Date: 2004-07-27
From: Great Barrington, MA

To: Mt. Wilcox North Lean-to
Miles today: 13.5

Instead of hitting the trail early as I always plan to do the night before I leave a town, I lingered and enjoyed the eleven o'clock checkout at the hotel. It wasn't the smartest move since the forecast called for rain that afternoon, but I needed to rest.I bumped into Raven at breakfast at the Friendly's across from the hotel. He mentioned a hostel eight miles north and the Upper Goose Pond Cabin, which was supposed to be good. Although visiting these spots would lengthen my stay in MA, I considered them seriously. I had coordinated points in northern MA to meet up with friends and family and had some time.I took the local bus to the center of town so I could visit the post office. All the locals in line pegged me as a thru-hiker and grilled me with questions. One lady named Cindy offered me a ride back to he trailhead. She was very familiar with the AT. She belongs to a women's hiking group in the area and they are section hiking the trail through the state. She even let me stop at a convenient store to grab one last soda before leaving town.On the trail, the rain didn't start until 2 pm. Bilbo came up behind me and we hiked together to the first shelter for cover. He had the latest news from the Trail. Alleghany was bitten by a snake, possibly a rattler, on Bear Mountain. He is okay and they believe no venom was injected. But he's off the trail for now.The other big news--Goose met Kevin Bacon and his wife on the trail, chatted with them for about a half hour, and didn't realize who he was until they departed.Geeze, all I got on Bear Mountain was a Snickers bar from this guy hiking with his son.At the shelter, we waited while the rain turned to a downpour for a half hour. Kevdog, sometimes called K-dog, was also there. He provided the latest insight into the pop culture music world.I intended to reach one of the two shelters at the top of the mountain. South and North Wilcox Shelters were apparently built in the 1930's. I hoped they didn't leak as I headed into the storm.The miles were pretty easy despite the rain and I was soon at the first Wilcox Shelter. Catdog was hiding in her tent in the back while Raven, Diesel, Sleepy and Mayaquez took the shelter. I hadn't seen Catdog in a while and went to say hello. She was in a good mood and we caught up on things even though I was standing in the rain. I told her that I was going to hike the next two miles to the North Shelter. She thought I was crazy. It was already 7 pm and overcast-dark.None-the-less, Bilbo and I headed north together. It was good to have the company because the rain got worse as we headed higher into the mountain. By 8, it was a deluge and we were screaming, "Where's the shelter?" But we were still laughing too.I'm glad we went the distance. The North shelter is better built, bigger and had a good water source.I shared the place with four young guys--Rainy Jay, back from his break in Kent, Goose, Bilbo and K-dog. Bilbo and Rainy Jay both graduated from Worcester Poly-Tech so our evening was filled with college stories. Fairly entertaining. All four were getting off trail to head to Worcester for an AYCE Chinese Buffet that Rainy Jay couldn't believe existed. When I mentioned that I planned to hike short miles to Upper Goose Pond Cabin, they all remarked on how outstanding the place is and said the half mile hike off trail is worth it.We fell asleep to the sound of pouring rain. The forecast states this front will be moving slowly through the area for the next three days. Unfortunately, the rain and drop in temp has not scared away the mosquitos. It could be another restless night.