7/13/01
This morning it was a very chilly 48 degrees when I got up after a cold night in just a fleece liner bag. It is hard to believe it's July! Phantom and I got on the trail at 8:45 and hiked a leisurely 4 miles through beautiful hemlock forests to the crossroad at the town of Salisbury, CT. The quintessential New England town, Salisbury offered a nice grocery store with deli as well as a library so we could spend some time answering E-mails on the internet. We took our time using the pay phone, shopping for groceries, using the library, and eating lunch in town. We saw The King and Lone Wolf while in town and met Fingers coming into town while we were leaving. While I was eating lunch in town, a local woman, Sandy Mitchell, came over and talked with me about the trail. Her dream is to thru-hike the AT and she said she's read every book she could find on the subject. Sound familiar? I remember just a year ago being in the same mode of thought. You never know, Sandy! Anyway, she surprised Phantom and me with a little trail magic from the bakery before she left. Then as we were leaving town we saw a car beside the trail with a Virginia plate and a woman inside the car. It was the girlfriend of another thru-hiker who we hadn't met, waiting for him to come down the trail. She gave us sodas before we continued down the trail, so it was a nice trail magic day.
The afternoon hike included a big climb to the top of Bear Mtn., the first 2000+ peak since PA. The view from the top was outstanding looking across Massachusetts, Connecticut and New York with numerous mountain ridges and valley floors. The initial descent of Bear Mtn. was steep with large rocks to negotiate on the way down. This is becoming the norm in the New England states. Somewhere between the summit and Sage's Ravine, a few hundred feet down, we crossed the state line from Connecticut to Massachusetts. Although I was excited about completing another state, I was more fascinated by the awesome beauty of the rugged ravine with its deep dark forests contrasted by ferns and intermittent sunlight. The stream running through the ravine had multiple pools and waterfalls cascading through the ravine. From the ravine we climbed to Bear Rock Stream campsite where we decided to stop for the night. It was 6:30 p.m. and the campsite was littered with tents. What a beautiful camping area! Dark forest, high above the valley floor, with a stream cascading out to an overlook and down at a waterfall, which we couldn't see from our vantage point. We found a couple of flat spots to set up tents, then cooked dinner from the overlook. The relatively high elevation combined with cool temperatures gave us a break from the mosquitos, but I got nailed by a yellow jacket at the vista for the first bee sting of the entire journey. Lone Wolf and The King joined us at the vista as the sun was setting. We didn't waste any time finding our tents before dark to actually get warm and escape the few mosquitos that were pestering us. The views and scenery the last two days have been awesome as the mountains are getting higher with bigger climbs and descents. After two days with some town food to complement the trail food my strength is back. A nagging sore throat and occasional cough are still there, but my legs are in top trail shape and I'm feeling better than the last three days. It's great to be in MA for the first time in my life. Today's stats: low 48, high 72. Partly cloudy. Today's mileage: 12.8; cumulative mileage: 1,489.6.
