07-10-13 Saying "hello" to Connecticut together

The highway traffic settled down, but the commuter rail continued through the night. Not our best night of sleep, but definitely not the worst either.

Our two exciting milestones of the day included entering (and leaving, and entering again) Connecticut and then seeing a covered bridge in Kent, Connecticut.

Along the trail today we met two groups working on the trail. The first was with Forestry and they were spraying Rodeo herbicide to kill the non-native and invasive plant, sodio glacitio (sp?).

The second group was Greenagers building a rock staircase on the Appalachian Trail through a grant.

While we were eating lunch at the covered bridge, it began to rain. A stone's throw away was a gas station where we sought shelter and a soda. Once the sun came back out we continued, but it rained off and on the rest of the afternoon and the mosquitoes reared their ugly faces...Connecticut, I swear if you New Jersey me...

Thankfully, the rain let up to set up our tent. We stealth camped by ourselves on an unnamed PUD (pointless up and down), which I aptly named Mount Cirby.

07-09-13 Somewhere near the Dover Oak

An easy eleven mile hike today. Along the way, we stopped at a vista for lunch with friends at West Mountain. Further down, was the largest oak tree on the trail--The Dover Oak, over 300 years old and 20' 4" wide.

We finished the day on a boardwalk that took us to the Appalachian Trail Railroad Station--basically just a platform in the middle of nowhere.

We resupplied in Wingdale, New York and ended the day at Native Landscapes for free tenting on the mulch pile. Enjoyed the evening with buddies Quahog and Oreo. Settled in for a long night's sleep between the highway and the train tracks.

07-08-13 Somewhere near Mount Egbert

The green-blazed trail back to the Appalachian Trail wasn't as bad on fresh feet; still a horribly laid out trail though.

Our first milestone of the day was Shenandoah Mountain where we were treated to a view and a 9-11 Memorial.

For lunch we road walked into the outskirts of Stormville, New York for a deli sandwich at Mountaintop Market Deli. What a treat! The sandwich was delicious.

A new game of mine is watching for mushrooms along the trail. With the wet weather, there are so many types. One of the white varieties, I learned, is more deadly if ingested than a rattlesnake's bite.

The trail and weather was awesome today, and we made it to the campsite by 3:30 p.m. Enjoyed a long and relaxing evening with friends.

07-07-13 Somewhere near Clarence Fahnestock State Park

It's a new routine--waking early to beat the heat.

Unfortunately, someone else (who we've never camped with before) woke up even earlier and made quite the ruckus packing up. His antics included throwing a beer bottle, stomping on tree limbs and shaking his tarp extra loud. Not sure what came over the man, but we don't want to camp near him ever again.

After our human wake-up alarm, we were off and running. The terrain settled out, and we only had half the ups and downs we had become accustomed to. The trail went by the Appalachian Trail Market (basically just a gas station) and we broke down and bought some pastries.

We got to NY 301, our terminus for the day, but signs posted everywhere said we should hike 1.5 more miles to a green-blazed trail to get to Clarence Fahnestock State Park rather than take the road one mile.

We kept hiking. On the bright side, it's less we have to hike tomorrow. But by the time we got there we were exhausted, chaffed and suffering from heat rash. Not only had they lied--we had to hike two miles--but the green-blazed trail was a joke.

Regardless, we got a frozen treat from the store and showered, and settled in for a long night's rest.

07-06-13 Together at the Lowest Point on the AT

We woke up early for a long and action packed day. After a series of rugged ups and downs, we could barely make out the New York City skyline on top of Black Mountain.

Again more ups and downs, and before we knew it we were on top of Bear Mountain. Up in the Perkins Memorial Tower I could again barely make out the squiggle that was NYC.

Now time for the descent. Twelve hundred feet of elevation change that equated to about nine hundred rock steps. Once we had fallen out of the mountain into Bear Mountain Recreation Area, I wanted to go back up. Hoards and hoards of people littered the sidewalks and picnic tables. To get to the Trailside Museum, we had to squeeze through droves of pool-goers.

At any rate, we had arrived at the most exciting spot of the day--the Trailside Museum AND ZOO!! At
the bear cage, or Bear's Den as they call it, we were at the lowest point of the Appalachian Trail, clocking in at 163 feet.

The zoo contained animals native to the area--bear, coyote, vultures, deer, to name a few. We arrived at the zoo late, which coincided with feeding time. This actually made the animals more lively.

Crossed over the Hudson River and hiked back up the mountain. Camped at Hemlock Springs Campsite and were joined by friends.

07-05-13 Surviving the Lemon Squeezer Together

Were back on the trail mid-morning and braced for a hot one. Thankfully, today was the day of trail magic water. At three road crossings were gallons upon gallons of water. Since we were sweating faster than we could replenish it, the water was a welcome sight. Thank you trail angels!

Today was also our first full day hiking in New York. The terrain is quite a shock. Uphill. Downhill. Up. Down. Up. Down. At the end of the day, we stopped at Fingerboard Shelter and were ready for a good night's sleep. Also tested our skills at rock scrambling and lemon squeezing.

Our tent was set near M80, Trooper, Oreo and Quahog's tents and at dusk enjoyed laughing and talking between tents.

Woke up at 11:36 with an unsettling epiphany: the fiber bars, though on-sale, probably weren't the wisest purchase for out here. I ran as far away as I could, which wasn't far. Thankfully the dark of the night concealed me from nearby tenters. The outcome, I believe, was still better than the time we unknowingly gave Shaman laxative gum.

07-04-13 Together on the Fourth of July

Enjoyed a leisurely morning, but ultimately had to vacate the hotel room at 11 a.m. We got on the wait list in case there were any cancellations and headed over to the town waterfront park.

At the park we talked to various people about public tenting and even the possibility of tenting in someone's yard. We got a few bites, but nothing solid. When all hope seemed lost, we got the call that there had been a cancellation!

We could finally relax. Had a cheesesteak dinner and enjoyed fireworks off the dock.

07-03-13 Together in Greenwood Lake, New York

Crossed over into New York today. Although we only hiked ten miles today, we still felt ready for a rest day.

We hiked down the road to Bellvale Farms Creamery and enjoyed homemade ice cream. From there, we got a ride into Greenwood Lake, New York.

After many phone calls, walking and a visit to the florist, we ended up at the Breezy Point Inn. Seven people shoved into a motel room. I'd say it was cramped, but the porch area added more space that we hardly noticed.

Had the pizza special for dinner, and enjoyed "Open Mic Night" at the hotel bar. Looking forward to an entire rest day on the Fourth.