of photos, I began the descent. It was getting noticeably busier, not surprising since it was a perfect Saturday morning in peak fall foliage.
Dropping down the chin was a lot of pretty easy scrambling that required tossing my poles down so I could use my arms to lower myself down. None of it felt sketchy and it was mostly just fun.
I headed off the LT to check out the view from the adams apple. It wasn't as good as the summit, but I’m still glad I made the very short trip over.
Once I was back on the LT, it was slow going for a while. There were still big steps down that I couldn't rush without destroying my knees, but about halfway down, the trail turned into easier, faster hiking without so many rocks and roots to navigate.
After crossing the road, I had a really lovely walk around a beaver pond on some very nice boardwalks.
Tons of people were in this area for the day. I was pretty much at Smuggler’s Notch.
It did lead to a nice chat with a guy out there with his kids. He hiked the trail a few years back and when I saw him again at the visitor center, he had an apple cider donut for me!
The woman working at the visitor center also had trail magic for me! She brought out an Untapped Maple Waffle. She said she likes to give them to thru hikers. It was so kind and made my already great morning even better.
Of course, what goes down, on this trail, must go back up again. The climb from the visitors center back up was steep, but not technical which made it easier to move quickly. I passed a bunch of groups out for the day, many headed to the pond near the top.
I took a short side trip to check out some cliffs on my way up. I dropped my pack off and buckled it to a tree while I headed down. The view was good, but more of an opening in trees, than great expanse.
I trotted back up, reclaimed my pack from the woods, and headed through gorgeous foliage to the pond.
At the pond, I chatted with the caretaker, letting her know the Butler caretaker said hi, They were playing a game of tag using the thru hikers to send messages. It was fun to be part of it. The pond was really cute and pretty busy, but again, it was beautiful weather on a Saturday.
Just beyond the pond, I was on the ski slopes of Smuggler’s Notch Resort. I grabbed a photo for a pair of hikers and took one for myself before heading back to trail to make progress.
I had two more steep climbs and a big drop before I could stop for the night. I already told my spouse I would finish on Tuesday and he booked a flight. I was now on a real schedule.
Madonna Peak definitely had my anxiety ratcheting up. It was slippery, steep, slow, and 1430. I was worried about my timing. The trail was not as quick as earlier. I still had 6 miles, 1000’ gain, and 3000’ loss to go to the shelter to be in a good position to finish at a reasonable hour in 2.5 days.
I passed more ski slopes with nice views. They were also fast to walk on and I was feeling a little better about time.
After more steep climbs and drops that were slow…
I reached Whiteface shelter at 1630. It would be later than normal when I hit the next one, but early enough to keep trying. I could always tent if the trail stayed too slow.
The slope angle of the trail did eventually lessen as I got lower and I was able to move more quickly and enjoy how the trees were growing right on top of rocks.
The notes said the water at the Bear Hollow shelter was not good, so I grabbed some at the stream right before it. I reached the shelter just after sunset and right before dark really started setting in. I had the place to myself for the night.
Day 17
The mornings were getting colder and I wore my hat and mittens much of the day.
My first few miles flew by. I had easy walking down the rest of the mountain to the road where I would turn off trail onto a bike path, then onto the road itself for a mile to stop at the Dollar General for a top off on food. It went by quickly and I could make up some miles.
At the Dollar General, I got a few ramens, potatoes, Cheezits, breakfast bars, and halloween candy. I dumped it all in the top of my backpack and headed back to trail all before 0915.
The day was relatively uneventful after the quick town stop. I had a bunch of climbs, but none that were overly technical and slow like the day before. I did walk through a maze of a maple sap harvesting setup. The trail was on private property for a little while and there were tubes connecting all the trees. It was both fun to see and annoying because there was no regard for the height of the tubes zigzagging across the trail. You’d think they wouldn't want them at a height where people may walk into them and damage them.
I had a couple good view points throughout the day on the summits of the smaller mountains like Laraway and Butternut.
It would be another late evening, but the elevation wasn't as intense for the amount of miles so it didn't feel as bad. 17 miles with 6000’ gain vs 24 miles with 6200’ gain. I arrived at Spruce Lodge at 1840. Same as the day before. There was already another hiker settled in for the evening who was surprised at my late arrival and mileage. I ate dinner on the porch and was in bed at a reasonable hour, 2000.
One more post to follow. Check back Oct 21.
