22 June.

22 June.
From: Hexacuba shelter
To: Hikers Welcome hostel, Glencliff NH
Mileage: 15.8
Weather: Sunny, chilly to warm

Penguin and I started out of the shelter by 7am, and immediately began the 850 foot climb over Mt Cube, which included many areas of bare rock, thankfully dry but sometimes made the trail hard to find. However, this also afforded nice views of the surrounding mountains.

We ran into route NH 25A at Camp Moosilauke and found where the trail resumed up the road. After a couple of miles we reached a gravel road, where a couple parked along the road called us over and asked about another hiker, a name I did not recognize. It turned out this was the famous trail angel Omelette Man with his wife and two dogs, and they provided some amazing trail magic - bananas, dates, lots of Tampico juice, and (true to his name) a western omelette made on a stove in the back of his pickup with as many eggs as we wanted (his record request was 30!). I had a four egg omelette with heaps of cheese, chunks of ham, and peppers. It was wonderful! We spent some time chatting until other hikers (first was Spice Weasel) began to arrive, so we left to make room and continue.

We reached NH 25C and had a short road walk, during which Penguin took more pictures of flowers along the road. We climbed 650 feet over Mount Mist, then descended to Glencliff NH and walked up the road to the Hikers Welcome hostel (https://hikerswelcome.com/), which has two buildings with bunkrooms, an older one over the common area with electricity and a newer structure (the Barn) without electricity. Most of the bunks in the old building were occupied, so we opted to find bunks on the second floor of the Barn, where there was plenty of space. Another downside of the Barn was the WiFi signal did not reach, so we returned to the common area to recharge our devices and get online.

The hostel was the most relaxed "commune-like" of the hostels I stayed at, with a tarp-covered outside area with a curtained off shower and flush toilet, and laundry/sink areas. The common area inside has an enormous collection of DVDs and music for anyone to enjoy. Brooklyn and Bisquick was the couple currently managing the hostel on-site, and provided a free 5pm van shuttle to the market in town for resupply and deli sandwiches, which we ordered from the menu by passing around a phone at 4:30pm.

Penguin wanted to take a zero day at the hostel before we faced the first big mountain in New Hampshire, 4,802 foot Mt. Moosilauke, and I agreed. I also needed to pick up my bounce box of supplies that I forwarded from Hanover to the small Post Office across the street from the hostel, as well as pick up my REI order for new Altra Lone Peak trail shoes, Ben's 100 DEET spray and a new camp toothbrush.