Date: 2006-07-19
From: Stewart Hollow Brook Lean-to

To: Plateau Campsite
Miles today: 26.6

The storm last night did indeed help lower the temperature as this morning was much cooler and the skies still a bit overcast. Hot Springs and I packed up and ate breakfast by Stewart Hollow Brook before heading out for the day. We wanted to put some big miles in today and from the elevations given in our guidebook that shouldn¢t be a problem. I laced up my new boots with new bright red laces that I picked up in town yesterday and set out for a pleasant hike. There were a couple of times during today¢s hike, for instance CT-4 and West Corn Wall Road, where we had the option to take a detour into town that at any other time we would have taken advantage of but since we spent most of yesterday in Kent we decided to push on. One big break did come when we crossed CT-4 because a guy named Bud was waiting for our old friends Cake and Pie to cross. If these two are ever near you on the trail there will be a party. As we emerged onto CT-4 Bud got out of a car and asked if when had seen them. ¢Not today we replied but they had signed in at the last shelter already.¢ ¢Want a beer he said? They are ice cold!¢ ¢Oh Yes¢, we answered. We dropped our packs, chatted for a bit, and took advantage of the ice cold Budweiser straight out of the ice chest. It was a seen out of a commercial as we were hot, sweaty, and sitting on the side of the road on a July day chugging a cold beer. About 10 miles into today¢s hike we stopped at Pine Swamp Brook Lean-to take a break. To this point today we have not encountered any other hikers so to our surprise we met up with Nick. He was a local ridge runner for this section of trail and he briefed us about the upcoming sections and informed us of a good swimming hole at Housatonic River Falls just ahead. This gave us incentive to push on because by now the cool day that we woke up to had turned into a muggy summer day full of humidity. Passing by Sharon Mountain Campsite I could hear the sounds of racecars on a drag strip off in the distance and thought how much fun it would be to go watch for a while but remembered the swimming hole just ahead and kept walking. After crossing over US-7/CT-112 and getting near to where the trail goes beside the Housatonic River we finally ran into Cake and Pie. They were resting on a bench beside the river and asked if we had seen Bud. They had last seen him earlier this morning and were planning to meet back up with him just ahead at the park near the falls. Hot Springs and I pushed on past the park and by a small hydroelectric plant just below the falls. Our guidebook mentioned showers available next to the transformers but water and electricity just don¢t mix. We stopped at the top of the falls and took a quick dip in a side pool. The falls were actually pretty impressive and to think about getting swept away in the current and going over the falls sent chills up the spine. We dried off and took of for Prospect Mountain just ahead. It was only 900¢ climb but we were pushing 21+ miles today in the heat so it was challenging. Over the crest was Limestone Spring Lean-to and to our surprise it was half a mile off the trail and wasn¢t worth stopping at. We passed by the Giant¢s Thumb, a geological rock formation that resembles a large thumb protruding from the ground, and ended up crossing Lower Cobble Road just a short time later. At this crossing Salisbury, CT is .5 miles to the left. We had a short road walk across Lower Cobble Stone Road and down Undermountain Road that ended in a red raspberry patch before climbing up to the Plateau Campsite. When we topped the plateau around 8:15 pm we found Shasta, H-Bomb, and Jangles setting up camp. They had lost Baro earlier in the day when he branched off of CT-4 to satisfy his ¢Tummy¢ at the local deli in Cornwall Bridge, CT and had not been seen since. We set up beside them and got the full details on how they got to stay with the lady in Kent earlier this week and rested after putting in the distance of just over a marathon today.Tonight at the Plateau Campsite: Hot Springs, Jangles, Shasta, H-Bomb, and I.