Down The Trail

Hike North______________The Long Trail______________Hike South

The Long Trail End-to-End Journal (Southbound)
October 20, 2007
Congdon Shelter to North Adams, MA
LT Miles – 10
Total LT Miles – 272.4
Extra Miles – 4.4

dawn

First thing in the morning, I discover that a mouse has chewed a hole into my food bag. Fortunately all the food seems to be okay, but my Granite Gear stuff sack is sorely damaged, and I mourn the loss. That food bag saw me through 2,500 miles of backpacking, 7,000 miles of bicycle touring, and countless presumed attacks from mice.

I’ve found that the shelters that coincide with the AT have significantly more rodent activity than those farther north on the LT.

The streams are swollen and rushing from last night’s rain.

The beaver dam at Sucker Pond is overflowing, and here I have no choice but to negotiate a section of trail flooded beneath a foot of water. I find a good walking stick for balance, throw down some logs to aid my passing, and make the best of this obstacle.

“So The Long Trail won’t let me go that easy,” I think.

I still don’t feel well, and suspect that I’ve caught a mild form of Giardia. The symptoms seem to point to a similar form of water borne illness, but I have not experienced the horror stories commonly associated with Giardia.

The dam is overflowing.

The trail leads me to higher ground, and I cross today’s only significant mountain – Consultation Peak. The sign here on the summit actually reads “Consultation Peak,” if you look closely.

Don’t miss the next page! (This day continued)

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