Date: 2016-05-29
From: Salisbury, CT

To: Guilder Pond
Miles today: 13.0
Weather: scattered clouds

An early start was a priority for us today, but as it turned out we weren¢t as successful as we desired and it was 7:30 when we set out. We wanted to hike together and SoBo was our preferred direction for this section, so we needed to leave our car at the end point near Salisbury. After breakfast we drove to our end point and parked, and Hudson (from Bearded Woods) met us there a few minutes later after he dropped off other hikers. Then we drove with him to our starting point at Guilder Pond. The day turned out to be a carbon copy of yesterday weather-wise. It was already 80 when we started and climbed as the sun got higher. We started out going uphill, but the good news was that we started at about 2,000 ft, so our first climb was only 500 ft. It was a sharp climb, but it seemed very quick since it was only 0.7 mi long. We got a quick photo with the summit sign and then headed down a descent that was a bit steeper than the climb. Then abruptly the trail headed up again on Mt. Race. This mountain was a broader peak than Mt. Everett and it took longer to cross. Then we had a long, gradual downhill for a couple of miles and the trail didn¢t start up again for another mile and a half. At the low point, there was a stunning ravine with a stream flowing down over large mossy rocks, and some swimming holes that hot hikers were   advantage of. Then the trail headed up a steep ledge along the ravine and eventually turned away up to head up Bear Mountain. Bear Mountain wasn¢t the highest peak of the day, but it was the longest climb for us and we passed some hikers that we knew (going NoBo) who warned us about the difficulty of the climb up Bear. As we got near the top we agreed with them. We stowed our hiking poles in favor of using our hands and it was slow going as we picked up way carefully up the rocks. The steep part of the climb was longer than I remembered and I was rapidly getting exhausted. The last few hundred feet were really tough for me and I had to stop to catch my breath and a drink near the top. I must say, I was amazed at the number of people who were doing the trail. It was Sunday on Memorial Day weekend, so there were dozens of hikers out for a day¢s hike. We eventually determined that there was a side trail that many had used that provided closer access to the mountain than either of our end points. As we were climbing, a family passed us with two children that looked to be 7 or 8. They were ahead of their parents and seemed to be having a great time.The remainder of the trail for us, from the Bear Mountain rock observation tower back into Salisbury was mostly downhill, with only a couple of small bumps. But we still had 6 miles or so to go and I was having big trouble with the heat. We had plenty of water, so I kept drinking and slowed down considerably - but it was a long, unpleasant grind. The trail was in great shape so except for a few hitches like Lion¢s Head, I was able to keep on. We did resolve to take a day off tomorrow (Monday - Memorial Day). Our next challenge is Jug End which is where we start next (just past Guilder Pond) - a tough downhill. If we¢re lucky, it will be dry.