The Long Trail (LT) is a 272-mile slog through the state of Vermont. After three days, my dad/hiking partner “Just Steve” and I realized that the viewless summits, miles of washed-out trail, and impending tropical storm were not creating the level of joy we anticipated. Although I had but a brief encounter with the Long Trail, I hope others enjoy their time in this muddy hellscape.
The following log entries are a third-person, dramatized retelling of my brief encounter with the Long Trail.
The First Day: August 4, 2024 [10 mi]
Route: Massachusetts-Vermont border to Congdon Shelter
Trail Notes: Visions of a life-affirming and fitness-redefining trip across Vermont came crashing down when Webster and Just Steve (Webster’s dad) ascended into the muddy hellscape known as the Long Trail. With plans for a 20+ mile day abandoned in the first hour, the lovable (yet often underestimated) hiking duo couldn’t lower their expectations fast enough. Search and rescue teams in the surrounding area celebrated when Webster and Just Steve stopped at mile 10 and decided to camp at Congdon Shelter.
The Second Day: August 5, 2024 [18.7 mi]
Route: Congdon Shelter to Kid Gore Shelter
Trail Notes: Still under the misguided impression that the Vermont section of the Appalachian Trail was “enjoyable,” “easy,” and “worth it,” Webster (AT ’22) and Just Steve struggled to comprehend their present reality… the Long Trail was, in fact, NOT enjoyable, NOT easy, and decidedly NOT worth it. With the group’s morale, motivation, and boots firmly stuck in the mud, a major reassessment was necessary. They sat in the shelter as the rain pounded the roof and whispered the fateful words that have bested even the best of hikers… “If this is not fun, why are we doing it?”
The Last Day: August 6, 2024 [Hard to say...]
Route: Kid Gore Shelter to Manchester Center
Trail Notes: With Tropical Storm Debby tearing its way up the East Coast, Webster and Just Steve had to decide whether they would try to finish a trail that neither of them wanted to do. Intellectuals at heart, they carefully evaluated both courses of action: (1) reframe the rest of their trip as a pseudo-medicinal mud bath, embrace ascetisism, and never smile again; or (2) walk three miles into town. Sitting outside a restaurant in Manchester Center later that day, Webster and Just Steve raised their second beers in celebration: “To the wisdom of knowing when not to walk!”
POST-TRAIL REFLECTION
Years later, Just Steve and I still talk about our brief encounter with the Long Trail. All we say is… mud.
– Webster signing off
