7.7.12 - Back to the Trail After NYC, Into Massachusetts, and Houdini!

Today Golden and I took the train back to Salisbury, CT from New York City. It was a great 2.5 days in the city hanging out with old friends from Quad! Ate a lot of food, walked around quite a bit on flat ground, kicked back, checked out some sights I've never seen before, and did a few of the touristy things I've done before. Was great being there for my buddy Bee's birthday too. When we got back to Salisbury, I checked in at the general store and another package for me has arrived. It was another from some folks in Merced that I used to work with, and boy was it full of tons of goodies! (see pic). Thanks to all of you there who sent that!

Got back to the trail around 3pm and met a ridge runner along the way. She started listing off the other thru hikers she had met over the course of the day. She said she met Houdini and he was about a mile away at the shelter. I hightailed it to the shelter to try to catch him. Sure enough, I made it there before he could leave, and I pulled a Houdini on him. That is, I showed up out of nowhere when he least expected it, just like he used to do to me, Tarzan, and Flosser frequently. It had been since Damascus, VA (about 2 months ago), since I had seen him! Crazy how things on the trail happen.

We hiked together to Laurel Ridge Campsite and met up with Golden and Wildflower there, as well as some weekenders. Nine miles for today. Nothing to write home about, but it was still something. Not bad for going to bed around 3am though. Along those 9 miles however, we crossed out of Connecticut and into Massachusetts. There's another state down! Four left to go.