Date: 2006-08-21
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Miles today: 90.3

MASSACHUSETTESA cool, dark hemlock forest straddles the border of CT and MA at Sages Ravine. It was a promising welcome into a new state with what could be more comfortable temperatures. The relief was short lived. We hiked through record heat waves in MA. By the time we reached Great Barrington, MA, Mudflap was ill with a fever and chills. In spite of being sick, he still went out with Sizzle and me to walk the mile and a half to the Laundromat, then out to dinner and grocery shopping. We considered taking a day off, but he decided we should keep going. The next couple of days were brutally hot and humid and Mudflap was still sick. Our miles were very low during this time. I was also having a problem with an itchy rash that kept spreading. Since it was on my backside, I couldn't see it to try to figure out what it was and Mudflap didn't know what it was either.   Our fourth day into MA we came to Upper Goose Pond. We had heard many good things about this place so even though it is a half mile off the trail, it was a "must stop" for us. The two story cabin here has volunteer caretakers who each spend one week at a time on the property. Pete Rentz welcomed us to the cozy cabin, showed us around and explained the rules. Other hikers there were The Wanderers, No Pliers, Caveman (sobo) and Mike the Hike. The first thing we did after choosing our bunks was follow the trail down to the pond for a refreshing dip in the water. White Cloud and son, Gear, (The Wanderers) were already there splashing and playing on a big inner tube. The water was cool and clear with lots of little fish to nibble at your legs if you stood still for too long. After our refreshing swim, we took the canoe for a relaxing paddle around the two lakes, Goose Pond and Upper Goose Pond, which were connected by a canal.    Back at the cabin, White Cloud had already informed the caretaker that Mudflap was ill. White Cloud had seen people with Lyme disease before and thought Mudflap should get checked out. He also described the rash someone had from a tick bite and I thought it could be what I have. The caretaker, who happens to be a retired doctor, offered to take Mudflap to town the next day to see a doctor. When I described my rash, he agreed, I should go too.   After a breakfast of delicious blueberry pancakes in the morning, Dr. Rentz led us down a mile long "secret" trail to where he parked his truck. We didn't have to wait long at the doctor's office. They did inform us, however, that they don't normally take new patients. It was due to Dr. Rentz' connections that we were seen. First, the nurse practitioner took a look at my rash. She confirmed that it was the "classic bull¢s-eye" rash associated with tick bites. By now, it had spread over an entire butt cheek (which in my case is an enormous area). She then checked Mudflap's temperature, which happened to have returned to normal for the moment. But after describing his symptoms, she concluded that we should both take antibiotics to prevent Lyme disease. They didn't do the blood test because it was Saturday and they didn't have the normal staff on hand and also, the results could take weeks to come back. We just have to take the pills for three weeks and that should take care of it.   Since it took a couple hours at the doctor's, we decided to take a zero day at the pond. It was so relaxing! I couldn't imagine a better place to be. Later that night, a hiker we had been waiting to meet showed up at the cabin. Even though he started April 1, we knew he would catch us eventually. "Aaooga!" - it was Model T. For those of you who may not know, J.R. "Model T" Tate wrote a very funny account of his '93 thru-hike titled "Walking On The Happy Side Of Misery". In person, he was a lot quieter and more soft- spoken than I imagined. His compadre, Ranger Dawg, was along with him. We enjoyed hearing their latest trail stories over a dinner of hotdogs and potato salad.   The weather did cool down for us as we continued through MA. In fact, at 3491' elev., it was downright cold on top of Mount Greylock. The day before Greylock, we stayed at a church hostel in Cheshire. Sizzle got separated from us in the previous town of Dalton. We knew he was staying at a hostel called the Birdcage, so when he didn't catch up to us by Cheshire, we figured we should get to a phone and call the Birdcage. On the way to the gas station, which was about a mile from the church, a black Jeep Cherokee pulled up and asked if we wanted a ride. "Sure!" we said in unison. On our brief ride to the Shell station, the driver introduced himself as Draggin', class of '05. I recognized him from a couple of newspaper articles posted at the church. Larry "Draggin" Dragon and his mother, Theresa, live across the street from the church where we were staying. It happened to be his birthday that day, so he invited us over for some cake after we finished with our phone calls.   Happy Feet, a hiker who has been living at the Birdcage for three weeks, answered the phone. He informed us that he dropped Sizzle off in Cheshire late that afternoon. When Sizzle didn't find us at the church, he figured we had hiked on. It didn't matter because he knew to wait for us at the next shelter if we weren't there. We also checked our pocketmail for messages while at the payphone. We were pleasantly surprised to find out that RXR and Critter were 11 days behind us. We hadn't seen them since late May because in June they went to the Boneroo Music Festival. We are very glad to hear they are still hiking and hope to see them again.   We went to the Dragon's residence on our way back. We stayed for at least a couple of hours exchanging trail stories with Larry. You could tell that he is itching to go on another long hike. He's talking about doing the PCT with his girlfriend soon. Sounds like a plan to me! Meanwhile, I made instant friends with 79 year old Theresa. When she brought out her beautiful handmade quilts, I knew I had found a kindred spirit. I too enjoy quilt making, but I am nowhere near as skilled as she is. She also has a well equipped sewing room lined with the shelves her late husband built. Her love of life and her craft was evident by the glow on her face as she showed me where she works her magic. I enjoyed her so much I could have stayed for days. It was after 10:00 p.m. by the time we got back to the church and ate our dinner that we bought at the Shell station. Overall, in spite of the heat and being sick, Massachusetts was a wonderful place to experience and the people were the best.