Date: 2016-04-16
From: Main Road Tyringham MA

To: Mt Wilcox N Shelter
Miles today: 7.1
Weather: clear sky

I found shuttle driver Mr. Dana Murphy on www.appalachiantrail.org > Explore the Trail > Transportation Options > scroll down to the AT Shuttles link. I parked my car at Hoyt Road Gaylordsville CT at 11 am. This parking area and the one near it were packed. This is where I met Dana. This is the CT/NY border for the Appalachian Trail. Dana drove me to Main Road Tyringham MA as I filled his ear with my hiking partner woes. I drank a 32 oz bottle of Gatorade and ate an apple. Dana only charged the mileage he drove me. Another shuttle service in the area charges round trip. Dana was very pleasant and submitted to my ignorance that the trailhead was east when he thought it was west. Of course he is the one with local knowledge. After a few miles, I admitted I have been wrong before. He made a U-turn. The trailhead was only a mile from the incorrect turn.   I got on the trail at 12:30 pm. It seemed like such an effort to get on the trail. I was beginning to wonder if it was worth it. At last I was on the trail. My legs seemed to know what to do. The hike was pleasant through Tyringham Cobble. I met a day hiker or two.   I got to Shaker Campsite at 2:15 pm. This was too early for me to stop. I took pictures of the campsite, including the bear box. Massachusetts has a bear box at every campsite/shelter that has had a report of bear problems. The bear boxes are very sturdy and SOOOO much easier than throwing up a bear bag. It is very nice that Appalachian Mountain Club has devoted the money for these bear boxes. I wish that the section of Georgia that requires bear cannisters had done this.   Just after I left Shaker Campsite, I saw a plant that looked like a ramp. Last year I set a goal to identify and eat a ramp. Unfortunately I set the goal in May when ramps are no where to be found. I picked a piece of the leaf and smelled it. I was pleasantly surprised when it smelled of onions and garlic. I had found a ramp! I ate it. It tasted like scallions. The thought crossed my mind that I could go home now. I had achieved last year's goal. I hiked on.   A few minutes later I met Tammis Coffin taking a picture of a lovely clump of hepatica. She and her friend were out for the day taking pictures of wild flowers near trailheads. She offered to slack pack me to the next shelter, but I declined. I probably should have accepted.   It was uphill from where we stood to the next shelter. I had my 4.5 lb tent because I was concerned about being cold. I usually backpack with a 0.5 lb tarp for shelter. So my pack at 36 lbs with two quarts of water, was really too heavy for me. By the time I got to my car a week later, the tips of my fingers were tingling constantly. This may be caused by a too heavy pack.    I came into the Mt Wilcox North Shelter. Four tents were set up and the shelter was full. Monday April 18 was Patriots Day, a state holiday in Massachusetts. This was the first nice weather weekend. So several people decided to go camping. I was befriended by Seth and Wyatt. Wyatt was an experienced backpacker who was taking Seth out for his first time. They were camping with a tarp. They had hiked in from the south and were hiking back to their car in the morning. They had brought some small bottles of wine. At the water source, there were mesh bags with soda cans in them. I cooked and ate my dinner with Seth and Wyatt while I filled their ears with my hiking partner woes, how heavy my pack was and how difficult Maine was last August.   I spent a chilly night in my tent with my youth size 20 degree sleeping bag. I am 5' 3". In my effort to keep weight down, I purchased a youth size 20 degree sleeping bag for up to 5' 3". Technically I can pull the mummy hood over my head, lay on my back and stretch out my legs. In this position, pressure is applied to the tips of my toes. The tips of my toes do not like pressure when sleeping at home. They like pressure even less after hiking steep grades. So I slept most of the night on my side.