Day 6, Imaginary Hostel

July 19

59.7 down, 2126.2 to go

Written by NotYet:

I woke up at Antlers Campsite this morning and looked out at the lake. It was slightly hazy and so calm and peaceful. The birds were singing, the bugs were buzzing and the air tasted like blueberries. This was the kind of place you wouldn't think existed anymore, or that you could only read about in books. The only reminder of the technologically advanced world we live in was the distant sound of a jet overhead. As far as the eye can see, everything was a natural shade of green, blue, grey, or brown -- truly awe-inspiring. I wish in had more food, I would have stayed longer. 

Today started off nice. Woke early and spent the morning enjoying the sun and peninsula at Antlers. Officially half way through the wilderness! We met a marathon runner who gave us his extra dehydrated eggs and bacon to take with us. We will use in two days before White Cap, a hard climb. NotYet got study pretty bad by hornets on his wrist yesterday, his arm is swollen. He had dug his poop hole in a hornets nest! They were NOT happy.

We left in the morning with the plan of staying at a near hostel and getting a ride into town for some Benadryl. We met two men on the trail who gave us some meds -- what a blessing. When we got to the road for the hostel, we looked in the hide book and realized we were looking at the wrong page...there was no hostel. After the giant letdown of the imaginary hostel, we had to sit down for a bit before continuing on. Karma came at just the right time. We enjoyed talking with her for a few minutes before hiking again.
We continued on 3+ miles to Cooperbrook. We got in early, at 2:30, since we only did 7 miles. We spent the afternoon chatting with JustDave, a NoBo, just finishing. And a sweet couple who were both widows. They gave us marriage advice. Each had been married twenty years before. We made it to bed right before dark clouds rolled in.

At Antlers Campsite, our favorite spot so far

Cooper Brook Falls