Date: 2020-09-02
From: Dalton

To: Route 2 (Williamstown)
Miles today: 23.5
Weather: overcast clouds

Forgot to mention yesterday that Tom and neighbor Bible Bill (AT '99) fed us pasta, salad and more last night. I walked in at just the right time to make sure there were no leftovers.FB, the kid from Lebanon, had coffee and donuts out on the porch by the time we got our tents down. It was already raining lightly. Forecasted to rain all day. And I'm aiming to get over Mount Greylock, the highest peak since Shenandoah, to Williamstown. Over 23 miles with some steep trail I'm told. Plus I need to find time to get to the outfitters for a water filter and bag.FB found a Sawyer Mini filter in the hiker box, so in a pinch I can screw that on my bottle. It's not as durable or fast as the regular Sawyer, but it's an emergency patch. And I still need a water bag for longer water carries. It rained steadily but lightly as I hiked a long residential streets out of town and climbed up a ridge that would take me to Cheshire about ten miles away. A SOBO girl named Smiles passed. She wasn't smiling when I first saw her but seemed happy to meet someone.Lots of red efts (salamanders) on trail. I had to watch my step. A clump of four at one point scattered as I approached. They must like the rain.The trail led me down through the village of Cheshire, apparently known at one point for making giant wheels of cheese, and over to route 8 where a convenience store with a Dunkin Donuts provided a quick lunch. I called Bershire Outfitters up the road for a ride. It's three miles off trail and was still raining. Busy signal. Tried again. And again. For almost an hour I got nothing. Odd, I called yesterday to verify they had a filter and would pick me up. Were they closed? Power down? I didn't want to hitch up there (in the rain) to find them closed. I considered calling Tom for a ride. Finally I got through and was picked up and got my filter and returned to trail quickly. The outfitter was heavy on kayaks and bikes but had a workable selection of hiking gear. While waiting at the convenience store I met a man hiking Massachusetts with his teenage daughter. She, like my daughter, is in Scouts BSA (aka Boy Scouts) and just earned First Class. They left before my ride came. As I started up the trail later they were coming back down to the road. The father had hurt his knee. And they were only a day from finishing. They plan to rest up at a motel and see how he feels tomorrow. I wish them well. The fourteen mile climb over Greylock went by pretty bogs and ponds, over lots of bog boards, and some rocks. The ascent was stretched out. The summit, which one can drive to and is often crowded, was foggy, rainy, very windy, and deserted. Bascom Lodge was empty but for a desk clerk. Lunch service had ended. Nothing for me here except a quote by Thoreau engraved on a stone: "It were as well to be educated in the shadow of a mountain as in more classic shade. Some will remember no doubt, not only that they went to college but that they went to the mountain."The descent was fairly steep in places. Wet surfaces and encroaching darkness made it trickier. I finally had to break out the headlamp a mile or two from town. Hit the road at 8pm, well past sunset.My brother and niece are vacationing in New England and stopped in Williamstown on their way to Vermont. They picked me up and took me to my motel. Tomorrow, when I'm clean and refreshed, we'll meet for breakfast before both heading into Vermont on separate paths.