8/8 ~ Morgan Stewart Shelter (9.2 miles hiked, .8 road walk)

The trail is still kicking my ass. I got here at 3pm, so I could have rested and gone on, but both pairs of my socks were soaked as well as my clothes, so I decided to stay. Besides, I think the next shelter is Telephone Pioneers and it's dry.

If my socks are dry, I'm going to attempt a 16.1 tomorrow. The first shelter (as mentioned) is 7 away and dry, so I'm going for the second. It looks hard on the profile, but that only gives one the gist of the hike, I've found. Long, gentle ascents look easy on profiles, but I find them long and tiring. I now like the straight up ascents because they are over faster. I hate straight down ascents, however, like all long-distance hikers. Very hard on the knees and, if wet, on many other parts of you as well.

I did have a very average Egg Salad sandwich for lunch. That's what the road walk was, and I think the closest town was Stormville. I bought the very last Lipton they had on the shelf. It's rice, which I don't like, but at least it doesn't have chicken of some sort in it.

No matter what, I should be in CT on Tuesday.

Oh yeah - there are seven people here and I'm the only northbounder. That's a first.