Moose Mountain, Moose Mountain Shelter, Velvet Rocks Shelter and Hanover, NH

Whew, 14.5 miles today! Early this morning, we set out and began climbing to the 8-mile-long ridge of Moose Mountain (north peak elevation 2,311 feet). Only the northern half of the ridge is on the Trail. Between North Moose and South Moose, we passed Moose Mountain Shelter (Mile Marker 431.2). The closer we got to Hanover, NH, the wooded sections began to get shorter and road crossings became more frequent. The Trail descended as we crossed Three Mile Road, Etna Hanover Center Road and Trescott Road. As we climbed up and down several unnamed hills, we passed the last New Hampshire camp, Velvet Rocks Shelter. After that, we entered the town of Hanover on the southern edge of Dartmouth College. The town felt really crowded and not my kind of place, but they seemed to treat hikers well—I guess they don't really have a choice since the Trail cuts right through their town (the red line on the map below). I had to pick up two resupply boxes (one containing my two alternate backpacks), so I decided to spend the night at the motel where they were sent. I sure had second thoughts when I saw the bill, but it should feel really good to sleep in a bed again tonight.

After I sort out and reorganize my pack and resupply contents, I'll figure out which of my old backpacks to use and then mail the ZPacks backpack home along with whichever pack I decide not to use. Once that's all done, I will be walking out of New Hampshire and into Vermont in the morning! One more state down; boy, progress sure feels good.