Flooded Out in New Hampshire

Spent Saturday night off Route 25A near Wentworth, NH.  Woke up in the early morning on Sunday and everything seemed okay.  Next time I woke up I felt like I was floating....tent and all.  I think I was!  I had set up my tent on a soccer field, apparently near a stream near Camp Merriwood.  So my boots were floating and I had to catch them.  Everything got wet!  I lost my belt and a couple other things, and got my cell phone, camera, and ipod wet.  My journal and hikers' book also got soaked.  The people at Camp Merriwood, a day camp for girls let me dry off in their office.  They were very helpful and also let me do some laundry to get my things dry.  I was very thankful that they were close by.

Yesterday I hiked 10 miles to a Hikers Hostel in Glencliff, NH and joined a group of hikers there.   I got a shower and felt much better.  I weighed my pack and it is about 40 pounds...way too heavy! I was able to use their phone and left a message at home.  They had lost power in MD and so didn't get my messages and were worried too.  I did get to talk with them later last night. Everything at home is fine now too.

We got word last night that the Forest Service was closing the AT until they could check to make sure it was safe for all of us. This morning, though, we got the okay to continue on.  We heard that there is a group of about 40 hikers stuck in Vermont who may not be able to continue today.  We are about 398 miles from Katahdin and heading in to the White Mountains.  They tell us we should expect all kinds of weather conditions...snow, sleet, and rain even now. From an elevation of 1,000 ft to 4,800 feet in only about 8 miles. It should be a difficult 10 days or so.

I've been very impressed with the friendliness of the people in New Hampshire.  Last week I hiked into the little town of Lyme Center, hoping to get a cold soda.  There was a small building there which turned out to be the post office.  I was sitting outside the building drinking my water and a lady came out.  I asked her if there was a store or something downtown and she said that this was about all I would find close by.  Anyway she left and then another lady came by and asked if I was a hiker and we started to talk.  While we were talking, the first lady came back with 2 Cokes and apologized for not giving me a ride. She said, "I didn't know you and so I was afraid to give you a ride, but here are some drinks for you." The other lady then brought me homemade cookies that she had just baked. Then another gentleman came by and sat and talked with me.  They all told me to be careful in the hurricane.  Then the man gave me a ride back to the trail!  Very, very nice people in that town!

Despite everything, I believe that people are really good at heart.
-Anne Frank