Date: 2004-08-14
From: Ten Mile River Lean-to

To: Cornwall Bridge, CT
Miles today: 20.0

Off to a fairly early start at 7:15AM. Lovely countryside! ¢Scorch¢ and I walked together for a while, but I gradually fell back to enjoy the solitude of the woods and the many memories of my childhood.These ARE the woods of my childhood. Every year from the time I was seven until I was fourteen, I went to Camp Asto Wamah, in rural Connecticut to get me out of the city (and out of my parent¢s hair!)The woods, in which I walked today, are the same as those woods back then¢mostly hardwoods dotted with abandoned stone walls, old fallen trees rotting among the leaves and ferns, and rounded granite rocks buried in the earth with only their crowns protruding. Each step I took echoed of my summer days of being alone in the woods as a boy. The echoes of delight, of freedom, of fears and doubts co-mingled with a deep sense of awe with each step I took. Woods are magical places for boys of all ages. Before lunch I found ¢Scorch¢ reading the shelter-log at Mount Algo Lean-to, smoking a cigarette. She was off to Kent at the next road crossing to pick up a mail-drop and get on the Internet. So, we said our ¢So long for now¢ to one another, each wondering, I¢m sure, if we will ever actually encounter one another again in the course of our travels. ¢Scorch¢ has been a good companion and I have enjoyed her company these past few days. About a half an hour after she left for Kent, I realized that my water purification system was on the fritz, and that, I too, was going to have to go to the outfitter there to find an alternative system.I ended up having to walk all the way into town, as no one was interested in picking up a solo bearded male hitchhiker, even with my ¢Hiker to Town¢ sign conspicuously displayed. I¢ll bet ¢Scorch¢ got a ride in less than a minute! While in town I treated myself to a couple of cups of homemade gelato for my efforts.Fortunately, my return trip to the trail was made much easier by a Connecticut Ridge Runner named Steve, who happened to pick me up just on the edge of town and delivered me right to the trailhead. An hour or so later (around 3 p.m.), I stopped on Caleb¢s Peak to enjoy a light lunch and a pleasant chat with another Connecticut Ridge Runner, Amos. After that, I successfully made the steep descent down St. Johns Ledges to the Housatonic River, along which the trail ambled for the next five miles of flat cool walking. Along the way I was treated to the sight of a large bald eagle and two great blue herons!Around 7:15 p.m. I reached Route 4 and hung out my ¢Hiker to Town¢ sign and my thumb, hoping my luck would be better than it was earlier in the day. It wasn¢t. I straggled into town just in time to see the lights go off in Birde¢s Grocery and Deli, the only place to eat within a couple of miles. Just as my spirits began to drop, at about 50 yards from my motel, a car pulled up alongside and to my surprise and delight, it was Rob Thompson one of my best friends from high school and his wife, Edie! I thought Rob and Edie might be joining me for brunch on Sunday, but they decided to come tonight instead. What luck! After they delivered me to my hotel, I ¢whisked¢ through the shower (10 minutes is ¢whisking¢ when you haven¢t had one in a couple of days!) and was soon enjoying a wonderful steak dinner and sharing tales of the Trail with my old friends. It was a wonderful evening. Having topped the evening off with a hot fudge sundae on a brownie (complete with homemade hot fudge!), I have now tucked myself into my king-size bed at the Hitching Post Motel in Cornwall Bridge, CT, and I¢m ready to let go of another day of experiences hiking the Appalachian Trail.