Days 38 & 39 - (8-9/8/2016)

Two interesting days. First, my plan had been to pop into Lincoln, do a quick resupply/laundry/library blog update, get some food, and move on. That plan died almost as soon as I arrived. I loved this little town. A woman with her baby in the passenger seat of her pickup let me ride in the box and took me to North Woodstock where  I had a wamlette for breakfast (an omelette served on top of a waffle). Then I headed to the Lincoln library where I spent 2 hrs on the computer updating the blog and uploading photos. [Can I just throw a quick shout out to Public Libraries everywhere? Support yours.]

Then I met Brendan. Brendan is a heavy drinking, middle-aged businessman who struck up a conversation with me at a brewpub that, strangely, did not serve any of its own beers. It turns out that Brendan was a high-flying "Wolf of Wall Street" type real-estate mogul who was adapting to small town life and missing his power-brokering, deal-making days. He drew a stark contrast to the way that I live my life, and while he seemed on the one hand jealous of me, I couldn't help but think that he'd probably hate living the way I do. He liked his Porsche, million dollar mansion [large enough to drunkenly land a helicopter in the yard, if needed, which he had at one point], and expensive watch. As much as I'd like some of those things too, I'm not sure the lifestyle would suit me anymore than my lifestyle would have suited Brendan. It's good to meet peopl who live differently sometimes to help you see why you make the choices you do.

That night, I decided I'd had enough of hostels for now so I splurged on a "cheap" motel (it's peak season in Lincoln, so cheap was relative). Did I mention I liked this place? Even the next day, it took me almost 6 hours to finally leave town.

Which, it turns out was lucky!

While walking along the trail, thinking about the usual (food, where would I sleep, food, etc...) I came upon a speedy trail walker/runner who, from a distance, seemed familiar somehow. When he got closer, I recognized Jesse, an old friend from undergrad whom I hadn't seen more than once or twice in the 15 years since those days! He did a double take, we hugged, and then sat down had a good long chat. Jesse [Slacker] is a longtime ultra marathon and trail runner and just happened to be taking a summer break to visit and run some of the White Mountains. It was amazing to run into someone so randomly, here in the wilds of New Hampshire.

Me and Slacker

Shortly after, Timber and Legs showed up (they'd met Slacker the night before at a hostel). After days of no familiar faces, I was now surrounded by on and off trail friends again. All of this was made possible by my failing to leave Lincoln on time, twice.

So to Brendan: Thanks both for the beer, and making it too hard to leave Lincoln. Keep hiking.

Start: Liberty Spring
End: Between North and South Kinsman Peaks
Distance: 8.4 miles