Date: 2012-06-21
From: Kent, CT

To: Shaghticoke Mountain campsite, CT
Miles today: 3.2
Weather: clear sky

Arrived in New York City about 7:00 am. after a 31 hour bus ride via Columbus OH & Pittsburg PA. Enroute to Grand Central Terminal to catch the Metro North to Kent we stopped by a McDonalds on 42nd St. Discovered no Sweet Tea, a 30-minute dining room limit upstairs, and no plugs for charging cell phones. We ate our takeaway at famed Bryant Park behind the public library. Had the park mostly to ourselves as to our surprise NYC is not full of early risers. Streets were largely empty of traffic and pedestrians when our hometown of Little Rock would be teeming with commuters.After a quick walk around the library exterior and watching a group photo session of workers who restored the library facade, we entered Grand Central terminal. Its everything and more you've seen in movies. Our ticket for the 9:40 a.m. departure was just $16. After securing our ticket we sought again to charge our phone. The few visible sockets we tried were all turned off and there was no charging stands as at many Greyhound stations. We wandered down to the lowest level were the food court is found. Much like at Union Station in DC, there is a wide availability of food available, although most eateries did not open until 9:00 a.m. We found Lamb pitas for $8.50, Thai food for $8.95 to 9.95, croissants for $6.95, and four water fountains all capable of refilling 1 liter water bottles, which we did. We found a spot on a large wooden bench and people watched a while and we're people watched ourselves by a NYPD officer and his dog.About 9:15 we headed back upstairs and boarded our train which was air conditioned, unlike the immediate track area which was stifling hot. Immediately after departure the conductor asked for our ticket and we were on our way north to CT. After leaving the city we passed through a greenway with lakes and quaint towns and stations. At Southeast station we're scheduled to debark and switch to another train for our final leg. However, arriving at Southeast were directed to a waiting bus as there was a blockage somewhere north. The bus turned out to be a blessing as it paralleled the tracks and went to the stations before and just past where the A.T crosses Highway 20. So we got a good look at Pawling, the nursery and the various delis and gas stations along the way.We arrived at TenMile River station well before our arranged 1:00 p.m. shuttle pickup. We called the outfitter in Kent and notified them of our arrival. We were promptly picked up and delivered to the outfitter at our request for the sum of $25. We bought 10 ounces of denatured alcohol for $.30/ounce and charged our phone. The outfitter accepts mail drops and there were many already awaiting hikers. After getting our phone from one bar to three, we donned our pack and headed west on Macedonia Road to the the trail. The first half of the roadwalk was sunny & hot and we were relieved to find shade after clearing the town. The trail north goes over a fence ladder and then down across grassy fields. Our trail south went up and was full of rocks. After climbing 20 minutes we heard flowing water and found the blue blazed trail west to Algo shelter. As we were running an hour behind schedule, we opted not to visit the shelter and continue up.We made it over the first hill, over a creek, and then up and over a second hill. We thought we had missed the campground and were further along than planned. At 6:25 we met Scrog and later around 6:50 we met Spicekit and moments later Blue. The afternoon was extremely hot and all the thru-hikers we met were suffering as much as ourself. The one exception was Blue. Blue looked like she was out for an afternoon stroll. About 7 p.m. we found a clearing along the trail with two ideally spaced trees and hung our hammock for the evening. Even though we could see a cell tower across the valley and count antennae elements, it took several tries to get an SMS text message out.