Date: 2008-07-09
From: Laurel Ridge Campground

To: Corn Crib Plantation
Miles today: 13.0

Corn Crib Plantation and Mosquito FarmLaurel Ridge Campsite to Corn Crib US7 Massachusetts 13 miles I got up late and t he preacher boys were already gone. They get up as some ungodly hour, actually they are very devout so I suppose it¢s a Godly hour, I must get up at an ungodly hour cause I get up LATE. I managed to finally get out of the hammock at 0730 but I didn¢t get on the trail until about 0930. As usual I had some 20 mile aspirations. The day started off slow but at least the Bugs seemed to have stayed in bed. There were a few big climbs on the docket for today, Race Mountain and Mt Everett. Both over 2000 feet, which isn¢t that high except you start at 900 feet and they are rigyht after each other so there is definitely some sweating involved. I think I wrang my socks out four times today. God I need gaiters but I can never find an outfitter that has them and I just can¢t convince my self to have them shipped to me. Race mountain had some great views and some even greater Blueberry patches. I ate a lot of Wild Blueberries today. They are EVERYWHERE and they are so blue. They are sitting ther just looking at you like a kid with little innocent blue eyes saying, ¢Pick me! Pick Me!¢ sometimes I can heaven hear them say, ¢We¢re delicious Dave! Pick us and eat us all day long! What¢s the use of walking 20 miles with a 55 pound pack if you don¢t even stop to enjoy a delicious Blueberry once in a while?¢ They really say that, I hear them, really I do! After sampling blueberries above and below 2000 feet I have to say the ones above 2000 feet taste better. Especially on the climb up since I have to actually take a break to pick them. I ran into Riddler and the Scarlet 7 who are now the Scarlet 5 but I hadn¢t seen them since the Day Doug got off trail so they told me about this place with ice cream and you can camp in their back yard called ¢Corn Crib¢ so that became my new destination. Just after they left me it decided to rain a little bit; just enough to bring out the bastards. They came out in full force and the slippery rocks and biting bastards were a hard pill to swallow, especially when I had just set my mind of ice cream and a refreshing night in a field. The rain stopped but the damage was already done. I was walking in puddles in my boots before long and at some point I lost my reference papers with the mileages on it so I had no idea when I was at the right road. It was very frustrating; not to mention the bastards were going crazy on my arms and legs. Horseflies, deer flies and mosquitoes reinforced by Kamikaze Gnats assaulted my position no matter how fast I moved. It was ridiculous and each time I came to a road I didn¢t know if it was the right one. Finally I arrived at US7 and I could tell it was the right one. I saw some businesses in the distance and I took a chance in the right direction. Sure enough I was greeted by the Preacher Boys and Papa Bear along with the Scarlet 5 all eating pints of Ice Cream. It was like some kind of wonderful dream. I didn¢t have to pinch myself though; soon a horsefly did the trick for me and my reverie was shattered. I put on some pants so as not to offend the proprietor and went in to get a pint of Peppermint Ice Cream and a Ginger Ale. Ahhhh the good life! Eventually I set up camp and washed off with a hose and hitched a ride into Great Barrington, MA from a guy names Chris; no, Brian. Shit! I can¢t remember. Great Barrington is a really cool town. I needed some stuff from the outfitter and I got there 5 minutes after they had closed. The door was open a crack and I pushed in and asked if they would help out an AT Thru-Hiker who had to hitch in. They said yes but they didn¢t have any gaiters, DAMN! Oh well, I got some fuel and some maps since I lost my papers I would need them. I let and went to get a burger at this really cool place whose name I can¢t remember, Hang on I¢ll look it up. Something with an ¢H¢ and they have jazz and Blues but not tonight, DAMN! Oh well, the burger was really good and the fries were Damn Good. Oh yeah Club Helsinki, I think¢¦ Then I cruised around town and almost watched a movie but I wanted to get back so I hitched a ride back to the Corn Crib from a guy I think his name was Dale. I got my hammock set up and Shaledown Cruise Showed up with my papers that he found on the trail SWEET! I went and used the shower and started blogging and charging stuff. Tons of hikers started showing up, I can¢t remember their names but I¢ll get hem tomorrow. Now I¢m going to bed and I¢ll talk to you later. I¢m going to try to get to Dalton MA by this weekend but it¢ll probably be more like Sunday or Monday. I¢ll probably get to upload again at that time, in the meantime, thanks for reading and please don¢t forget, if you¢re digging the blog and the videos, please help to support it by making a donation at www.wbafinc.org   Thanks guys and good night!David AKA ¢Mister Gentle Spirit¢ Website http://www.wbafinc.org Photos: http://www.photobucket.com/brotherproofVideos: http://www.youtube.com/WBAF1