Date: 2005-07-28
From: Tyringham, MA Fire Pavillion

To: Upper Goose Pond Cabin
Miles today: 7.0
Weather: clear sky

We were going to sleep on top of the picnic tables in the pavillion last night, but the rain subsided and the bugs soon came out. Bug and I were up writing some email and reading (respectively) and we suddenly heard Buttah cursing and swatting his hands around his head. He had been in his sleeping bag for quite some time, but had just started to get attacked by mosquitoes. It didn't look as if they were going to stop, so we all decided to set up our tents.I slept really well, despite the traffic on the road right in front of the pavillion. Clean and Buttah were long gone by the time we emerged from our tent around 7:30. Bug and I enjoyed a slow and leisurely morning since we only had 7 miles to hike. We sat across from each other eating a breakfast of grits with tea and coffee (a real treat since we are waaaay past the "grits line"). Motivation for a nice afternoon at Upper Goose Pond Cabin got us moving, and we packed up our things to get on the trail. And by the way, it was a lovely day and was nice weather both in temperature and humidity levels.On our way out of town, we synced the pocketmail to see if we had any messages. There were actually 3 or 4, but we decided to read them only when we had reached the top of the mountain, a 1,000' ascent. One was from one of our trail friends, Quiet Paul. We were saddened to see that he had to get off the trail. It is always hard to hear about people getting off the trail, but it is especially so when it is people we have known. The next email we recieved was from Pootz, the section hiker we met in PA. His was a very nice note about the hiking community and he told us he would send us some pictures. As we continued to hike, Bug and I discussed the future and what it would hold. We talked about where we might live and some of the things we would like to accomplish over the next few years.In no time at all, we had reached Upper Goose Pond and from what we could tell, it was just beautiful! The only downside to the day, was stepping on a nest of ground bees and getting stung in the calf. Bug missed the nest, and I think everyone else did too, because no one I spoke with this evening got stung! My calf has been throbbing ever since, and I just took a Benadryl, so hopefully by morning I will feel a bit better.We rounded the pond and came to the blue blaze trail leading the .5 mile to the cabin. As we walked up the path, we saw a really pretty 2 story red cabin just waiting for our arrival. Since we only had 7 miles in, there were no other hikers there yet. We were the first to arrive, and Wayne, the caretaker, told us all about the place. The temperature had dropped quite a bit today, so I wasn't exactly excited about the idea of going out on or in the water, although there was a canoe there at our disposal. Bug and I lounged around for a bit, and finally decided to cook some dinner. In the meantime several people arrived: Jax, Visionquest, Rodeo, Mad Chapper, Buffalo Bob, and several people doing sections of the AT. Wayne's kids were also up for the week. So as I'm sure you can imagine, there was quite a mix of people there. I managed to snag a top bunk on the second floor with incredible views of the pond. My hope is that I can wake up to the sun rising over the pond. ! It ought to be a good day tomorrow....Wayne is making a pancake breakfast for everyone in the morning and then we are walking the 1.6 miles to Lee in order to meet Clean and Vicky for 2 days off! Woohoo!!! Well, my Beny is kicking in, so I had better shut this things off! Nite!