[at-l] Trip Report - A Wet Walk

[rafe.bustin@verizon.net (Raphael Bustin)]

Hanover - Dartmouth Coop to Lyme-Dorchester Road.
6/21-6/22/00


Left work shortly after noon on Friday 6/21.  Took
a bit over two hours to get to the Dartmouth Coop.
(Someone on AT-L had told me that this was where I
would find the AT leading into town from the north --
nice tip, thanks!)

Dropped off the pack in the woods near the trail-
head (along the edge of the playing fields out
behind the Coop.)

Continued on (by car) to the trailhead at Lyme-
Dorchester Road.  Parked the car and proceeded back
to the Coop by bike.  A 13.5 mile ride, which took
about an hour and a half.  Parked the bike in the
woods and locked it to a tree.  Changed into hiking
boots and shorts, and began walking uphill at about
5 PM.

It's been a seriously hot day -- summer has arrived
with a blast.  82 degrees or so on my pack's thermo-
meter as I began hiking.

A short uphill hike to Velvet Rocks shelter.
Nobody there but me.  But hey, it's the summer
solstice, and it's only 6 PM, and my legs are
ready to walk.  I left a note in the shelter
register, and read a few entries.  Saw Papa
Bear's entry (6/10 I think.)  Plus another thru
hiker (2002) going by the name Navigator.  I
walked uphill a bit behind the shelter and
checked out the view... not bad.  Worried about
the fact that this shelter is just too
accessible from the road.  I can still hear
road/traffic noises.  I'm outta here.

Pretty mellow walking for the next several
hours.  The trail crosses some meadows, a
nice change from the dense green tunnel.
Particularly just around dusk... there was
a haunting 3/4 moon, the humidity giving it
a nice halo.  Fireflies were lighting up the
edges of the meadows.  Lots of toads in
the woods!

At this point I did something quite new and
original (for me...) -- I began walking by
the light of my headlamp.  The air temperature
was coming down nicely, and it was a pleasure
to cruise along, albeit in the dark.

The last road crossing last night indicated
that I was beginning the ascent of Moose Mtn.
But I really didn't plan to climb it in the dark.
The trail started getting a bit rough, and I tripped
a few times on roots and rocks.Maybe time to
find a campsite.. which I did, around 10:30
or so.  Very nice.  Set up the tent with the
fly up (just four stakes) and hit the hay, had
a pretty good night's sleep.

Woke around 6:30 AM to a dark gray sky.  I had
heard predictions of thunderstorms for the
afternoon, but it looked like they were imminent.
Decided to skip breakfast and make some miles --
I figured I was only an hour or so from Moose
Mtn. Shelter, and could have breakfast there.

That turned out to be a good plan.  Within
minutes after starting uphill from my campsite,
I heard peals of thunder.  A few minutes later,
the rain began to fall.  I arrived at Moose Mtn.
shelter after about an hour's walk, drenched
to the bone.  (The shelter is 0.3 miles down
a muddy access road.  Aaargh.  Damn.)

Before settling in, I gathered up several
thick handfuls of twigs and sticks for the
Zip stove.  Peeled off the wet t-shirt, put
on a dry polypropylene top.  With the help
of a bit of alcohol, the zip started up
with a whoosh, and burned the wet wood nicely
for the next hour or so.  Enough for tea, then
some Liptons, then hot water to clean the pot,
followed by more tea, and my own personal
campfire for a half-hour or so.

NOTE -- I did NOT pour alcohol into the stove!
What I did was pour about 2 tbsps of alcohol
into a small ziploc, add a bunch of twigs, and
swish it all around.  Then the drunken twigs
were put in the stove chamber.  Anyway, that's
the best wet-wood-firestarter strategy I've
come up with so far, in the couple of weeks
that I've owned this stove.  Better living
through chemistry, and all that.

11 AM rolled around and it was still raining.
I figured I'd die of boredom in the shelter if
I had to stay there all day.  I also figured
that with a modicum of effort, I could make it
back to the car by mid-afternoon, rain not-
withstanding.  Which is what I did.  Donned
Goretex top-to-bottom, including my OR hat
and gaitors.  Nothing underneath.

An hour of walking got me to the north summit
of Moose Mtn.   Another hour to get down the
mountain to Goose Pond Road.  Just north of
Goose Pond Road the trail skirts a marsh, and
there was some beautiful wild iris growing.
I stopped for a photo, paying dearly with a
thousand mosquito bites in the course of that
sixty seconds or so.

The hike up over, and down Holts' Ledge was
pretty uneventful, took a bit over two hours.
On a nice day I think there would be gorgeous
views east and north, but today there was just
a wall of white.

Met only three other hikers on the trip.  A
couple with backpacks heading south, and a
solitary gentleman in Ed Garvey-style gear,
wielding an umbrella (but no pack.)

Observations.... my first hike with Lekis.
I'm sold.  Should have done this a long time
ago.  Sorry, Weary.  Seemed like a lot less
wasted energy, a lot less side-to-side
swaying, walking more upright.. what's not
to like?  Of course, one of the poles lost
its carbide tip within the first few miles
of hiking.  Is this normal?  (I suspect not.)
Plus, the handle kept popping off one of
the poles.

Zip stove:  A winner, also.  Still wondering
how long it will go on one battery.

Petzl Tikka headlamp:  Great.  Battery life
still unknown.  A lot of light from a really
small package.

New Dunham "Green Mountain" lightweight boots.
Great!  In spite of walking with wet feet all
day today, no hint of hot spots or blisters,
and no crushed toes.  A good fit, both uphill
and down -- from mail-order boots!  The
"waterproof" claim is a lie, of course.

The downsides:  my Goretex doesn't Gore anymore.
Not even close.  After an hour or two in the
rain, I was soaked to the bone.  Still works
as a windbreaker, though.

Chafing of the thighs is still a nasty problem,
in fact, it's been my #1 problem hiking for
several years now.  Not sure what to do about
it.  Quite painful, if the truth be known.

Anyway, a wild wet hike.  I had planned to do
it at a more leisurely pace with two nights in
the woods, but with home so close, it seemed
silly to stay at the Trapper John Shelter, so
close to my hike's end.


rafe
aka terrapin