[at-l] this thing goes on, and on...and, on...

[Felix J]

Alright...let's do this thing...or, at least part of it:

I left the Ruck somewhere around 10 o'clock Sunday morning, headed for 
Pittsfield, MA and 'The Cookie Lady's' house. I had called them and 
asked if it was alright if I left my truck in their driveway will I 
hiked south to Great Barrington.

The drive was pleasant; sunny and pretty. Things seemed to be going 
well, but the clock seemed to be moving faster than me.  The closer I 
got to Pittsfield, the darker, cloudier and snowier it got.  I made my 
way through the town of Pittsfield like I'd lived there all my life. I'd 
never been where I was before and was quite proud.

The snow and wind were really playing havoc with driving on Washington 
Rd. My 'low fuel' light came on just before I pulled into the Wiley's 
driveway. 

I knocked on the door and asked them where they wanted me to park. We 
talked for a minute and she asked if I wanted to change my clothes 
inside. Mr. Wiley was  putting wood in the woodstove. I immediately 
recognized him from my hike in '98. We'd stopped to pick blueberries and 
he was mowing his 'landing strip' in his backyard. 

After I'd changed, he said "Did you say you're from Indiana?" I had told 
him on the phone that I would be coming from Indiana. I answered "Yes".  
He said "Our daughter just moved to Bloomington". I said "I live in 
Bloomington."  They told me her address and it is in a neighborhood I'm 
familiar with.  Small world. 

So, I finished getting my gear ready and headed off into a cold and 
snowy wind.  It was about 4:15 and I had dreams and hopes of hiking 11 
miles. That was a HUGELY unachievable goal. HUGELY!

The Trail makes a sharp left turn about 70 yards from where it crosses 
Washington Rd.  I said "The Trail makes a sharp left turn about 70 yards 
from where it crosses Washington Rd."  The reason this is worthy of 
repetition is because the fact that a trail makes a sharp left turn does 
not necessarily mean that the man hiking the trail will also make a 
sharp left turn.

And, in this particular instance, the hiker did not make the sharp left 
turn that the trail did. Instead, he hiked for about a mile down a very 
nice road that had the snow packed down tight by snowmobiles and 
cross-country skiers.  I assume that the fact that this trail was so 
nicely packed and easy to hike is what made me not look to either side 
for blazes. Instead, I was making great time in the wrong direction.
 
Once I realized there were no blazes I pulled my map out and instantly 
saw my problem: THE TRAIL MAKES A SHARP LEFT TURN ABOUT 70 YARDS FROM 
WHERE I'D STARTED HIKING!!   So, roughly an hour after I started my 
hike, I was 70 yards down the trail. 

There was much, much more snow on the ground than I had anticipated. 
Somewhere between 5 and 8 inches. And, the trail that had not been 
packed down by snowmobiles and skis was much harder to hike. It WAS 
quite beautiful in the woods. And, I figured out fairly quickly that I 
wouldn't be hiking 11 miles on this night.  I was already looking 
forward to getting to October Mt. Shelter some  2.2 miles from the road. 

There were lots of hemlocks (I think. Some hemlock/fir-type tree) so 
that made it darker in the woods. Someone had hiked through the area a 
day or two earlier (probably Saturday, the day before) and it really 
helped in the trail-locating. I'm not sure I would have seen the shelter 
had the other hiker not gone to it.  I'm not sure what time it was when 
I got there other than it was dark. Very dark. 

I had a nice evening. And, for the third straight shelter-night, a mouse 
tried to steal the string on my tent stake.  I heard an owl in the night 
and I slept well. 

I woke up pretty early for me and got an early start. It usually takes 
me forever to get going in the morning. But, this day I was back on the 
trail early enough that I saw the sunrise from the little summit just 
north of Bald Top Mt. It was beautiful in the woods that morning as the 
snow was reflecting the orange the Sun made the clouds look (did you 
follow that?).

I was only able to make about 1.5 miles an hour. And, it was very 
tiring. There was generally about 6 inches of snow, with a thin coat of 
ice on top, to make the hiking extremely exhausting.  I made it to Route 
20, despite getting off the Trail AT LEAST two times, sometime before 
noon.  Since I had decided to only go to Upper Goose Pond (about 3.0 
miles from Route 20)  instead of pushing on, I felt like I had some time 
to kill. I knew that there was a restaurant up the road a bit, so I 
decided to see if I could get some grub.

As I walked up the highway, a funny thing happened: A little car passed 
me. Now, that, in itself, wasn't funny. But, the girl driving looked at 
me and smiled like she might stop to give me a ride, even though she was 
going the other way. So, I turned around to see. Now, THIS is where the 
funny part comes in: It was the same car that had given me a ride a 
month and a half earlier! The woman was, I assume, the girlfriend of the 
guy who had given me a ride from Becket, MA (just off Rt 20) all the way 
to Charlton, MA, paying tolls and all. The way I know it was the same 
car is: It was a blue Chevy Cavalier station wagon with VT license 
plates...AND A LOOSE MUFFLER!!  Amazing, to me.

Anyway, she didn't give me a ride and I walked on. I got to the place 
where the restaurant was supposed to be...but, it ain't no more. 
Auctioned off and the building is for sale. So, I stood in front of the 
place and stuck a thumb out. As I was standing there, a man came out of 
the former restaurant and fumbled around in a Jeep for a while. He 
apparently didn't see me as at one point he stepped to the front of the 
car and began urinating. 

When he finally did see me, I yelled across the highway asking if there 
was a restaurant up the road. He told me that there was a package store 
about 4 miles up the road that makes sandwiches. Good enough for me. 
Thumb out. 

I was picked up by a slightly odd fellow in a VW Rabbit. He was a nice 
enough guy...but, when I told him I was going to be in Baltimore to 
watch the Super Bowl, he thought I was going to walk. He said "How are 
you going to walk that far by Sunday?" 

He let me out at the East Lee Deli. I had a roast beef and swiss on 
wheat and a root beer. I sat on the front step and ate it. It was cold 
and windy out.  I also bought some spice drops and a 1 pound 3 oz. can 
of Progresso Beef Pot Roast. I thought it'd be a nice, hot meal to have 
at Upper Goose Pond Cabin. I mean, it is only about 3 miles from Route 20.

So, I walked up the highway to a better place to get a ride (one trick 
of successful hitchhiking is making sure people have room to pull over 
to pick you up). It wasn't too terribly  long before a guy picked me. As 
it turns out, he was a 1993 thru-hiker. I cannot for the life of me 
remember his name. Something like Gizmo...only, it was/is a real name. 
He even knows some people I think I know people who know (you follow 
that, too?).  (you still reading this?)

Back on the trail....I made decent time to Upper Goose Pond Cabin. That 
little climb up from the Mass Pike is more difficult with an extra pound 
and a half of food...not counting the belly full.  Not to worry. I had a 
hot meal planned for the night.

It was a beautiful, sunny evening. I got to the cabin right around 3:00. 
Right as I got there, a large, black Lab circled the porch.  I initially 
thought it was a bear.  The owner, Frederick, was just behind Max/Alex? 
the dog. We had a pleasant chat and even went for a walk across the 
frozen Upper Goose Pond. He took me and showed me some cabins that are 
hidden along the shores of the pond. (How many of you have seen those 
cabins?) 

As the sun settled down, the orange/blue sky had a definite chill to it. 
Not a cloud to be seen, either. It's gonna be a cold one, ma. 

I was in my bag, as I generally was on this hike, and had NO appetite. I 
ate some M&Ms and pulled my bag up tight around my head. I was asleep 
well before dark. Sleep never did last too long, however. I stuck my 
hand out long enough to grab my water bottles and that heavy-assed can 
of stew.  Last thing I wanted that can  to do was freeze!   (I never did 
find the water source for Upper Goose Pond Cabin. There are 4 privies, 
though!)  (Why ARE there 4 privies??)

For some reason I was up and at 'em pretty early the next morning, too.  
It was a good deal more work this time, though. It was certainly one of 
those 'do one thing and pull your hand back in the bag' mornings.  The 
reason for that, I found out when I got out of the bag and put my frozen 
boots on at 7:15, is that it was 10 degrees.  I was still packed up and 
ready to leave much earlier than I usually am. 

As I got to the end of the pond, just about where the trail curves 
around the tip, there was a lot of blood on the trail. Whatever was 
bleeding moved along the trail for a while, then exited left. A few 
hundred yards later it got back on the trail. I never could figure out 
exactly what it was or what had happened to cause the blood.  The 
bleeder left the trail for good where the AT crosses a little bridge 
over a pond-feeding brook.  I wished it well. 

I hiked along making the best time I could. There was still lots of 
snow, but it was cold and crunchy. Somewhere around Knee Deep Pond I saw 
what I think was a fox. Whatever it was had a 'dirty blond' body and a 
nearly-all black tail. Not just the tip.  It was big and healthy 
looking. What's that sound like to you guys?  Once he saw me, he didn't 
stick around long.

When I got to the highway into Tyringham (Main Road), I sat down for the 
first and only time of the hike on something non-snow-covered that 
wasn't in a shelter. There was a little knob where the trail meets the 
road that apparently had some sun because it was snowless. So, I sat for 
a few minutes and took a real, live break. Before it was over, it was 
raining. I cussed.  I didn't want it to rain. 

So, I changed to my 'better in the rain' jacket (which is really just 
the outer shell of my fleece jacket) and put my pack cover on. It only 
drizzled for a little while, though. And, that made me feel better.  I 
crossed Jerusalem Road fairly quickly...but, that feeling of optimistic 
accomplishment was soon dashed. For some reason, the rest of the 
day...nearly 8 more miles...KICKED MY ASS. And, you know it had to be 
bad for me to say 'ASS' in all caps. 

This turned out to be the hardest 16 mile day I've ever hiked. I 
remember thinking at one point, while I was eating a mouthful of spice 
drops (which became hugely effective in helping me hike on...the spice 
drops and the taste of Progresso Beef Pot Roast) that for the first time 
in my hiking life, I might have to take a break in sight of a shelter. I 
was really, really worn out. And, sure enough, a little while later, I 
was again taking a spice drop break, waiting for the sugar to kick in, 
when I noticed to my left the snow-covered roof of Mt. Wilcox South 
Shelter. 

As I walked down the steep trail just north of the side trail to the 
shelter, I slipped and cracked my hip pretty good. Landed right on a 
rock, I did.  I was too hungry and too tired to do much about it, though. 

The first thing I did was start my stove and crack open that can of 
stew. I get weak thinking about it even now.  As it was cooking I got 
the rest of my chores done: bed set up, clothes changed, and everything 
arranged for the night, which wasn't far off.

It is quite possible that that can of stew was the best meal I've ever 
had in a shelter in my life. It was hot and filling...and, easy to cook 
and clean up.  I got in my bag around 6 o'clock. I fell asleep and slept 
pretty well until about 11. My hip was hurting. I listened to the radio 
for a while and turned it off when I heard some coyotes howling down the 
hill. I laid there staring at the gaps in the shelter's walls,  thinking 
it might be time to tear down the two Wilcox Shelters and build one new 
one.  It wasn't until I made my way to the privy in the morning that I 
found out that they have, in fact, built a new Wilcox Mt. Shelter. A 
beautiful shelter, in fact.  It was foggy/hazy/rainy enough that I 
hadn't seen the new shelter when I had arrived there in the evening. So, 
I slept in the old shelter...quite happily.  

I got up and got another good start. It was raining and sloppy. The 
trail was an absolute mess and I was, too, in short order. By the time I 
got to Highway 23, it was raining pretty heavily. I knew this wasn't 
going to help my chances of getting a ride. Thumb out.

After about 45 minutes (just guessing) standing there in the rain, a guy 
in an Audi stopped. I put my pack in the back seat and as I was climbing 
in the front, I noticed he "A Walk in the Woods" on CD in the passenger 
door pocket. He was a nice guy who had, of course, dated a girl from 
Bloomington, IN at one point.  (circle is complete).  He dropped me off 
at McDonalds in Great Barrington and I called Mr. Wiley for a ride. I'd 
hoped to hitchhike back to my truck, but in that kind of rain I just 
wasn't interested in standing along the road knowing folx don't want a 
dirty, wet and stinky hiker in their car.

So, Mr. Wiley came and got me and we had a very pleasant ride back to 
his house with very pleasant conversation. He asked me if I'd bring a 
bike back to Bloomington with me for his son-in-law. So, I did.   An 
interesting little aside to all of this...as it turned out, I was out 
for three nights and didn't eat one of the nightly meals I had brought. 
First night I was still full from a double quarter pounder I'd had in 
NY. the second night I was still full from the roast beef and swiss 
sandwich I ate at the deli. And, the third night I ate a can of stew I 
bought at the deli.  And, for breakfast, I only ate one packet of 
oatmeal instead of the two I had for each day.  So...I ended up with 
enough food at the end of the hike, to do the hike again!!

If I can write two more paragraffs, this trip report will be as long as 
the trip...  which got me 30.1 more Trail miles toward being done with a 
section-hike...leaving me about 488 miles to go.  There's a thunderstorm 
comin'....
 

-- 
Felix J. McGillicuddy
ME-->GA '98
"Your Move"
ALT '03 KT '03
http://Felixhikes.tripod.com/