8/3/12 – 1543 miles
One of the things that used to bug Kleenex was the fact that I never had much of a plan each day. She gets mail drops, meets people in certain towns, and has somewhat of a deadline that she’s working on. She even plans where she will eat lunch each day. I on the other hand just fly by the seat of my pants. When I was with her, I was matching miles and not thinking to much about where I was. It seems like more of an adventure if I let my body tell me how far to go.
I hiked most of the day with Lucky 10, someone I’d met a few weeks ago and caught up to when he took a few days off. The hiking has been miserable with so much heat and humidity, and we have to carry more water because so many streems have been dry.
I pulled ahead of Lucky 10 towards the end of the day and made it to Upper Goose Pond Cabin a few minutes ahead of him. I took a swim in the lake and sat on the dock drying in the sun. It is the first time I have swam on my hike and I must say it felt good.
I claimed one of the bunks in the cabin and sat around talking with hikers as they drifter in throughout the afternoon. By evening every bunk was filled – about fifteen in all. We are still meeting a lot of SOBO’s and getting info about place and food coming up on the trail.
In the morning the caretakers made blueberry pancakes and coffee for breakfast. Some of the hikers were staying at the cabin, taking the canoe out on the lake, swimming, or just relaxing for a while, but I packed and left.