Date: 2003-08-20
From: Campsite on the trail

To: Campsite on the trail
Miles today: 11.9

start campsite on the traildestination campsite on the trailI woke up this morning to sunlight dancing through the trees. I slept better last night than I have in a long time. I was out of water, so I ate a power bar and some dried fruit for breakfast. It was 2 miles to the shelter and a water source. When I got there, once again there was a warning about the water being contaminated. The overseer of the shelter had brought up gallon jugs of water for the hikers. I took a break and tank up on water. There was a recent newspaper there, so I caught up on some of the world news also. Just off of the trail is an old cemetary called The Gate of Heaven. Mudbutt and I stopped to check it out since we both like to look at old tombstones.T here was only one headstone in the cemetary, and it was a newer one though the grave it marked was quite old. The terrain is just too steep to get up any kind of speed. My milage just stays at 1.5 per hour and sometimes not even that good. I found a nice overlook with a good breeze for a lunch spot. It was a nice place for a long rest after lunch.By mid morning we had crossed the state line from New York into Conn. We stopped at the state line and did the dance of the real woman. We have made it to yet another state. We fell in love with Conn.'s trail almost instantly. It is very well maintained and winds through a forest with tall trees and very little undergrowth. The trail is not as rocky either. I met a older woman hiker going south for a day hike. She was at least in her seventies. I stopped and chatted with her, swapping trail tales. She is my hero now. To be her age and out here by herself is amazing to me. Hers eyes twinkled like jewels as she told me of some her hikes over her lifetime. By mid afternoon the trail began to follow the Housatonic River. The sounds of water cascading over rocks provided nice entertainment for most of the afternoon. We met a group of children out for a couple of days during a summer camp. They chatted with us while we filtered our water from a hand pump. One of them asked Mudbutt for her autograph. I guess he was more impressed with her than with me! Just off of the trail a half a mile is a covered bridge, Bull's Bridge, dating back to the 1800's. It is one of only a handful left in the state. There has been a bridge here since the mid 1700's. George Washington and his army crossed here during the Revolutionary War. We decided to go take a look at it and also take advantage of the country grocery store just past it. We sat inside on stools provided for hikers at the counter and quickly demolished chocolate milk, cookies, chips and ice cream. We sucked up as much air conditioning as we could before heading back up the trail. We both took a few minutes to call home and check in and down load our emails. We waited awhile longer for the temperature to cool down, then off we went. There was a 1,000 foot climb right off the bat. It seemed to go own forever and ever. Meanwhile the sun dipped lower and lower in the sky. In Conn. you cannot camp anywhre but in designated campsites. The next one was 3.5 miles away. We knew we would be pushing our luck to get there before dark, but we pushed ahead hoping for the best. We ran out of light before we found the campsite, so we pitched our tents just off of the trail. The bugs were relentless in their attacks so we opted for a cold supper of granola bars and gatorade in the safety of our tents. I heard an owl off in the distance calling out to whomever would listen. It is a sound I will never get tired of hearing. The sound of crickets are luring me to sleep. Tomorrow, civilization, again!!! total miles 11.9