Date: 2005-06-25
From: Maria McGabe's House - Salisbury, CT

To: Hemlocks Lean-to
Miles today: 14.9

Miles hiked today : 14.914.1 AT miles + 0.2 mile of side trail + 0.6 roadwalk mileI woke up this morning at 7:40 a.m. and read for a bit before going downstairs for breakfast. Maria had made coffee for herself, Opa and I, though neither wanted any. She was kind enough to make us tea, which I had with OJ, an english muffin, and 1/4 of a perfectly ripe cantelope. After breakfast, I packed up and set out at 9:05 a.m. Once again, Opa and I hiked together the entire day.I picked up my mail at the post office and responded to a couple items before heading back to the trail at 9:45 a.m. The weather forecast had indicated that the temperature would be in the high 90s today. It was extremely hot all day, though I didn't see the temperature pass the low 90s. After roadwalking back to the trail and hiking 0.7 mile on the trail itself, I came to US41, which is an alternate route to Maria's house. Opa and I joked about staying another night and continued on to face a steep 1,058 foot climb up to Lion's Head. I took a 10 minute rest break at 11:00 a.m. and 10 minutes later, I was at the Lion's Head summit. I stopped for 5 minutes and talked with some section hikers before pushing on.At 12:10 p.m., I reached the Brassie Brook Lean-to and stopped for a 45 minute lunch break. Continuing on, I covered a steep climb to the summit of Bear Mountain, which is the highest peak in Connecticut at 2,316 feet. When I arrived at 1:30 p.m., I found a 10 foot tall rock platform big enough to accommodate several people. I climbed up and stayed for a 10 minute break.At approximately 2:05 p.m., I completed my 10th state of the AT as I crossed into Massachusetts. 5 minutes later, I came to a spot where Sawmill Brook was flowing into a pool. It was so hot out, that I stopped, stripped down to my capilene shorts, and got in the pool. BRRRR!!! I couldn't stay in for more than a couple minutes at a time, as the water was numbing my feet. I washed my shirt and then filtered 2 liters of water before hiking on at 2:55 p.m.The trail followed the boulder laden brook through a pine forest for quite awhile and I was treated to several beautiful views, including a small waterfall. At the end of the stream, I began a steep 1,070 foot climb up Race Mountain over a 3.1 mile stretch of trail. This was a very tough climb, as it was mostly smooth boulder climbing without much shade in the merciless sun.At 4:00 p.m., I took a 5 minute rest break and continued climbing Race Mountain. At 5:10 p.m., on the way down from Race Mountain, I took a 15 minute break just before the side trail to Race Brook Falls Campsite. I was tempted to walk the 0.4 mile side trail and camp there, though I wanted to push on for another 1.8 miles to the Hemlocks Lean-to. But first, I had another steep climb up Mount Everett, which I summitted at 6:00 p.m. Opa and I joked that we had completed the summit attempt without oxygen or any other assistance (think Mount Everest).At the summit of Mount Everett, my energy was drained. The day long combination of the heat of the sun and the steep boulder climbs had really taken it out of me. Nevertheless, I pushed on for another 1.2 miles to the lean-to, arriving at 6:30 p.m. There didn't appear to be water at the shelter, though I managed to find a spring hidden behind a boulder further up the AT. The rock ledge I scrambled up, to fill Opa's 4 liter platypus and my water bottles, was a little tricky coming down, though I managed not to spill any water. Back at the lean-to, I made dinner and pitched my tent, then settled in to journal before reading for a bit.Thankfully the weather today was dry, as the boulders would have dangerously slippery if wet. Amusingly, the next lean-to is a mere 500 feet north on the AT. With 0.3 mile of side trail between this lean-to and the next, the possibility for a super short nero exists. The climbs tomorrow, however, don't look as bad as today, so I'll be pushing on a bit further.Bedtime at 9:50 p.m.