Date: 2005-04-20
From: MA Rt. 41

To: Sages Ravine/Paradise Lane Trail
Miles today: 11.1

Wanting to allow sufficient time for hitching on the lonely road that is Rt. 41, I was parked at the Undermountain Trailhead and had my thumb out at 6:47 AM. The ride came in 50 minutes and I was on the Trail at 7:46 ¢ less than an hour from start. Not bad.Yes, what a difference a fresh start and slackpacking make. The ascent up Jug End and Mt. Bushnell was certainly steep and rocky enough to warrant high-stepping and maneuvering but I made it without stopping. Once at ridgeline, the remainder to Hemlocks Shelter was good walking ¢ not as excessively rocky as I had anticipated. But I¢m not second-guessing my decision to defer this portion until today. With a full pack at the end of the day yesterday after 17 miles, I¢m glad I waited. Hiking up the east side with the sun already risen and sheltered from the westerly winds made for heat and sweat early on. Today¢s supposed to be warmer than yesterday and already the haze is obscuring views.Deb¢s description of Hemlocks Shelter was certainly right on the money. I stayed long enough to eat some gorp for sustenance for the Mt. Everett ascent which didn¢t prove difficult with my light pack; again, I made it without stopping to rest. As for Mt. Everett, I stayed long enough to take off and dry my shirt, socks, and boots. But the infrequency of the breezes enable many species of bugs, including some biters, to annoy the setting. Also the views were less-than-perfect with the haze. Is this April or July?The descent down Mt. Everett¢s south side was the most difficult walk of the day ¢ steep and rocky. At least it¢s dry. The rocks are generally rough-hewn enough to gain a foothold but it was still slow going. Looking ahead to Race Mountain, I figured one last ascent of the day.I guess it was an ascent but I ¢raced¢ up Race Mountain. I couldn¢t believe how easy it was and how picturesque the setting was. The guidebooks don¢t do it justice. It was fun trooping along the long ridge and the actual summit was constantly breezy. I wished I had spent less time on Mt. Everett and more here ¢ I could stay here all day. Meet a young couple day hiking as I meandered along before the stretch which clung along the edge of the sheer cliffs off to the east. Met another reptilian denizen of the Taconics ¢ a slightly wider garter snake.What¢s more, the descent into Sages Ravine was much easier than anticipated. I had envisioned lengthy rockfields and boulder scrambling but most of the way was gentle grade with reasonable footing. Unlike the previous two days, the dry brown leaves are not a factor today as I¢m hiking more in evergreens including mountain laurel and birch trees whose leaves apparently decompose faster than the oaks of the prior stretch. Sages Ravine is one of the treasures of the entire AT ¢ the cascades, the hemlocks (will they escape the adelgid?), the boulders draped in moss. And of course, what¢s an April hike without snow? Every day of this hike I¢ve seen snow and Sages Ravine housed the white stuff between the boulders and even some ice patches on the Trail on the brook¢s south side. There¢s something incongruent about tiptoeing around ice on an 80 degree day! I talked to Jeff and Sean, two section hikers with very heavy packs contemplating whether to tackle Bear Mountain or stay the night at Sages. Met some other short-term backpackers en-route to Laurel Ridge campsite.It¢s getting late afternoon and with the weather forecast calling for thunderstorms, I left Sages Ravine, shortly coming to the Paradise Lane Trail which I recognized from my Fall 2003 hike NOBO from Rt. 44 over Bear Mountain. So now this hike¢s finished and another state ¢ Massachusetts ¢ is in the books. The Paradise Lane trail was pretty much what I remembered although my 2003 hike was in 4 inches of snow. As I admired and photoed the looming Bear Mountain to my right, a day hiker with a dog came along and asked how to get up to Bear Mountain. He should have stayed on the Undermountain Trail which I reached in 44 minutes (not bad for 2.1 miles). From there, a steep, steady descent brought me down to my car at 3:31.These 43 miles in Massachusetts¢ southern half were a treat. Some easy parts, some moderate parts, some difficult parts. Some rock scrambling but not entirely. Some wetlands and ponds, good views, nice forest. Highlights: Upper Goose Pond, the ¢wall¢ between Shaker and Mt. Wilcox (not even mentioned in the Guidebook), Race Mountain, and Sages Ravine. Even the difficult stretches between Rts. 23 and 7 merited praise ¢ just don¢t plan on making good time! But what¢s the deal about time? Aren¢t we hiking the AT to enjoy sites like these unfettered by the clock? One day, I may return to hike up to Race Mountain and camp in Sages Ravine unfazed by the amount of daily AT mileage.