Early Bird
Active member
I got back late Monday night from a wonderful three days on the CT Appalachian Trail. Chip did a nice job recapping Saturday’s hike in his trip report. Jug End Road to Sage's Ravine All I would add to segue into the rest of my backpacking trip is that Saturday’s hike would include the most people I’d see in the next couple of days.
After parting ways at Sage’s Ravine, I changed from trail runners which I normally hike in to Crocs for the fording of icy waters. Snow lingered in the ravine, adding to the variety of this warm day’s hike. At Bear Mountain I met another hiker with whom I walked back to his departure point, the Undermountain Trail, then continued to Riga.
Three men were in Riga. Gear was strewn everywhere. “Are some people tenting around here too?” I asked. Nope. It was all theirs. The amount of provisions and cooking supplies they’d brought in looked like more than I had in my entire kitchen. They admitted to over packing and cooking gourmet food. I’m not sure if they were kidding when they told me they had peeled potatoes before I arrived. They were fun folks from not too far from my home town who hiked many of the same lesser known trails as I had. That evening we shared port, joked, and laughed. It was a warm 54 °.
Near sunset I heard a woodcock “Preet” and whiz skyward. I stood on the stairs of the shelter and looked up until I lost my balance and fell backwards, but never did see him. Other than him, hairy woodpeckers were busy chiseling out nest holes. And the clear night sky allowed us views of Venus as well as many constellations. Aside from the woodcock and woodpeckers, that evening I heard a distant barred owl, chickadees, robins, crow, phoebes, winter wrens, hermit thrush, and flickers.
In the morning I did catch the sunrise colors linear on the horizon change from red to muted warm hues while enjoying raspberry green tea from my cozy sleeping bag. There is no better way to start the day. By 6:30 I was on the trail heading south through the rest of CT.
A 40 degree morning soon gave way to a pleasant 70 degree day. I always find it hard to recap a 20+ mile day. Here are some highlights:
Remembering one result of backpacking- losing all sense of urgency. Put one foot in front of the other and sooner or later you will arrive to where you need to be. At the same time you are always right where you want to be.
Listening to the “clucking” wood frogs and tiny high-pitched peepers and knowing they proclaim spring’s arrival
Watching countless hermit thrushes leave their foraging spots on the forest floor and perch on trailside shrubs.
Hearing the warning of the Pileated woodpecker before he darts off towards a far away tree.
The drumming of the grouse, anticipating the startling flutter as they are flushed away from their daily doings. None were flushed out this trip.
The deer as they freeze, then high tail it out of sight.
I journaled at my Sunday ten o’clock break while lounging at Rand’s View. “Fairly ordinary birds abound. I suppose the wave of migration hasn’t hit yet as the trees haven’t yet leafed out. I hear robins, hairies, titmouses, blue jay, sapsuckers, chickadees, and song sparrows. This morning I saw a fish crow and two deer, plus the pileated. Right now there are three deer in the distant meadow, also feeding. I can see them excellently through my monocular. Never is a break any regular day this good, aye.”
Sunday I arrived at my preset destination at 4:30. No one was there. I had only seen one section hiker, Raiman, earlier in the day- he said he didn’t like CT so far. Too many ups and downs. This always kills me. It’s the AT. I could recommend a nice walk through a suburban park if this isn’t what you were expecting. I tried to point out some nice parts. “Didn’t you like that flat walk along the Housatonic River?”
“No,” he said. “It was too wet and I had to keep watching my step to not get into the mud.”
Oh well. He said that was a couple of days ago. Maybe it would be drier when I get there tomorrow, I thought. I also saw two day hikers and two nice people at the Great Falls with whom I marveled at the fierceness of the waters there. Certainly no precocious baby ducks paddling around this time. A little bit later I arrived at the hydroelectric plant, filled up on fresh water, snacked, waved at the passing cyclists. Beautiful day. Forgot to look for CT rose quartz until after Belter’s. Saw some, but not a ton. Belter’s Bump is a nice rest spot. So was Billy’s view where peepers were heard in the valley.
The register at Pine Swamp was in shambles, but I did my best to reorder the pages and see if there was anyone I knew in there. Found Red Dane and Duck Tape. After about an hour, knowing no one was likely to show up there, I decided to move on to Caesar Brook and camp. Might as well use my tent and it’s always nice to stay at a new spot. Doing this I figured, too, might have me home Monday night instead of Tuesday. It would mean a 25 mile day tomorrow. Or a 22 mile day and a measly 3 mile hike out Tuesday morning. I’d play it by ear.
Monday was a bit of a killer- hot, hot, hot. It got to at least 82 and with the trees still bare there was little shaded relief. I very much enjoyed the hemlock groves, and I at least twice longed to be back at the hydroelectric plant where I could take advantage of their free outside shower. Climbing St. John’s Ledges I felt like I was back in the Grand Canyon in August. I think it was there I decided I would definitely hitch into Kent just to buy a cold drink. The second car going by took me in. I bought and glugged a liter of Powerade and a liter of water in less than 5 minutes, then began hitching back. Eight cars later I was picked up and back on the trail. Less than 15 minutes spent in town, perfect! I definitely didn't drink enough for the heat we had and miles I walked. In all I drank more than four liters.
Some other Monday highlights:
The Housatonic River walk: merganser mates and Eastern towhee. A warbler that I have to look up at home. Blue-winged? Who arrives early already yellow with a thin black eye stripe? Song sparrows.
More deer, along the gravel road just past the river and at the swampy area after Caleb’s Peak.
I heard so many Hairy Woodpeckers this trip I think I’ve learned to identify them by their hammering! With review I’ll keep them Piliated and sapsuckers apart.
The black squirrel! It was the size of a squirrel and black, with a thinner tail that it didn’t twitch the way grey squirrels do. It took off in a different manner from typical squirrels. Usually a squirrel will circle up the trunk of a tree and sit there rather tamely. This thing shot straight up the tree, traversed tree limb to tree limb without jumping to the tip of the evergreen branch that I was surprised held its weight, and finally onto another tree, up, and out of sight. Neat little being.
Ten Mile River and Campsite. I was tired by now. It would have taken equal effort to cook and set up camp as it would have to walk the last three mile (and up only one more little hill). After a short shoe off break, I decided to keep walking.
The raccoon I saw scamper across the trail and up to a lateral tree branch, a benefit of hiking when shadows grow long. I’d not before noticed the rusty colors in its striped tail. I thought it was black and white.
The sleepy sun at Ten Mile Hill, still an hour before dark, but in light orange glow.
And so ended a great hike through Connecticut. This time I’ll remember it for the treasured hemlocks, the bountiful laurel though not yet in bloom, and the lack of false peaks. I noticed whenever I thought I was getting to the top, I was, and usually a slight breeze rewarded my work. On the drive home I stopped for a banana split and large chocolate milk. I’m already looking forward to my next backpacking trip, slightly less than two months away.
After parting ways at Sage’s Ravine, I changed from trail runners which I normally hike in to Crocs for the fording of icy waters. Snow lingered in the ravine, adding to the variety of this warm day’s hike. At Bear Mountain I met another hiker with whom I walked back to his departure point, the Undermountain Trail, then continued to Riga.
Three men were in Riga. Gear was strewn everywhere. “Are some people tenting around here too?” I asked. Nope. It was all theirs. The amount of provisions and cooking supplies they’d brought in looked like more than I had in my entire kitchen. They admitted to over packing and cooking gourmet food. I’m not sure if they were kidding when they told me they had peeled potatoes before I arrived. They were fun folks from not too far from my home town who hiked many of the same lesser known trails as I had. That evening we shared port, joked, and laughed. It was a warm 54 °.
Near sunset I heard a woodcock “Preet” and whiz skyward. I stood on the stairs of the shelter and looked up until I lost my balance and fell backwards, but never did see him. Other than him, hairy woodpeckers were busy chiseling out nest holes. And the clear night sky allowed us views of Venus as well as many constellations. Aside from the woodcock and woodpeckers, that evening I heard a distant barred owl, chickadees, robins, crow, phoebes, winter wrens, hermit thrush, and flickers.
In the morning I did catch the sunrise colors linear on the horizon change from red to muted warm hues while enjoying raspberry green tea from my cozy sleeping bag. There is no better way to start the day. By 6:30 I was on the trail heading south through the rest of CT.
A 40 degree morning soon gave way to a pleasant 70 degree day. I always find it hard to recap a 20+ mile day. Here are some highlights:
Remembering one result of backpacking- losing all sense of urgency. Put one foot in front of the other and sooner or later you will arrive to where you need to be. At the same time you are always right where you want to be.
Listening to the “clucking” wood frogs and tiny high-pitched peepers and knowing they proclaim spring’s arrival
Watching countless hermit thrushes leave their foraging spots on the forest floor and perch on trailside shrubs.
Hearing the warning of the Pileated woodpecker before he darts off towards a far away tree.
The drumming of the grouse, anticipating the startling flutter as they are flushed away from their daily doings. None were flushed out this trip.
The deer as they freeze, then high tail it out of sight.
I journaled at my Sunday ten o’clock break while lounging at Rand’s View. “Fairly ordinary birds abound. I suppose the wave of migration hasn’t hit yet as the trees haven’t yet leafed out. I hear robins, hairies, titmouses, blue jay, sapsuckers, chickadees, and song sparrows. This morning I saw a fish crow and two deer, plus the pileated. Right now there are three deer in the distant meadow, also feeding. I can see them excellently through my monocular. Never is a break any regular day this good, aye.”
Sunday I arrived at my preset destination at 4:30. No one was there. I had only seen one section hiker, Raiman, earlier in the day- he said he didn’t like CT so far. Too many ups and downs. This always kills me. It’s the AT. I could recommend a nice walk through a suburban park if this isn’t what you were expecting. I tried to point out some nice parts. “Didn’t you like that flat walk along the Housatonic River?”
“No,” he said. “It was too wet and I had to keep watching my step to not get into the mud.”
Oh well. He said that was a couple of days ago. Maybe it would be drier when I get there tomorrow, I thought. I also saw two day hikers and two nice people at the Great Falls with whom I marveled at the fierceness of the waters there. Certainly no precocious baby ducks paddling around this time. A little bit later I arrived at the hydroelectric plant, filled up on fresh water, snacked, waved at the passing cyclists. Beautiful day. Forgot to look for CT rose quartz until after Belter’s. Saw some, but not a ton. Belter’s Bump is a nice rest spot. So was Billy’s view where peepers were heard in the valley.
The register at Pine Swamp was in shambles, but I did my best to reorder the pages and see if there was anyone I knew in there. Found Red Dane and Duck Tape. After about an hour, knowing no one was likely to show up there, I decided to move on to Caesar Brook and camp. Might as well use my tent and it’s always nice to stay at a new spot. Doing this I figured, too, might have me home Monday night instead of Tuesday. It would mean a 25 mile day tomorrow. Or a 22 mile day and a measly 3 mile hike out Tuesday morning. I’d play it by ear.
Monday was a bit of a killer- hot, hot, hot. It got to at least 82 and with the trees still bare there was little shaded relief. I very much enjoyed the hemlock groves, and I at least twice longed to be back at the hydroelectric plant where I could take advantage of their free outside shower. Climbing St. John’s Ledges I felt like I was back in the Grand Canyon in August. I think it was there I decided I would definitely hitch into Kent just to buy a cold drink. The second car going by took me in. I bought and glugged a liter of Powerade and a liter of water in less than 5 minutes, then began hitching back. Eight cars later I was picked up and back on the trail. Less than 15 minutes spent in town, perfect! I definitely didn't drink enough for the heat we had and miles I walked. In all I drank more than four liters.
Some other Monday highlights:
The Housatonic River walk: merganser mates and Eastern towhee. A warbler that I have to look up at home. Blue-winged? Who arrives early already yellow with a thin black eye stripe? Song sparrows.
More deer, along the gravel road just past the river and at the swampy area after Caleb’s Peak.
I heard so many Hairy Woodpeckers this trip I think I’ve learned to identify them by their hammering! With review I’ll keep them Piliated and sapsuckers apart.
The black squirrel! It was the size of a squirrel and black, with a thinner tail that it didn’t twitch the way grey squirrels do. It took off in a different manner from typical squirrels. Usually a squirrel will circle up the trunk of a tree and sit there rather tamely. This thing shot straight up the tree, traversed tree limb to tree limb without jumping to the tip of the evergreen branch that I was surprised held its weight, and finally onto another tree, up, and out of sight. Neat little being.
Ten Mile River and Campsite. I was tired by now. It would have taken equal effort to cook and set up camp as it would have to walk the last three mile (and up only one more little hill). After a short shoe off break, I decided to keep walking.
The raccoon I saw scamper across the trail and up to a lateral tree branch, a benefit of hiking when shadows grow long. I’d not before noticed the rusty colors in its striped tail. I thought it was black and white.
The sleepy sun at Ten Mile Hill, still an hour before dark, but in light orange glow.
And so ended a great hike through Connecticut. This time I’ll remember it for the treasured hemlocks, the bountiful laurel though not yet in bloom, and the lack of false peaks. I noticed whenever I thought I was getting to the top, I was, and usually a slight breeze rewarded my work. On the drive home I stopped for a banana split and large chocolate milk. I’m already looking forward to my next backpacking trip, slightly less than two months away.
(a grin and green with envy)
