William B. Douglas Campsite to Manchester Center, VT

Day 18

Thursday, May 18, 2017
William B. Douglas Campsite to Manchester Center, VT
5.8 Miles

We were awakened around 5 this morning by a songbird.  We left camp at 6:30. It was another hot day, suppose to be in the 80's.  I’m glad we don’t have far to go. 

Prospect Rock was the highlight of the day.  The only problem is, after a little forest road walk
Prospect Rock is off the trail to the left and after the view, we thought the trail continued on that side  going down the hill.  After wandering around for awhile without finding the trail, we went back to the forest road and discovered that the trail goes up on the right side of the road.  Okay, we finally found it. 

The trail was level until the end then, of course, we had to go up to go down to the road.  We reached the parking at 9:45.  We headed straight to Bob’s Diner  in spite of the 5 day stench. Then on to our next stopping point-Rutland, VT Comfort Inn. 

Black Brook Stealth Camp to Willam B. Douglas Shelter Campsite

Day 17

Wednesday, May 17, 2017
Black Brook Stealth Camp to William B. Douglas Shelter Campsite
12.6 Miles

We broke camp and were on the trail by 7. The first order of business was to cover the .9 or so to Kelly Road, then we started ascending Stratton Mountain, taking it slow and easy.  The 1.9 miles to the logging road is fairly easy, then it got more difficult, although with switchbacks, for the remaining climb. The trail was washed out really badly with big rocks lying in the rut, making it hard to walk on.  We knew we were reaching the top of the mountain when we started hearing the roar of the wind.

We reached the summit at 10:10, climbed the old fire tower, and enjoyed the view.

The walk downward was comparable to the other side but a little dryer. We reached the old logging road again then veered into the forest. The trail for the remainder of the day was relatively level with a few places without rocks in the trail.  Still there were mud puddles to go through, boardwalks to walk on, streams to cross and rocks to jump.

Stratton  Mountain Shelter was really big, with an inside picnic table and benches with additional benches on each side of the porch, double-decker beds and a loft with a ladder.

Stratton Pond was a beautiful dark blue color and looked like the beach with the wind making waves.

It reached 72 degrees today--the warmest day we've had--and got a little uncomfortable. I finally got near a stream and splashed my face and wet my hair and my cap. The water was very cold and refreshing.

We were disappointed to learn that our intended shelter is .5 off the trail. No way. So we set up our tarp at an old campsite near the entrance to the shelter at 4:30, exhausted again.

This is when we noticed that, unfortunately, the Deet on our hands had gotten on our tarp and ruined the weather-resistant coating--an expensive little mishap. Deet wasn't doing much good anyway, so we probably won't use it again.

 

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