| October 10, 2005 |
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I'm leaving Vermont #9 hiking up Carmen
Hill To Congdon Shelter 4.2 miles. |
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I just finished climbing up to the top of
the hill. I'm on the ridge line now, it was rocky switch
backs, just continuous straight up. That did make it a little
bit easier to hike. The weather today is cloudy, they
prediction some rain. I didn't hike yesterday because of all
the flooding in the area from a down pour. |
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I have an 18 mile day and I'm not going to
have much time to stop because I'll be getting in after dark. |
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The streams concern me. I have 2
stream crossings to go over and the Hoosick River, but there
supposed to be a foot bridge to go across there. My husband id
going to meet me in North Adams this evening. |
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A lot of leaves have fallen because of the heavy
rains and high winds. It is beautiful today. Hiking on
top of this ridge line is level, the trail is leaf covered and small
rocks. I've crossed several water areas that probably without
the rains wouldn't have been there. I did cross one stream
without any problems. The leaves are just beautiful, beeches,
and birches, maples, a few spruce tree, striped maples in this
area, but mostly gold's in color. A few bright red maple
leave but not many. What is pretty all the leaves give color
to the ground and then the green of the ferns haven't died back yet.
It makes a nice contrast. |
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I'm getting into some mud now where the
water was running down through here yesterday. I definitely
made a good decision by holding off yesterday and hiking today.
There's a water low area and I had to hike right through the water. |
 Simon
is with me today. John brought him up so we could hike the
last 30 miles or so together and he will have a total of 1,600
miles. I would like to collect for him 1,600 stuffed toys,
something save that could be place in the neonatal units that the
Newborns in Needs families would be able to see that somebody was
praying, thinking about them and wishing them well. |
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I just came through a very wet area that
had 2 by 6 bridge crossings to go through this water. Simon
and I hike on the bridges there for a little ways all of sudden
Simon tops, he says whoops! I'm
not going in that water, no ore bridges, so he turns around and
looks at me and sees what I'm going to do, he followed me, but he
did get unit the water a little. He doesn't like to get his feet wet
and cold. |
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I'm still hiking through water on rocks.
It's not very good through here. A lot of low, low land.
I'm getting into some more bridge hiking down here. This must
be a real low saddle on top of this ridge. Finding the trail
with all these leaves down is a little more difficult. I have
a beautiful view of the clouds floating the valley below me.
This ridge top opened up into a real flat rocky area. |
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Mass-Vermont line I' headed to now is 12.6
miles. To route #2 it's 16.8 miles. From Springer
Mountain I'm 1,563 miles and from Katahdin Mountain I'm 557 miles.
This is the beginning of the pioneer section. The elevation on
Harmon Hill is 2,325 feet. It's also part of the Long Trail. |
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The mosses stick up through the multi
covered leaves making it beautiful. Unlike the solid greens
that was in Maine in the 100 mile wilderness, this is green but has
all of the beautiful colors of the leaves. Different texture!
Looks like the shag like carpet. |
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I can feel the clouds around me and the
humidity. A lot fog in this area. I've been hiking up
stream in the trail and I've been hiking down stream in the trail.
The water has been just terrible through here. At least I
haven't had to hike up the water falls like I did in Maine. I
have managed to keep my boot dry so far. I had to watch the
stream coming down hill because the blazes were not very close
together in that area and it's been a while since it has been glaze
so they were very light. |
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The colors on the ground is now a bright
red, there are a lot of maple trees in the area, then suddenly I'm
back into the pines again. It looks like I'm getting to hike
in the creek again. There is just water every place you step
today. I saw some bear claw mushrooms, Also some oyster on a
log, but I didn't pull any of them for later. I'm just trying
to get through today as much as I can. |
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Although I'm enjoying to look around a
little bit, Even with all the water I can still look up and
not have to look at my feet all time and worry about falling.
I just stepped on a rotten log. |
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Stopped in to the Congdon Shelter and Simon
and I had a bite of lunch. There was a guy hiking the Long Trail
from Michigan. Enjoyed talking to him for a little while.
He was telling me that I have to cross a wild beaver dam down here.
All the boardwalks are under water so that means wet feet.
We'll see when we get there. |
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I'm glad that I don't have to cross this
little stream that I'm hiking beside of, it sure is ramped going
down through here. Not many rocks sticking out either from
these recent rains. Got to the beaver dam, not as soaked as I
thought I might be. There was one section where the beaver dam
had broke loose and was over the top of the bridge that went through
there. It was 3 or 4 inches deep on the bridges. I was
able to get up on a log and use it, then jump off to the bridges
again so I did get my feet wet, not soaking wet. |
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In this area the beeches are just like the
pine, fight along side the trail, sticking out grabbing your arms as
you go by. There is big beech population through here even
back off the trail. |
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It looks like I've making a gradual up from
the beaver dam. I'm now on Consolation Peak 2,840 feet.
Then I'll be crossing Roaring Branch, 2,490 feet. Then I
should be coming into Seth Warner Shelter. It looks like I got
a big huge beaver dam coming up that goes into a swamp, it doesn't
appear to be like the other one. |
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The temperature is probably 52 degrees, but
I'm getting a lot of moisture from the clouds being right around me.
I won't have much to cross over here. The beaver dam lets the
water lose. I've got some big rocks to cross over on.
Pretty swift current. The wind is beginning to pick up too. |
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Just came out in a power line area and the
fog is so heavy through here that I can hardly see. It's not
like that once you get inside the woods. There is sign here
that says a View of Mt. Greylock. Guess what my view is!
Clouds! |
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I just crossed a small dirt road, I have
come 6 miles from Congdon Shelter. Just after I cross the
little stone road, I'm starting to see stone fences again. Which is
probably the first I've seen since NJ. - NY . |
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Mass line is 2.8 miles and at the entrance
of the Seth Warner Shelter. I'm not going to go in. Well
I made it to the Mass. border. Welcome to Mass sign!
Mass. Avenue is 4.1 miles and that is where I'm going. It's
probably 4:30pm.- 5:00pm. I'll be hiking the last few miles in
the dark. My watch battery died about a week ago and I've had
12:15pm for 5 or 6 days now. |
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I'm 2.7 miles from Rt. 2 in North Adams. I see a
blue blaze that says View, but like everything else today, all
clouds. Once I hit the Mass. line I started getting back into
the rock boulders again. Nothing that has been difficult to
climb or get over, but in Vermont there wasn't anything in the way
of the trail. |
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I believe in this area the white rocks that I was
hiking on, broken pieces that resemble a lot of marble, what they
call cobble stone in this area. I ran into cobble stone coming
down into Cheshire. A lot of tea berries on the ground, light
green, also sassafras which I haven't seen for a long time.
The leaves on it are yellow, very pretty. I was at the top and
I saw this blue paint that said Bad Weather Route. Every time
I see that I know I'm in for a steep rocky descent, so I decided I
still had a little bit of light I was going to take the AT and the
winter route. Chances are the winter route would have been a
little longer and I wanted to get through here before dark if I can. |
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Sure enough the descent was extremely
rocky. Little rocks for the most part, but still very
difficult to try and get down. Into the water now as far as in
the trail. Maybe it will be a little easier hiking out, but
muddy. I still have some big rocks and roots and stuff,
nothing like it was. I should be coming in towards the river
before to awful long. |
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I'm just passing the Sherman Shelter and
Camp Site, it's getting fairly dark and I'm going to have to get my
light out here pretty soon. Going to try and make as much time
as I can in the day light. |
I
have about one hour and a half to hike out to the bridge in the
dark. A couple of places where the trail was difficult to
follow because the blazes were very faint and of course my faithful
companion, Simon, brought me through with flying colors. In
those tough areas he would seem to sense that he needed to go ahead
and he would pull out in front of me and find the trail.
I made it into a Hoosic Bridge area about 7:pm. Where Laura Garrity husband Bob and my husband John, met me.
"I'm Back!" |
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Swing'n Jane and
Simon The Wonder Dog |
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