7/15/01
Since it was going to be an early Sunday morning attempt at an 8-mile hitch involving multiple roads, I arranged for a taxi to pick us up at 8:30 this morning from the East Mtn. Retreat Center. At 8:46 Phantom and I were back on the trail, rested and smelling fine. We crossed the Housatonic River, and then climbed steeply and steadily to the top of East Mountain. It was another very cool, clear morning, perfect for hiking. We were hoping to stop by the Tom Leonard shelter on the descent to check out the shelter register but there was no sign at the trail junction and we missed the turn. Just beyond highway MA23 we stopped for lunch at the beginning of another climb to catch our breath and get some calories in our bodies. We made it to Benedict Pond around 1:30 p.m. and stopped. There was nice rock to sit on at the end of the pond with a great view. The intermittent clouds and sun and a nice breeze made for the perfect chance to soak in the beauty and meditate for an hour or two. Neither of us wanted to leave the serenity and beauty of the pond, but we were getting sunburned so we finally ambled up the trail.
We climbed Mt. Wilcox, stopping at the South lean-to for a register entry, then hiked the 1.8 miles to the Mt. Wilcox North lean-to. The first order of business for me upon arrival at the lean-to was to find the privy! When I finished with my visit including reading the Far Side cartoons on the privy door, I walked the path to the lean-to. As I rounded the corner to the front of the lean-to I saw Phantom, sitting at the front with a Coors Light beer in his hand and a smile on his face! For a moment I was confused and shocked. Then I realized that someone must have left some trail magic behind. Sure enough, our fellow thru-hiker Monterey and friend Mosquito had been by and left some beers in the stream. I joined Phantom in this Coors Light moment as we shared the magic. We have decided to slow down the mileage and really enjoy each day, as we only have to average a little more than 12 miles per day to reach Katahdin by mid September. The tents were set up and unfortunately we were among the mosquito hoards again despite camping at a much higher elevation than previous nights. Three section hikers from Rhode Island joined us at the lean-to while we were cooking dinner. Old Rabbit, Dr. Bob and Abel made a fire as we all fought off the mosquitoes. The evening was pleasant and cool and it didn't take us long to find our tents. It was another beautiful day on the trail and a nice leisurely afternoon by the pond. Today's stats: low 52, high 78. Sunny to partly cloudy. Today's mileage: 13.5; cumulative mileage: 1,515.7.
