Tuesday, 29 August 2006

South Starksboro to Killington (Vermont)

After the heat of yesterday, the morning was misty wet and grey. I waited a while in the tent for a time when the rain seemed to ease up a little , then packed up the tent and set off to scale the rest of the Green Mountain Range. I had made a start yesterday cycling up from the 2A to South Starksboro on the SR 17 and so I decided to continue east on the 17 rather than lose all the altitude I had already gained. I stopped at the gas station/convenience store in Jerusalem for a breakfast of bananas, muffins and tea before tackling the rest of the ascent.

It was pretty much all uphill all the way with the serious climbing being just before the summit of the pass - a steep climb up to 2356 feet at the Appalachian Gap. I was cheered to the top by a group in a School Bus parked at the col. I stopped at the top in the mist to catch my breath before plunging down the other side with the rain stinging my face. I had to moderate my speed for some tight corners and rough patches in the road. I had dropped down by 1600 feet by the time I came to the Easy Street Cafe near Irasville where I stopped for the proper breakfast I felt I fully deserved. It was also a chance to dry out a little.

Say what you like about Americans, for the most part they're considerate drivers I've found. It's a real pleasure not to be in fear of imminent death every time you hear a car coming up behind. They give you plenty of room when they pass and will often wait behind you if there is oncoming traffic, sometimes even when you're on the shoulder and not on the actual carriageway. Who are the worst drivers? MPV (Mini-van) drivers and 'White-van man' just like in the UK.

The SR 100 took me south alongside the Green Mountain National Forest on a designated 'scenic drive' and indeed it might have been, in better weather. As you'd expect for a road running alongside the Appalachian mountain range it was a little up and down. For 20 miles there was nothing along the road except tress until can to Granville and then a few miles later Hancock. From there the view was a lot more open rather than being hemmed in by the trees; the valley floor was flat and a few hundred metres wide with the tree covered hills rising up on each side and the low cloud swirling around the tops.

I stopped in Rochester for a bite to eat and a quick email check before setting off again to make sure that I'd get to a campsite before dark. It had been dry for a couple of hours in the afternoon until I got to Killington when it started to drizzle again. This was the cue I needed to call it a day as I was at the Gifford Woods State Park ($14, showers 25c per 2.5 minutes) It was another one of those annoying campgrounds in the woods where the sites are hard gravel that you can't get your tent pegs into.

Distance: 59.1 miles
Cycling time: 5:30
Total distance: 4386.6 miles