September 1 - Gorham, NH (Day 166 – milepoint 1860.9)

Paka and I were able to work for a little while this morning in exchange for our night stay in the Hut. Latane, the hut caretaker, had us scrubbing the floors in the bathrooms and we actually enjoyed the chore.

Chewy, Achilles, Cosmo, and Bue Bird all headed out early and, since Paka is very likely the slowest hiker to ever set foot on the AT and doesn’t function well alone, I was forced to slow my pace and keep him company. Lucky for me he’s at least reasonably intelligent and can hold a conversation…

We were eventually joined by Puff and we periodically ran into Dragonfly, Woody Pop, and Anapurna throughout the day.

Walking out of the woods onto the road into Gorham gave me an unexpectedly strong feeling of completion. We were all proud and relieved to have made it through the Whites uninjured and in good spirits.

Enter Gorham, NH and the Hikers Paradise Hostel. Ready for some rest. Bruno, owner of the Hiker’s Paradise, greeted us warmly and made us all feel welcome. After he showed us to our rooms, Bruno said we could “buy” bicycles for getting around town. For $1.00, you are handed a bill of sale and allowed to choose from the dozen or so old bicycles in the parking lot behind the building. Cool idea and a convenient way for us to run errands.

Showered…Monday Night Football…beer, food-I-don’t-carry, ice cream…feet up. Paradise, indeed.

Aquaholic