(Sat. 7/6/12) Killington, VT (Phone Update)

Brett was staying at The Inn at Long Trail, near where The Long Trail and the Appalachian Trail split. Brett said it had rained all day and he was tired. He decided to share a hotel room with another hiker, Gun Runner.

I asked how Brett's Fourth of July celebration was. He said it was a bust. He got a rider to a soccer field in town to participate in the festivities. They had a nice presentation before the fireworks but they had to delay the fireworks because of a big lightning storm the next town over. They delayed again. And again. Then there were reports of hail the next town over, so they had to cancel the fireworks altogether. Brett had to walk to meet back up with his ride and ended up soaking wet. Bummer.

Brett said he crossed the point where there are less than 500 miles left to go. He still faces mental challenges every day.  Every hill is still a challenge.

Killington is the first 4,000-ft. climb since maybe VA. He met up with four college kids were there hiking Killington as part of a reunion. He climbed with them and talked the whole way. Brett said it was nice to have the company while climbing. It made it go by faster and easier.

I asked Brett if he could feel that the uphill climbs were easier now that he has been hiking for over four months. Brett said that every climb is tough. But the recovery after a climb is quicker and the breaks are shorter.

We talked about wildlife on the trail. Brett had not seen a moose, but he did see moose turd. He saw a porcupine in New York. And he saw a bear in Mass. Brett was a switchback down from the bear. The bear came down from a tree, sat on the trail, and walked off.

Brett said that he hasn't been hiking with many other hikers. There was a section hiker, G-Paw (?) that Brett had been enjoying hiking with. But he broke his wrist and was now off the trail. Brett said he is about two weeks ahead of the pack. Brett left in mid/late February, and most set off in March. Brett said he "had my lonely fill" and would be okay with some more people.

(Tue. 7/3/12) Manchester Center, VT (Phone Update)

The text that I received from Brett on Mon. 7/2/12 is typical: "I should be able to call tomorrow. Terrible cell coverage in VT." Of course, we traded texts back and forth on Tuesday trying to figure out when we would be free to talk. I was spending the morning with family at a hot air balloon festival when he called. Brett was in the middle of eating lunch when I returned his call. We traded a few more texts working out our schedules and finally talked that afternoon.

Brett said the Green Mountains in Vermont were really nice. He had a few tough days of exhaustion where his muscles just didn't seem to want to work any more. So he planned on taking it easy and resting a bit.

He was staying at Green Mountain House Hiker Hostel in Manchester, VT. He said it was a really nice place. In fact, it was the nicest place he has ever stayed in on the trail. They give all of their guests a free pint of Ben & Jerry's ice cream.

My parents were able to meet up with Brett the day before. They went out for dinner and took Brett to a grocery store to resupply. I asked Brett if they said anything about his appearance. I had told my parents that Brett had not cut his hair or shaved his beard, that he had lost a lot of weight and generally looked homeless. Brett said my mom's words were, "I just didn't expect it to be this extreme." Brett said he has a whole mountain man beard. My mom took one snapshot of him which I have now seen. He really doesn't look much like the man I last saw four months ago.

Brett said that he is "seeing the light". He is getting more enjoyment out of the hike, though he still has a lot of hard hiking ahead.

There was a tragedy on the trail a few weeks ago. Brett said that this far along on the trail, all the thru-hikers know of most all the other thru-hikers for that year. They may not have met them all, but they are aware of most of the AT Thru-Hikers Class of 2012. One of the thru-hikers in the class, a younger kid named Parkside died 50 miles from Katahdin. He dove into a lake, and the word is that his body instantly cramped up and he drowned. Five fellow hikers left the trail to attend his funeral. They were now carrying his ashes the rest of the way to Katahdin. He said the tragedy was felt strongly by everyone in their "class".

Brett said he can't really feel his big toes anymore. They are almost totally numb. He also thinks he'll always have a lingering limp from stress of the trail. And he has really big calf muscles. I asked Brett if having minor, but permanent damage to his body would be worth it in the end. His response was, "Totally".