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Aug
9 , 1983 Tuesday (605.9 mtg) From
Gonzo!s Appalachian Trail journal
The
descent from Greylock to Massachusetts route 2 was five miles of
downhill. The last bit after the Wilbur Clearing Lean-to was particularly
steep, dropping 2000 feet in two miles. The trail passed through
the outskirts of North Adams and crossed over the Hoosic River on
a concrete footbridge made for pedestrian traffic. The trail ascends
following Sherman Brook for about a mile.
Four miles of climbing out of the river valley brought me to the
Mass/Vermont State line. Not only did this mark the end of Massachusetts
and my eleventh state, but it marked the beginning of the "Long
Trail", a trail that runs 200 plus miles to the Canadian border.
The Appalachian Trail and the Long Trail run together for the next
ninety-eight miles before the A.T. veers off to the right and heads
toward New Hampshire. At the border I met Bob, from Knoxville, Tennessee
on a short outing. We talked for a while before I hiked on to Congdon
Camp ten miles farther on.
Now I was entering porcupine territory. Story has it that in this
area you have to hang your hiking boots and backpacks because the
"porkies" will search these items out in their nightly
raids looking for food. Boots and pack straps have a buildup of
salt from your sweat that they really go for. And just like the
bears down in the Smokies, the porkies have figured out where the
shelters and hikers are. Some of the shelters in the northeast have
caretakers to help protect the areas from overuse and abuse. This
happened to be one of them. I met Chip, the caretaker, and paid
my $1.50 to spend the night. The shelter is roughly at an elevation
of 2000 feet - not extremely high, but now that I was in Vermont,
the weather had suddenly gotten cooler and tonight was quite cold.
Cool enough that I made a note in my journal. Chip happened to be
celebrating his birthday today and his sister and niece were up
the mountain for a visit. Later on "Fish" and the "Awesome
Robots" showed up. I hung up my boots and pack, which was nothing
new, I just placed my boots in my pack and suspended the pack with
the usual screwhook and cord.
Gonzo!
Appalachian Trail Journals ©1983
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