Day 106- And So It Begins

July 16, 2015

Cobble Rd(1499.2) to Glenn Brook Shelter(1513.1) 13.9 Miles

Yes, you read that correctly. I only hiked 13.9 miles today. As you can tell from the elevation profile above, the trail is starting to become more difficult. The low mileage day, however, had more to do with me slowing down to enjoy the scenery. 

I left Maria's house around 7:00 and was back on the trail by 7:30. 

Maria McCabe's house

I was told to expect today to be a good warm up of things to come, but I wasn't sure what that meant. I would soon discover the meaning of that statement. I was only on the trail for a few minutes when I hit the 1,500 mile mark. I spent about ten minutes making the sign, only to discover an official one a few feet farther down the trail. Oh, well. I enjoy making them. 

Combination of rocks and ferns. Looked better in person

Official mile marker

Over the next two miles, I gained about 1,000 feet of elevation. It was a beautiful morning. The temperature was about 65 degrees with low humidity. I slowed down my pace and just enjoyed hiking through a pretty forest. Eventually, I made it to the top of the climb and was rewarded with a great view. 

Lions Head 

I was really looking forward to the next section of trail. It includes Bear Mountain(second bear mountain in less than a week) and Sages Ravine. Bear Mountain was a tough climb to the top. It was all slabs of rock, which makes it difficult to use my hiking poles. Once again, I was rewarded by an incredible view. 

View from Bear Mountain

Louie Dog, the SOBO I met at Bearded Woods, pre-warned me of the treacherous descent from Bear Mountain.  She was not kidding. It was all steep slabs of rock and took me forever to descend. At one point I almost fell, but my hiking pole saved the day. Unfortunately, the hiking pole was not so fortunate. The tip was sheared clean off. It sacrificed itself to save me. Thanks trusty pole. It is still usable, but I will need to order a replacement part ASAP. 

Almost one mile of this descent

Where my pole saved me

I finally made it the rest of the way off of Bear Mountain, with no other issues. The hike into Sages Ravine was like something out of a fairytale. A large stream flowed through a ravine in the middle of a huge spruce forest, amazing. 

Sages Ravine

Lunchtime view

I sat on a pine covered ledge and ate my lunch, leftover pizza I packed in from last night. It was absolutely perfect. I took my time eating and finished writing yesterday's blog post. There was a great camp spot close by, but I just couldn't stop at 11:30. I seem to always hit these amazing camp spots early in the day. Just before I left, Sages Ravine, I exited Connecticut and began Massachusetts. 

 Connecticut/Massachusetts border

The rest of the day can only be described as amazingly beautiful misery. The views were fantastic, but the climbs and descents were very technical and difficult. I finally understood what Hudson meant by a taste of whats to come. 

Totally exposed ridgeline walking

Beautiful scenery 

I finished the day with a walk next to a cool pond. I was thinking about going for a swim, but it was a little to chilly. I was thinking about hiking another few miles, but that would have put me too close to road. Plus the shelter was amazing. One of my favorite campsites so far. 

Forest surrounding the shelter 

Clarity was already setup here, so I joined her. We had dinner together and then got ready for bed. It's the earliest I've setup camp since the Smokies. It will be nice to get to sleep early for a change. 

After dinner selfie

"Life lessons are not journeys traveled in straight lines but are crossroads formed years and miles apart." -Gina Greenlee.