Date: 2004-08-23
From: Gt Barrington, Mass.

To: Upper Goose Pond
Miles today: 19.1
Weather: clear sky

Yesterday was a bright, clear day and we walked the mile or so through Great Barrington to get on to Mass.23. from there it didn't take long to pick up a ride to the trailhead. Our first trail angel of this trip was an older gent who told us about the tornado that hit this area in 1995. It killed three people and he pointed out the signs of its passage still evident nine years on in the form of small cleared areas or strips of woodland with smaller, younger tree growth. A nice gent, we chatted for a while and then got on our way.Our first break, just over two miles on, was at Benedict Pond. We found a very pretty spot here, a rocky outcrop reaching into the lake, that we shared with a garter snake. This was more pleasant than our reunion with another trail companion, the typical AT diet! The first half of our day was generally uphill, about 1100 ft to the top of Mt Wilcox, and we felt we had put in a decent shift for a first day of 9.2 miles to the Shaker campsite. This area was disappointing though. A gloomy place, two tent platforms were provided that we couldn't use as our tents aren't free-standing. Worse, the place was mosquito infested, and we threw our tents up quickly beside the platfroms, cooked, scoffed our Liptons dinners and retired. In the course of this, a north-bound hiker called 'No Pain' passed through, quickly noted the mosquito problem, and decided to hike on to the next shelter - this was nine miles ahead so he had a lot of night-hiking in store!This morning (Mon 23rd) the campsite was just as mosquito infested and we dispensed with breakfast. We hadn't walked far when we saw 'No Pain' had camped in a great spot alongside a fast flowing stream. Our first hour was a quite leisurely climb up to 'The Ledges' from which we had a good view to the hills (the Berkshires?) to the west. After Tyringham Road came our main challenge of the day, a 1000 ft climb. The weather was still quite cool, humidity was low, we were under a perfect blue sky, though we didn't see it all much through the forest canopy. Perfect walking conditions really, and yet we still found it quite hard going and we haven't got our legs yet.One of the most striking things to us this year is the amount of mushroom type fungi to be seen around the trail this, all manner of rich colours. Today we also saw a garter snake consuming a frog. Actually we heard it before we saw it. The frog was screaming (not a sound I knew they were capable of making) everytime the snake opened its jaws to draw it further in. The frog kicked its legs violently but this only seemed to be driving it further into the snake's gullet. The jaws would close and the screams became faint, then the whole process would start all over again.The final part of our day was negotiating the rooty path round Upper Goose Pond, and a little off trail, we came to the UGC Cabin. We arrived to be welcomed by a 'Class of 2001' Reunion. A lady called 'Pzazz', who is doing a stint as caretaker of the facility this week, organised a reunion of hiking friends (six women in total) all of whom met for the first time in Georgia three years ago - they included 'Aloha Ann', 'Janet', 'Maunaa', and 'Manya'. They were to have various fortunes. 'Aloha Ann' eventually broke her leg in Virginia, returned the following year, fell and broke her leg a second time. Finally she returned in 2003 to finish it. That kind of perseverance makes you feel quite humble. The women are great company. Also one of the great features of this spot is to follow a blue blaze down to the lake to a jetty from which 'Thistle' and I took a dip. So refreshing, I'm not sure I've ever felt quite so good after a day's hiking.