Date: 2014-04-23
From: NY 17

To: NY 17A
Miles today: 12.0
Weather: clear sky

Wednesday April 23, 2014Twelve miles in New York hurts! Actually, I think it's a combination of things. But I am hurting. After a great breakfast at Stony Creek B&B, Llyn, Siva and I took off for the trailhead on Rt 17. Siva was dropping us off then heading home. We found the trailhead easily, said our goodbyes, then headed southbound on the AT. We were slack packing, and Bill would pick us up at the same ice cream place on 17A. Agony Grind began our day with a 500 ft climb in .4 mile. That's steep! And rocky! We began at 9, and I feared that the 12 mile hike may take us 12 hours. The trail rivals Maine or NH in steepness and boulder climbing. Continual ups and downs over large boulders takes a lot of time for Slow n Steady. We reached the top of Agony Grind only to be greeted with more boulders and then a steep drop over more boulders. Llyn has long legs and could reach her legs down but I had to slide. That can be scary when sliding over a rock face. After four miles in four hours, we began to worry. The cold wind sent occasional showers down on us which helped to keep us moving along. We reached a pretty pond and stopped for a snack. Our spirits lifted after a short rest and we began again. But the trail eased up, and we finally faced several miles of gentle walking through the woods. We reached a sign for a side trail that told us we only had two miles left, according to AWOL's guide. I knew that couldn't be right, but I secretly hoped it was. It wasn't. We still had just over four more miles. But the soft trail had allowed us to gain some time. We descended steeply over some magnificent steps, down the side of Rainbow Falls...I could be wrong about the name. The falls were beautiful, and we admired the stonework of the steps. That must have been very difficult work for the trail volunteers. After another climb, we came upon Cat Rocks. The wind was howling, and the rocks were so narrow that only a cat could keep his balance up there. I found a short trail that bypassed that treacherous section and took it, hoping that it would bypass the rocks and not lead to a view. It was a bypass, so I was happy to miss that. But, as if the trail knew, it threw another set of equally difficult rocks to traverse. This time, I did not see the bypass trail and so went over the precarious ledge of rocks. After we accomplished that feat, we were blessed with easy trail for the remaining miles. We picked up the pace considerably. Well, Llyn picked it up, and I practically had to run to keep up. She would've slowed down if I had asked, but I was just as eager to reach the end. So off I went, feet flying in every direction while Llyn gracefully glided down the trail. It was a sight to behold. I started laughing as I tried to imagine what we must look like together. After what seemed like an eternity, we reached the road crossing and headed up the road to the creamery. We were freezing from the icy wind, but that didn't stop both of is from ordering a scoop of their homemade ice cream. Soon, Bill picked us up. Hawaiian music drifted us along the country roads. He had discovered that all three of us--Siva, Llyn and I-- had lived in Hawaii. Bill had also lived on Oahu and had family there, so he was quite akamai (smart) about what these Island transplants would like. I settled in the back seat to the strains of the Cazimero Brothers and listened to the tour of the Warwick countryside given by Bill. Unfortunately, I could not hear him well enough from the back seat, but what I picked up was fascinating. The town of Warwick is an affluent area with a median income of about $90,000, and the homes show it. They are exquisite. But farmlands dominate the landscape through an effort by the citizens of Warwick. Farmers were given large acreages with the understanding that the land would never be subdivided. They could sell it, but it had to be sold in total. There was more to it, but I could not hear it allBack at our wonderful suite, Llyn and I showered and tried to organize our packs. Rami will meet us tomorrow morning, and we will be off and roughing it on the trail once again. It's past hiker midnight. 10:15. Time to go to bed. Life is good.