[at-l] A lighter moment....

[Jim Bullard]

Great trip report Mags. Glad to hear you survived it. :)

On 12/9/06, Paul Magnanti <pmags at yahoo.com> wrote:
> Thought I'd share what I did over Thanksgiving
> Weekend. May be good for a few laughs... In the middle
> of sorting out my CDT photos..needed a break! :D
>
>
> -Mags
>
>
>
> Jerimoth Hill in Rhode Island has a rather curious
> history [1]. At 812 feet, it is not exactly mountain
> that towers over the country side. The summit is a
> non-descript pile of rocks in a wooded area within
> minutes of the Connetcicut border. The elevation gain
> is five feet from the road on a path that is perhaps
> 100 meters long. But this modest hill is the high
> point in Rhode Island. As such, it is a "must-do"
> summit for people interested in reaching the high
> point in each of the fifty states. [2]
>
> The "curious history"  aspect of this summit is that
> Jerimoth Hill was described as the "hardest high
> point" [3] to reach of all the fifty states. Mt.
> Washington may have 200+ MPH winds, Denali may be
> remote and high and Ranier may be a classic in world
> mountaineering... but how may summits have gun-toting
> New Englanders who will bash you over the head?
>
> High winds, white out condtions and remoteness may
> make doing other summits difficult but dodging bullets
> is a bit more of a challenge.
>
> For years, the High Pointers allowed posing by the
> highway summit sign as an adequate substitute for
> reaching the high point. Posing by a sign was deemed a
> bit less dangerous than dealing with armed locals.
>
> Jerimoth Hill lost this rather dubious "honor" in 2005
> when new land owners allowed access to the true summit
> on weekends. No longer would intrepid hikers have to
> contend with gun-toting New Englanders. The new owners
> have even made an improved path to the "summit".
>
> This past Thanksgiving, I visited my home state. Have
> not celebrated Turkey Day in RI since 1998. The
> thought of Mom's home cooking after four months of
> eating Ramen on the Continental Divide Trail sounded
> to good to pass up. And after a month of camping in
> the desert of New Mexico, celebrating Thanksgiving in
> Utah (as I have done since 2001) did not sound too
> inviting!
>
> Used my visit as a chance to climb the highest point
> in Rhode Island.
>
> With me for this arduous climb was my good friend Tim.
> Tim and I went to the same Catholic elementary school,
> ended up working at the same hospital as orderlies in
> our early twenties, and made rather large bar tabs
> (with our good friend Leo) in our early twenties as
> well. (At least I think we did..the years 20-25 are a
> bit hazy for me. Pitchers of beer along with
> Jaegermesiter and "kamikaze" shots put those years in
> a bit of a fog.)
>
> Tim took me on my first backpacking trip. He also
> joined me for the last week of the Appalachian and
> Pacific Crest Trails. And Tim was there for that fated
> climb up Jerimoth Hill.
>
> I arrived at the Geoffroy household for 8am. We then
> suited up for the hike.
>
> Provisions were packed. Equipment checked. Tim said
> his last goodbyes to his wife, step-son and one-year
> old daughter. A grave moment....
>
> (Actually, I think the extent of the prepartion was me
> finishing my coffee and Tim asking if I wanted to
> drive. Reckless, I know).
>
> Drove for five minutes and reached the summit sign on
> the highway. Walked across the road and found the
> trail. Was thankful for the time I spent on the CDT
> this past year, otherwise I think would have been lost
> on this twisty path. (OK...so there were more signs in
> 100 meters than I saw on the entire CDT this year!)
>
> We reached the summit...without a support team or
> oxygen. Reckless still!
>
> The summit was a pile of rocks. A register was signed.
> We posed, took photos. Jerimoth Hill was conquered!
>
> After this difficult trek, Tim and I celebrated. How
> else do two Rhode Island boys celebrate climbing a
> summit in the morning? By going to a Rhode Island
> diner, of course. Home fries, eggs, corn beef hash.
> Lots of coffee. A fitting end to a most difficult
> adventure.
>
> Pics of this epic triumph at: http://snipurl.com/14mpd
>
> [1] http://www.quahog.org/attractions/index.php?id=69
> [2] http://highpointers.org/
> [3] http://snipurl.com/14mp6
>
>
> ************************************************************
> The true harvest of my life is intangible.... a little stardust
> caught, a portion of the rainbow I have clutched
> --Thoreau
> http://www.magnanti.com
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-- 
Jim Bullard
http://www.jimbullard.org
http://hiking.jimbullard.org
http://jims-ramblings.blogspot.com/