Kevin's AT Thru Hike

Day 127, Thursday, 7/21 – I broke camp and hiked a short distance to Gifford Woods State Park. As I entered the park, I met Shams and Bliss who were camping there. They called me over and gave me a sparkling water. I hung out and chatted about my journey for a while. They also gave me some quarters so I could take a hot shower.

I left Shams and Bliss and took a shower at the campsite. There wasn’t any soap, but the hot water itself felt good enough. It was well worth the stop. After leaving the campsite, I stopped with Gandalf for a snack break before the big climb up Quimby. I climbed up a huge hill and completely sweat through my shirt.

On the top of Quimby, I heard a thunderstorm rolling in. There was a shelter that was not too far away, so I tried to hustle to the shelter to avoid the storm. I was probably a half mile away when I heard a huge thunder bolt rip directly overhead. The sky opened up and I got absolutely drenched. I got to the shelter and met SIS. SIS was more fortunate and didn’t get rained on. I started eating lunch, and Gandalf came in out of the rain.

Eventually the rain slowed and it looked like it was clearing up. SIS decided to hike out, and it pretty much immediately started pouring again. Gandalf and I waited out the weather, and then hiked out.

I looked ahead at camping options and decided to end my hike at The Lookout. The Lookout is a privately owned cabin that is open to hikers. I was half a mile away from The Lookout when a huge thunder bolt ripped directly overhead. The sky opened up and I got absolutely drenched… again.

I hiked 16 miles to The Lookout (Mile 1722). Little One was already set up in the cabin and Gandalf showed up shortly after. I hung up my items to dry out, then made dinner. There weren’t many hikers inside, so I decided to set up my hammock inside from the cabin structure. It took up a lot of space, but wasn’t really in the way.

Eventually the rain cleared up, and Birthday and Aqua hiked up to The Lookout. The Lookout has a deck built on top of the cabin. Aqua cooked dinner on the deck, and I joined her. The view from the Lookout was absolutely gorgeous, and became my favorite place in Vermont. It’s a highlight of the trip.

As it got later, more hikers started coming in. I was also getting a nasty headache. I decided to head down from the deck so I could tidy up my items. I cleaned up a bit, laid down, and passed out.