So I stayed last night in a frat house at Dartmouth College here in Hanover, NH. I hiked into town with a few people and one of them was a brother in the same frat so he got us in. It was pretty cool. The place was trashed from one of their parties and we helped clean it up as kind of a thank you for letting us stay. They set up a bunch of leather couches for us in their living room and we slept on those. We were woken up a few times by their very loud party that was happening downstairs but it was still pretty sweet lol. Hanover seems like a really fun place to be. I plan to stay pretty late today but I still wanna get going at some point because a zero in this town probably wouldn't do well for my motivation.

So that makes 12 states down, 2 to go! New Hampshire should be fun. I'm pretty psyched for the whites coming up even though I know it could be miserable if the weather's bad. I'm hopin for the best.

I have no idea how many chances I'll get to use a computer from here on out. I'll do my best but I can't make any promises. Take care everyone.

After a whole bunch of time off I've been back on trail now for about five days and I'm feelin' good. I'm starting to get back into the rhythm of things. My body feels strong and I'm actually enjoying my time out here. Vermont is pretty cool. The scenery is starting to pick up and the hiking has been pretty easy. Its also starting to get cooler, which has been really nice. The nights can get kinda cold but it makes the days a whole lot better. The best thing about the cooler temps is the lack of bugs. In Mass, the mosquitos were brutal but the last few days have almost been mosquito-free, which has been awesome!

I just found out yesterday that I have lyme. I started feeling crappy way back in Waynesboro, VA. I didn't bother going to the doctor, I just started taking the meds, but apparantly that didn't kill it. I was still feeling a little sluggish when I came home for those few days so I got a blood test done. Got the results yesterday and now I'm back on the meds. But like I've said, I've been feeling pretty good so I'm not worried about it.

Right now I'm in Wallingford,VT. I met a really cool family (Doug, Cathy, and their two daughters Amelia, and Izzy) last night at the shelter and they invited me over their house to clean up, get some food, and sleep in a bed. They even slacked me 9 miles! (they took my pack while I hiked the next 9 miles then they picked me up down trail). Doug and Cathy own a very nice house thats sitting on 73 acres. They even have a pond, tire swing and a 100ft zip line. I think this is my dream house lol. They're great people and they're very fun. I feel right at home. All the hospitality and kindness of strangers on the trail is something I'll never forget. I really look forward to paying it forward someway or another. Good stuff. Well desert is on the table and its almost hiker midnight so I'm out. Take care guys.

Yesterday was my second day back on trail after taking three days off vacationing in Vermont with my family. It was awesome seeing everyone, playing with my little cousins, spending some time on the lake and eating a whole bunch of food.

A bunch of my friends came and visited in Kent last week. That was great too. Everyone was there. Dan, Dobi, Blake, Harris, Thurman, Webster, Dave, Jackie, Hilary, Lauren; even the Bolt made an appearance. We all got lunch and they didn't even let me pay! We even found a field and spent a couple hours playing wiffleball, frisbee, and kickball. It really reminded me how great a bunch of friends I have.

After all that time off with my friends and family, these last two days back on trail have been really tough. It's really made me question why I'm doing this. Before I got to CT I was enjoying my time on trail more than ever but lately I've been pretty homesick. For the first time I've thought about leaving trail. I always thought the best part of this adventure would be getting to Katahdin but now I think the best part might be learning to fully appreciate everything and everyone you have at home. At this point I dont feel like I have much to prove but there's still part of me that wants to know what it feels like to get to that stupid mountain in Maine.

Anyways, my new boots have torn my feet apart the last two days and I decided I wasn't gonna hike another mile in em for now. To give my feet a rest and to switch boots I thought it would just be easier to come home for a couple days. So I caught a train into Hartford today and I'm chillen in Naugy for a couple days. The plan is to get the spirit up and then get back to the tail to finish the job.