Saturday, April 30th

Windsor Furnace Shelter (1226.0 mi) to The Shanty at Blue Mountain (1246.7 mi)

Hiking Miles: 20.7

Total Ascent: 2,536.7 ft

Total Descent: 2,054.5 ft

Total Grade: 267.8 ft/mi

Steps: 45,885

Today was a 20-mile day filled with much anticipation of sleeping in a hostel and potentially celebrating a 2-day 50-miler by having a beer and a bourbon. There was a mix of hills (both up and down), many of them gradual and we talked to a number of people that we either passed going southbound, or were headed our way. One older gentleman offered us water if we would stop to talk with him, but we declined since we were crunched for time. We thanked him though and went on our way. The views at times were beautiful, and the skies were clear.

Towards the end of our day’s hike, we were pressing to make it to the trailhead in time for Lynn (Blue Mountain Girl and also the hostel owner) to pick us up, and more so to spend a little time at the Thunder Lodge enjoying a bourbon and possibly a beer. With four miles to go, we were completely out of water, and I was sluggish. But Stevie slack packed a half mile to a stream and brought back water. That was a great pick me up because after chugging a liter of water and rehydrating, we literally sprinted the last 4 miles to the Thunder Lodge.

SHOUT OUT to the TARGET TEAM:

We made it to the Thunder Lodge by 5:15 pm, and had Diet Cokes, a Four Roses bourbon, and cheesy fries at the bar while we waited for our pick-up. Stevie also had a Miller beer. Our bartender was new and a more experienced lady bartender coached him on not serving double bourbons (which was a bummer). However I could certainly understand hikers wanting larger shots (like everything else) when it came to relaxing or recharging. I did order three cokes over the time we sat at the bar, and he charged me for every one! Again, I could see “some” hikers drinking Coke all night. (-:

Lynn was attending a concert this evening, so her girlfriend’s husband, Jesse, picked us up at 6:15 pm to drive us to the Shanty – Lynn’s beautiful home. Her two indoor cats, Pepper and Spicy were very friendly and greeted us at the door. She had left us two pages of notes and instructions to help us during our stay. On our way to the hostel, Jesse informed us that Lynn was a veterinarian, and she had pictures of birds on her living room wall. How interesting, particularly with Christina being a Vet.

We ordered food to be delivered – Taco pizza, eggplant parmesan sandwich, a chicken salad and onion rings. We offered a piece to a hiker named Sean who was staying in the B&B in Lynn’s backyard. Sean was from Dunstable, MA, not too far from where we are in Hollis, and he was visiting a friend of his attending Leheigh University.

We each drank a Yeungling beer that Lynn left for us in the fridge, and after dinner we showered and went to bed early. We had a quaint room at the top of the stairs to the left, and it was very comfortable. Pepper (girl cat) stayed with me on the bed for the evening. Stevie slept on a pad on the floor.

Oh, one last thing – Lynn was a huge Beatle’s fan and she had their songs streaming in the background throughout her hostel. This one was another ear worm for me!