Day 1: 7/20: Pine Cobble Rd, North
Adams, MA to Congdon Shelter (12.9 miles)
Steve, Carrie and I left the trailhead ~8:15am. The
morning was super muggy. Boston today was >100F and on the trail it was
projected to be about 90F. We were worried about the heat and the fact that
today was Carrie and Steve’s first day of real backpacking with all their new
gear for Alaska next month. After probably 30-45minutes, I stripped off my
T-shirt, slathered on bug spray and sunscreen and hiked in my sports bra to
stay cooler. Even though it was hot, we made it to the VT in the book time (30
min/mile + 30 min for each 1000ft of elevation gain). It cooled off a bit as we
got higher up and there was a breeze, or at least it felt better.
 |
| Starting out at Pine Cobble Rd trail head with Carrie & Steve |
Today was a big day. We slowed down a bit between the
VT/MA line and Seth Warner Shelter (& we stopped for lunch). We saw our
first AT thru hiker NoBo at the MA/VT line. I kept thinking we would stop
before Congdon Shelter and camp in the woods, but Steve and Carrie kept wanting
to keep going! Some highlights of the day:
-
Breeze under power lines!
-
A couple beautiful beaver ponds
-
A MOOSE!!!!! She was cooling off in a beaver pond a fair bit
away. My first ever sighting!!
-
A bunch of snakes curled up on boardwalks (which I learned
are called puncheon). Carrie overcame her fear to lead us through as they
slithered into the water
-
A green headed frog that jumped between my legs as I walked
We made it to Congdon around 7pm. It started to rain
at Congdon, but it started after we’d set up and were eating dinner. I drank so
much water today! 2 Nalgenes + 2.5 Camelpaks = 7 liters of water! Also, my back
is surprisingly what is bugging me the most physically: left shoulder blade
area. :(
Day 2: 7/21: Condgon Shelter to
Melville Nauheim (5.9 miles)
I slept poorly last night, probably because it was the
first night out. I woke up at 6:30 to go to the privy and didn’t think I’d fall
asleep again. But, I laid down and didn’t wake up again until 8:30! Steve and
Carrie got up a bit later and we were all slow to get going. We didn’t leave
until 11:00am! Probably my latest backpacking start ever. Fortunately, we have
a short day.
At lunch, we had a nice view of Mt. Anthony to the SW
and Bennington with a huge obelisk monument for an American Revolution Battle
there. We met an LT NoBo hiker (Neil) at the viewpoint, with his dog (Slater).
Last night we met another LT NoBo, a woman named Grey. Grey lives in VT and has
been working as a Domino’s late night driver for the past 2 years. Neil is an
arborist in MA.
We had a steep descent to Rt. 9 where we found our
first trail magic - a bag of fruit and snacks at the trailhead. I repacked my
bag at Steve and Carrie’s car, taking a few things from them like bug spray and
hand sanitizer and leaving some food with them. Then another trail magician
came! I got a much-appreciated Gatorade, which I downed swiftly. It was so
delicious! I’ve been sweating a ton in the heat, so I appreciated the
electrolytes.
I bid adieu to Steve and Carrie and headed off. I
crossed a lovely wide VT stream on a great bride and then made the biggest
climb yet up to Melville Nauheim shelter. There was a cool rock formation
called Split Rock, a giant boulder split in two that the trail went through.
Neil, Grey and I are all staying at the shelter, with
an AT thru hiker called Whiskey Peach. All friendly. I read a sign about the
new recommended way to hang bear bags (PCT hang), so the bear bag isn’t tied to
a tree trunk, just the branch it is over and Whiskey Peach helped me hang my
first bear bag.
I’m headed to bed and it’s only 8pm and still light
out! (I might read for a bit)
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