I was walking behind some new friends when my right toe caught on a root, not an uncommon occurrence - when you are taking roughly 5,000,000 steps in a line a few are bound to go bad - I caught my balance on my left foot and my heel which has been a little sore since Pennsylvania and spreading to my foot since central Connecticut, suddenly tweaked violently, and my friends disappeared down the trail as I limped through the Vermont mud to the shelter, where I slept; my first shelter since early in Virginia. The next day I hitched into Bennington and couldn't find transportation south so I stayed with Arla, Chris and Todd at the Bennington Vortex where these lovely trail angels have opened their house to thru-hikers. We had a great dinner and jammed for a while in the drum room and played pool in the barn. Next day I made my way to my mom's house where I sit for the moment waiting for my foot to loosen up. It is a mixed blessing, I'm getting lots of rest and a chance to catch up with some more friends in CT. The real trouble is I have committed to a return date for work, and in order to reach Kathadin I am going to have to skip a small section of the trail. For most folks this would be no especially big deal, but I have literally walked back on to the trail at the exact spot where I got off for the entire journey. It's a bit of a psychosis really. I have often made friends wait while I cross a road to the other side where the trail reenters the woods and touch the blaze there so I can touch it again when I start.
The Trail refuses to roll out like you envision it will. Plans are continually frustrated. I suppose the big lesson for me here is that just because a journey doesn't happen the way you would like it to happen, doesn't mean the journey isn't worth taking. The small section of Vermont will bug me I know, but I simply have to get past it, because a week of recovery has already made finishing from Bennington pretty much impossible. So when I am able I will get back on the trail in Hanover NH and make my way through the Whites and through Maine.
Since my last update I finished CT and MA and walked into Vermont. The ridge that encompasses Bear Mtn, Sage's Ravine, Race Mountain, Eagle's Perch, and Everett is still one of my favorite sections of the trail, and stickshift and I walked in opposite directions on a spectacular day.
One day after our slackathon ended and I left my mom's car for a full pack, my cousin who lives in Western MA texted me with a pick-up point and I spent a few days slacking from their house. Barb walked with me a bit as well which was fun. Saturday night they took me to Tanglewood, one of my all time favorite places, and we watch John Williams and the Boston Pops perform some of his movie themes. Robert Osborne from TCM was the host. I was bummed because it was a tribute to Spielberg so Star Wars wasn't included, but I was especially bummed that the ignored Indiana Jones. Turns out it was the surprise finale. Totally Awesome!
The next day I climbed up and over Greylock and the next day up into the Green mountains. That's when the wheels started to come off. The good news is I woke today without heel pain, I've been rehabbing it, and it isn't too bad when I walk so I think I'm on track to resume. Only time will tell.
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