The overnight rain was clearing by the time we left Ray and Hildy’s, filled to bursting with scrambled eggs, bacon, English muffins, homemade jam, and fruit. That should power me for a while up the Upper Ammonoosuc River today!
PADDLER’S NOTE: Good decision to continue portaging past Red Dam on 110 and Emerson Rd. At the Emerson Rd. bridge, there is a great put-in on river right, downstream, where a wheelable “road” goes down from the far end of the guardrail. From this bridge, it was a half hour struggle to get past Nash Stream and out of sight of the bridge, but then an easy 2 miles.
The trail has taught me, not only to look on the bright side, but also to appreciate the gentle times, without worrying too much about what lies ahead. For two miles, I searched for moose and delighted in the songs of the thrushes and cheered on the bit of blue sky that peeked through the clouds.
My goal was that lovely village of Stark, but first the river grew increasingly troublesome…with faster current and shallow sand and gravel bars. As the hours and miles go by, legs tire, rocks seem more slippery, and one must rely more on determination and mental attitude. It is then that I try to be more analytical…what could go wrong and how can I stay safest? I guess I succeeded, as eventually the covered bridge appeared. (The last section from the Frizzell campsite took 80 minutes to go 1.3 miles.)
TOTAL MILES: 376.3
Laurie Apgar Chandler 
Your campsite photo and description makes me envious of your time out. I hope you continue to have a wonderful trip. Thank you for your amazing blog posts.
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I love all of the covered bridge photos. I bet Grandma does too! I hope she’s seeing these. Also, I disagree with your comment–I like that shirt a lot! That olive green is one of my favorite colors, and you look so good! Love you so much, hope we can talk soon. My car broke down this weekend so I’m not in Maryland as expected. Instead, I’m relaxing at home catching up on your posts and laundry!
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Grandma is reading the blog and enjoying it, when she doesn’t accidentally push the wrong button. And the shirt…I just meant that it was crooked in the photo. That shirt is one of my favorites and somehow that style and weight of shirt is very useful on the trail. Sorry about your car and that I have hardly had any phone service lately, even now in Errol. Hope your weekend is restful and fun.
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