Day 7

Today was a wonderful day of relaxing. In the words of through-hiker The Dude "the 4th isn't a zero, it's a holiday. I don't hike on the 4th". While I don't share The Dude's same zeal for the 4th of July, the people of Manchester, Vermont sure seem to. I was happy to partake in the festivities.

We slept in until 9 am this morning, enjoying the comforts of a bed and a pillow. After I enjoyed another really long shower, Mary and I walked downtown for breakfast at Up for Breakfast. Recommended by all of the locals, Up for Breakfast is a cute restaurant that specializes in unique breakfast entrees. It's a small place with only a hand full of tables, situated up stairs in a main street building. We enjoyed a really tasty version of vegetarian eggs Benedict, sourdough blueberry pancakes with Vermont maple syrup, and lots of coffee.

After finishing our breakfast feast we walked back to the inn to get our dirty laundry. Some AT hikers who had arrived at the inn today told us that the laundromat was closed for the 4th of July. Sadly, this means we will need to get up early in the morning and wash our dirty clothes before hitting the trail.

We spent the afternoon relaxing at the Northshire Bookstore, enjoying the air conditioning. We wrote postcards and made phone calls home while I enjoyed my first frozen mocha in a week.

By mid-afternoon the temperature had reached the high 80's. The air was humid and heavy. It was painful just to walk around. We decided to walk the mile out of town to the community pool. It was free day at the pool! The pool was crowded, but the water was refreshing on such a hot day.

After some pizza for dinner we walked to the fairgrounds for the fireworks. There was live music going on and it appeared that everyone in the town was here. After 36 hours in town I felt like I was beginning to recognize faces. It was a surreal experience to celebrate the 4th of July in a strange town. Watching children run around with sprinklers and old folks jokeying for the best position to view the show I felt a bit like I had wandered into a Norman Rockwell painting. A little after 9 the skies began to grow dark and bright flashes of lightning cut through the sky. It was amusing to see how long people denied the obvious and held out hope for the fireworks show. Eventually the storm tore loose and everyone ran for cover. We watched the storm from the porch of the B and B. It looks like nature will provide the only fireworks show tonight!

Tomorrow we get back on the trail. Manchester Center was a neat town to check out, but we'll be happy to get moving again.