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Miles: 2,075.1 — The easy walk into Monson had me dreaming of fresh food and hot coffee. Shaw’s Hiker Hostel scooped us up from the trail, and I stocked up in their resupply room — cinnamon rolls, candy, Mountain House meals, and a bonus fleece from the hiker box. Ran into Krafty and Blackbird (thought I’d never see them again!) and spent the evening playing chess by the fire while the yard buzzed with hikers savoring the last hurrah. By night, though, my stomach started to revolt — and I spent most of the night running to the bathroom.
I woke up on day 200, exhausted and ready for some kind of fresh food, town food. As we approached town on easy trail, Miles said, “I think I see the parking lot!” at every corner. We were nowhere near it. We had fun, though. When we got to the road, I called the hostel where I had reserved us a bed. All they had left was one private room with a queen bed, they were almost booked up. It was supposed to rain today and tomorrow. It wasn’t raining yet. It was chilly, though.
They picked us up at the trailhead parking lot. While we waited for them I began making a list of all of the foods I wanted to bring for the HMW. My mind really went blank. All I could think about was town food! How had I been craving so many things I forgot to get at my last resupply all week and now, suddenly, I couldn’t think of a single thing I wanted to bring? I shook my head and started reading the educational signs in the parking lot. The hostel shuttle arrived after twenty minutes. When we got there we saw a lot of familiar faces: Murphy, Jackrabbit, Jukebox, and some others I hadn’t met yet. We checked in and got a room in ‘The Cottage.’ We showered and changed then went to the local general store/deli for food. The only restaurant in town was closed. We ate sandwiches and got coffee. I got a few things I didn’t expect the hostel would carry. After dinner, back at the hostel, we went to their resupply room. Honeybuns, Texas Cinnamon Rolls, Mountain House Meals (posh, I know), candy, bars, etc. I left the room still feeling unprepared. I wanted my pants back. I didn’t find any in the hiker box, but I did see a fleece. Good enough for me, I thought, and added it to my already overweight pack. While Miles napped, I did the laundry. I met some of the hikers sitting out around a campfire in the yard. I happily shared some ciders with them. When the laundry was done, I walked back to the general store and got another sandwich and one for Miles. While I was there I saw the unmistakable hat of Krafty! Blackbird and I ran and hugged each other. I was so excited to see them. I thought I’d never see them again on trail!
They came back to Shaw’s with me and we got Miles up. Krafty, Miles, and I played chess by the fire. Every chair around the fire was filled by a hiker, and another hiker stood for each one that sat. We all felt it. The end. It was the last hurrah. I’d never been one to party in town, but most of these hikers loved that stuff. I drank two ciders and that was enough for me. Miles and I turned in by 10pm. The rest of the hikers stayed up til at least 1:30am.
TMI WARNING By 11pm my stomach was roiling. I’d had strong, instant urges to poop over the last 24 hours, but they were short lived and I thought nothing of it. I didn’t eat that well on trail, I thought. By this point I was in agony. Sharp stomach cramps, hot flashes, and gurgling sounds took over. Every time I felt like I had to fart bad things came out. I spent the entire night running back and forth to the bathroom. By 2am I just stayed in the bathroom. Finally, around 7am things subsided enough to go back to my bed, but the stomach ache was not gone.