Introduction

About Pathways

Appalachian Trail

Why Walk?

Make a Pledge

Hiking Schedule

Journal

Photos

Links

Acknowledgements

July 19, 2001

a.m.

So far New England has been stellar. I crossed the CT-MA line yesterday and am sitting at a fruit stand now with magenta fingers from the quart of blackberries I just devoured. These slow days are making me hungry, but wouldn't all of my green friends be proud of me for supporting (a lot of) local produce?

Yesterday may have been my best day yet. I woke up at sunrise. Actually, I woke up at 4:30 because Ridgerunner Mountain Goat's sucky dog, Spike, was licking his crotch right by my head. But then I noticed that the pre-dawn horizon lay right in front of me. The gold and pink rested sleepily on the mountain. A crescent moon and a single star hung low below the boughs of the silhouetted pines framing the scene. As gold turned to yellow, the valley could be seen blanketed in fog, mountain tops isolated like small islands in a cotton sea. Robert Frost's poem "Nothing Gold Can Stay" played in my head.

'Nature's first green is gold; her hardest hue to hold. Her dawn the freshest flower; but only so an hour. Then leaf subsides to leaf; so eden sank to grief. And dawn becomes the day; nothing gold can stay.'

The sky lightened as the sun neared the horizon line, and I pulled my hat back over my eyes and slept. When I woke again, the sun was in my eyes. It was 7:30 and after sharing breakfast with everyone, I read at that shelter until the fog broke and lifted, exposing the entire valley with lakes and forms. I nearly finished The Hobbit, but unwilling to let it end, I packed up and left. In a couple hours I came to Sages Ravine, a beautiful place that I'd been hearing about since I entered CT. The trail was on a pine bed by the river, with swimming holes lined up as if competing at the State Fair. I went swimming and took a refreshing bath. I walked in my sandals to find a nice spot for lunch. About a mile later I ran into Norway, Summer, Moonshine, and Will Scarlett. They'd been at an overlook by a brook for almost four hours. I snacked there and finished The Hobbit, then moseyed over the last two mountains to stay in a shelter named for part of my family--The Hemlock Shelter. Had a bit of a slumber party there, talking late with Moonshine and Norway.

Woke up early this morning, intending to put some miles behind me. Guess I'd better leave this produce stand soon. Massachusetts has some of the most incredible vistas yet. And this morning I walked through cornfields that reminded me of home in the Midwest.

p.m.

I've been waiting for this night for almost four months now. This is my first night alone. I thought I'd be more comfortable with it by now. I'm just over a mile from a state park. Anticipating that I might be alone, I ate down at the beach. And in my haste to arrive before dark, I dropped my hat enroute. Maybe tomorrow I'll go look for it. Maybe I'll just ask someone to bring it. My watch also quit today, at least the digital part. I heard therr's a problem with porcupines at this shelter--how random. So I've hung my entire pack with my boots inside in a tree above my head. I"m sleeping probably 20' from the shelter, but no one could see me through the foliage without walking up this short path. I wimped out about sleeping in the shelter. It's still a night alone. I'm sure I'll be fine, through I'm sleeping with my mace anyway. As if I can spray someone, get out of the tiny hole in this bivy, and run away anyway. But I do have a plan.

Enough of that. Tomorrow I'm headed to Goose Creek Cabin, a luxury stay as I understand. The next day it's 10 early miles to Becket and a huge clambake with Longshanks, Blur, Smittee, and the gang. Today was long. I haven't done 20 miles in awhile and MA with its beautiful vistas also has sizeable hills. Still found time to pick berries though. Aside from my second bee sting, I've nothing to complain about. Sweet dreams to me. May I laugh at myself later for my unfounded fears.