Date: 2007-05-17
From: Kent, CT [CT 341]

To: Caesar Brook Campsite
Miles today: 13.6
Weather: broken clouds

Total miles for the day 7.8 southbound, then 13.6 Northbound. 21.4 Miles in the Bank =22.0; not bad. Good to be a few ahead.Finally got going again afta lunch with Fred K about 1330 hours. Lotta miles to sqeeze in this afternoon.Weather is good, overcast and not too humid, perfect. A few moderate climbs. The streams are pretty full from all the rain. But not too muddy.Just past the Cornwall Bridge, the highlight of the day perhaps was crossing Guinea "Brook." It's a pretty big "Brook" almost 40 feet across. The AT descended toward it and I spent several minutes trying to figure out where exactly the trail went, how and where it crossed. Finally found the blazes confirming what I though. It's crazy! Mega water covering almost entirely any rocks I could step on to cross. I scouted north and south along the "brook" for almost 15minutes trying to find somewhere I could cross, but with this fast moving water it would be risky anywhere I considered. Don't mind getting my shoes/feet wet but I could easily get swept off the rocks into the raging brook and banged up on other rocks/logs etc. Finally I reluctantly decided to cross on a massive tree lying across the "brook."The tree was abot 16-18" in diameter with the first half barkless, the second half with bark covered by moss. Either half could be slick. About 40 feet or so across. AND,did I mention, suspended about 6 feet above the water. Snapped a couple pics (to document my cause of death) and started across. Committed now. (I should be! haha) Pretty hairy. Snapped a pic halfway across. If I fall I'll either get jabbed in the ribs by the sharp stumps from branches broken off or just plumet into the "brook" landing on rocks and icy water. What fun. No chance to recover. But I finally made it across. Whew. THEN I found a small sign showing a quick easy road detour if "the brook may be impassible after heavy rains." NOW you tell me. What about the NOBO's??! Geeze! But it was fun.Continued on passin a couple shelters, a few climbs.Finally came apon Shep setting up camp for the nite. Decided to call it a , share come company, exchange stories/sagas for the day. She's one of the two hot ladies I've seen on the trail, and a great personality, so twist my arm.Apparently Shep got a late start afta I saw her, so only made it this far. And She too cross on the balance beam-the log! As did Quinn. Each independently coming to the same conclusion, no other good way around. They both videoed their experience. Pretty cool. Shep will try to upload it to her journal. Checkout her trailjournal.com/shep. Pitched my tent, made dinna for the first time since Pennsylvania! Rememeber we slackpacked all NJ, all but one day in NY. Thus ate dinna inside every nite. And the one nite in NY I grabbed Pizza before the shelter. Last nite I was in Kent. Pretty odd feeeling. Pretty cool food though!Started to rain, so we said goodnite. I finally got to sleep with Shep! haha.It rained hard, but the tent stayed up. And the babbling brook nearby with the rain made for nice sleeping music.And I stayed dry.Tomorrow I'll make for Salisbury for some laundry, food, etc. FedEx