Dear Moss People,

I had ambitious plans for this week’s MIND THE MOSS involving phantom cascades and sketchy footbridges, but instead, my week involved a different project: getting COVID-19. Somehow I managed to dodge the superbug for three years (albeit, with a feeling of prolonging the inevitable) and it finally got me. My case has been mild in terms of symptom intensity, thanks to the vaccine and a good dose of luck. But as many of you know, the idea that COVID is now “just a cold” doesn’t quite get at the reality that it can still take a full week or more to bounce back from this pestilence.

And that’s where I am right now, on Day 6, with all the acute symptoms gone or in recession, but my body going, “Goddamn,” demanding rest and disaster movies.

While this means that the next full-on MIND THE MOSS newsletter will be delayed, I did want to share a bit of early spring bounty with you all. Back in January, I wrote a little story about mud season waterfall hikes for Our Vermont, a magazine sold by the Vermont Country Store, under their brand, and published by Yankee Magazine. Since we’re now at the doorstep of that gloppy, galoopy dream of a hiking season, today seemed like a fine time to send that story to all of you. You can find a PDF of the whole magazine by clicking here, and when you arrive at the page, you’ll find my story beginning on page 21. OR you can click on the scans of the story below. You’ll probably have to zoom in a bit to read the smaller fonts, but the whole thing is there.

See you out there,
Miles