Connecticut AT Day 3 (4/18/22)

I slept well in the comfortable hotel bed. Unlike the last two days of getting up before the crack of dawn, on this day I was happy to take it easy. Ben and I only had 13 miles planned, which is not a lot for a full backpacking day. We did have a decent bit of elevation gain coming in four significant climbs, but I still wasn't in a rush. 

The Interlaken Inn provided some nice continental breakfast items. I had a couple hard boiled eggs to get some protein, and then some other various high carb items to give me energy for the day.

When we went to check out, the people at the Interlaken Inn were super friendly, and asked us all about what we would be hiking that day. I guess that the Interlaken doesn't get a lot of hikers, as they are a little pricey compared to what hikers normally go for, but I was very happy with our stay there.

We got on trail at around 8:30 or so. I was a bit sore from the 27 mile day yesterday, but once my body realized that we were back on trail, it whipped itself back into shape, and the soreness went away within the first mile.

Ben and I have different philosophies on shoes. I want light, flexible shoes that breathe easily. Basically, trail runners, which are a light sneaker with a better grip. The advantages of trail runners, and especially the Altras that I use, are that they protect you from blisters, they are easy to move in because they weigh very little, and they grip the rocks and other terrain very well. The disadvantages are that they offer you little foot protection, they soak through easily (though they do also dry quickly), and they don't have great durability.

Ben's primary concern was wanting waterproofness in his shoes, which means boots. The advantages of boots is that they are sturdier and more protective, they can be waterproof, and they are more durable. The disadvantages include blisters, being heavier, and if they do get wet, they don't dry. I mention all this because only a mile or so into the hike, Ben was already starting to have blister issues on his heels. We stopped so that he could put moleskin on his developing blisters. At first, it seemed like it did the trick, but the blisters quickly came back and would haunt him throughout our hike.

The first of our four big climbs of the day was Lion's Head. There was a nice viewpoint at the top, and Ben and I sat down there for a snack and just to take in the view. We saw a feature off in the distance, and we couldn't quite make out what it was. Ben thought it was a ski jump, and we eventually found out that he was correct, as Salisbury has a ski jump. It must have been quite large, given how far away we were able to see it from.

After Lion's Head, the trail leveled out for a while before it began to climb again. The second climb was the climb up Bear Mountain itself. Bear Mountain is the tallest mountain in Connecticut, but strangely, not the highest point in Connecticut. The highest point in Connecticut is actually on the shoulder of a mountain that extends into Connecticut, but has its peak in Massachusetts. You have to feel bad for Connecticut; they can't even have their own highest point without Massachusetts taking it.

Blue Shirt Guy had told me that the Bear Mountain area was beautiful, and he was right. The views all along the climb were magnificent. The summit was easy to spot, too, as it had a giant cairn on top of it, that was more like a mound. Apparently it had been built in 1885 to commemorate the highest point in Connecticut, before they learned that it was not in fact the highest point.

Surveying is a tricky business, and surveyors often make mistakes with mountain heights. For example, we recently learned that Tecumseh, the shortest four thousand footer in New Hampshire, is not actually four thousand feet. In another case, the AMC realized that Owl's Head in New Hampshire had the wrong point listed as its summit. Some maps have Redington, a four thousand footer in Maine, listed at only 3,980 feet. The list goes on.

After descending Bear Mountain, we dropped into Sage's Ravine. This was a very cool area where we walked right along a river for a while. The ravine was about a mile long, and we knew that we were going to eventually have to cross the river, which would likely require a ford. We thought about crossing at the beginning of the ravine, where crossing on logs would have been relatively easy, but decided not to for two reasons. First, there were signs warning you to stay on trail, as they were trying to regrow the area. Second, it would have meant bushwhacking, and I dislike bushwhacking. It's unpredictable and sometimes dangerous. As it turned out, it was a good decision not to cross. Some of the bushwhacks on the far side would have been virtually impossible thanks to the steepness of the embankment. Sage's Ravine had some nice cascades, and we stopped and took pictures.

Finally, we came to the end of the Ravine, and we realized that the river formed the border between Connecticut and Massachusetts in this section. We decided that fording was the only reasonable way to cross, so we set ourselves up for it. We put on our water crossing shoes (sandals for me, crocs for Ben), we zipped off the bottoms of our zip-off pants, we stowed everything we could in our packs, and we went to cross. Ben decided to cross first, and he crossed skillfully and without incident.

When I went to cross, I rock-hopped the first few steps, just as Ben had done. Then, I went to put my foot into the water. It was freezing cold, as I knew it would be, and I recoiled backwards. That was a big mistake. I slipped and fell backwards into the water. Thankfully, the water wasn't deep, so it wasn't really dangerous, just wet and cold. Ben had been filming my crossing, but when he saw me start to stumble, he stopped filming to come help, and didn't get a video of it. I suspect that was probably a good thing for my pride.

When we both made it to the opposite shore, I laid things out on the rocks to dry. The sun was shining and it was relatively warm, so it was a nice place to hang out. We had a lunch break: eating snacks, filtering water, and just generally enjoying ourselves. Before too long, two guys came from the other direction, looking to cross into Connecticut. Instead of fording, they decided to rock hop along the edge of a cascade. I didn't like that approach, as one misstep could cause a serious injury, but nonetheless the first guy pulled it off with no problems. The second guy decided to take off his shoes, and he had a bit more of an adventure, but he eventually made it, too, and everyone applauded him.

When Ben and I packed up after lunch, most everything was dry for me. My shirt and pants had dried very quickly, and my shoes and socks dried pretty well, too. The only thing that didn't dry very well were my gaiters, but that was a minor issue.

Now being in Massachusetts, we climbed out of Sage's Ravine towards Mt. Race. You could tell the difference between the two states in subtle things about how the trail was maintained. For instance, in Connecticut they love to use double blazes everywhere, but in Massachusetts they are more selective. I said last year that the trail maintenance in Massachusetts is amazing, and I will say it again here. There are a number of states on the AT that I haven't been to yet, but of the ones I have been to, Massachusetts has by far the best Appalachian Trail Club.

Massachusetts also has more challenging mountains than Connecticut, which became immediately apparent. As we neared the summit of Mt. Race, we had a beautiful ridge walk along what are called the Race Ledges. Well, they were beautiful for me. Ben has some fear of heights, and was less than thrilled with the sheer drop-off that they represented. Nonetheless, we crossed them without incident, and soon made the summit of Mt. Race, having completed the third of our four big climbs of the day.

After Race, it was a quick drop down into a saddle, and then we started climbing the last climb of the day, Mt. Everett. We didn't know until we started it that this would be by far the most difficult climb of the day. So difficult, in fact, that they had to hammer wooden steps into the side of the mountain to make the ascent (and more likely the descent) manageable. I was very glad that it wasn't wet or raining, or it would have made life very difficult.

As we neared the summit of Everett, we met a dog, and then eventually the dog's owner. The owner assured us that the dog was friendly, and I am sure it was. However, the dog went off into the brush at the side of the trail, and would not come back when the owner called. After we moved on, both Ben and I commented about how you shouldn't have a dog off-leash on trail if you don't have the dog under firm voice control. It's dangerous for the dog and for other people. I hope that the guy's dog eventually came back (I suspect it did), and I hope that the guy learned his lesson (I suspect that he didn't).

It was a pretty easy hike down from Everett to the Hemlocks Shelter. This shelter was a wonder to behold. Remember how I said earlier about how awesome the Massachusetts ATC is? Well, their new shelters are proof. They are all bunk and loft shelters. To use the Hemlocks as an example, it had a picnic table out front that was under the roof of the shelter. It then had four bunk platforms inside, each of which could probably fit two people across. Near the bunks, there were ladders that allowed you to access not only the upper bunks, but also the loft area above the picnic table. My usual instinct in one of these shelters is to simply take the bottom bunks, as they are the most convenient. However, Ben had a good point. There was weather supposed to come in, and the bottom bunks would be exposed to the wind, while the loft wouldn't. We set up on the bottom bunks, and debated whether to move to the loft.

For dinner, I had Backpacker's Pantry Pasta Primavera, with Packit Gourmet Mom's Banana Pudding for dessert. I was pleased to see that Ben's meals were the ones I had given him for Christmas. He had Peak Refuel Chicken Pesto Pasta, with Packit Gourmet Strawberry Cheesecake for dessert. Ben really enjoyed his meals. I thought that my dinner was good, and my dessert was amazing, as Packit Gourmet desserts always are.

Around this time, we got to check the weather, and we did not like what we saw. The storm coming in was a full nor'easter, with temperatures potentially dropping into the 20s overnight with snow. I commented to Ben that if I was alone, I might make a dash for town, but he came out to backpack, and it was going to be an experience.

In view of the weather, we decided to move our stuff into the loft, which I think was a good call. We also decided to fix another problem that had been gnawing at me. When we descended into Great Barrington the next day, I only needed to get to Route 7 to finish up Massachusetts, but my car was at Lake Buel Road, 7 miles further north. Neither of us really wanted to hike those extra 7 miles, so I decided to call a shuttle service (Gadget and Gidgit's Shuttle Service) and set up a ride for the next day.

The rain was supposed to start at 6 PM, and turn over to snow at 9 PM. We went to bed at 7 PM, and the rain hadn't started yet. I eventually got up to hit the bathroom at 12:30 AM, and the rain started at 12:45 AM, so like with everything else this trip, the weather forecast was way off.

I'll tell the story of what the storm actually did in tomorrow's trip finale. Until then, you can't take flight until you spread your wings!