August 21, 2005 - Kay Woods Shelter to October Mountain Shelter
I am at the next shelter and I am meeting the hoards of people whom I already met in the south. I met again, A-train,
Captain Morgan, Reality Check, and two or three other through hikers I met before. We all laughed about we looked
different now, me with no beard at the beginning of this trip and them with big bushy beards at the end of theirs. I
hiked in easy terrain today but it rained on and off all day. I got to October Mountain Shelter by 1 p. m. and washed
out some sweaty clothes. I still had the clothes I left Florida with on until then. At 3:00 p.m. I made coffee on a cool
but sunny day. I am glad I carried my water filter on this leg of my trip. The water around here SUCKS. We have to
get water from streams and beaver pond run offs and lakes. I did find some mushrooms today and they were
excellent as usual. I left my soap at home but that seems to be the only thing I left. I hope the rain is gone for a while.
Upper Goose Pond for tomorrow. I met Nightcrawler again today. I showed him ramps at Hogback Mountain in the
south. He told me he ate them several times after that and the gas situation was bad!
August 22, 2005 - October Mountain Shelter to Upper Goose Pond Cabin
I left the shelter early and hiked steady until I got to Finerty Pond at 8:30 a.m. I took an hour break at a most
beautiful spot. I always remember this spot from 1981 and wanted to spend a little extra time here this time. My right
knee has a crick in it and it hurts on the downhill but I continued on crossing the Mass. Turnpike at 1 p.m., and up to
Upper Goose Pond. [Cabin] This cabin is a stay for a donation and we will have blueberry pancakes for breakfast. I
got here early and walked around a little and explored the lake from the shore. I got in a hammock out front and
read a book for an hour and enjoyed the day at this old big beautiful house. Much care has been taken to keep this
house up. It has a kitchen and dining room and sitting area downstairs and a lot of bunks upstairs. It has a great
front porch with picnic table and a nice view of the lake along with a canoe. I went out on the lake with the caretaker
and her dog late in the evening and it was a real treat. The water is very clean and the lake quite beautiful. Around
the camp there is two outhouses with urinals in one and wash basins for cleaning up all around. This place has gas
lights and gas stove for cooking. I am sitting on the front porch with a cup of coffee reading and an old dog sitting
close taking it all in. Many thru-hikers came in over the evening. A few trail names are Bad Cheese and Steiner.
There ended up being about 10 people here on this evening.
August 23, 2005 -Upper Goose Pond to .3 miles north of Jerusalem Road
I slept well in a bed and was up at 6:30 a.m. I helped in the kitchen with coffee and fetching water and with changing
a propane tank out. I also lit the gas lights to see to do all of this. We had blueberries in our pancakes that the
hikers had picked yesterday at the blueberry farm and many hikers didn’t drink coffee, so I drank a lot more than my
share. I was wired!! I left at 9:00a.m. After helping to clean up kitchen and I walked the ½ mile back up the side trail
to the main Trail. I took a break at 10:00 a.m. and drank a soda left by trail angels. I also found my beautiful orange
mushrooms which I eat and moved on up the trail. I met Pete who was at Upper Goose Pond yesterday again today.
He was cutting brush along the trail. He was painting trim on windows yesterday. None of this would exist if
volunteers didn’t help out. I stopped .8 miles past a road where I saw Pete and found a dried up steam bead with a
little water in it. I intended on a break here but a couple hundred yards farther down the trail I found a nice camp site
where I decided to stay. I got a little fire going and read a book on a pretty day. My knee was hurting me so a short
day was in order anyway. It is 3:30 and none of the sobo’s at cabin has passed me yet. They never did on this day.
They must have taken another day off at the cabin. It is chilly here in the late afternoon and I am sitting near a fire
drinking coffee again. I heard some people coming north and I knew I had met Gunner again. I yelled, ‘Gunner!’ He
came over and said, ‘I know you.’ We laughed and talked of our summer since we last met in the Smokys at Mollies
Ridge Shelter. He looked well and was making good time. Another thru-hiker named Lamby was with Gunner. They
stayed 5 minutes and had to go quickly because they were going to Upper Goose Pond tonight. It has cleared up a
little in the late evening. The two above are the only hikers I saw on the trail today. Some locals came into camp
wondering about my fire and left.
August 24, 2005 - Near Jerusalem Road to Mt. Wilcox North Shelter
I slept well in my tent. I had drank a lot of water and had to get out of little tomb of a tent twice in the night. I have to
get different sleeping arrangements. This tent is not much bigger than a bivy sack. I have been thinking of a
hammock, but have not seen one in action yet. I was up after 6 a.m. and had breakfast and coffee. I hiked to a
place near Beartown Road and took a long break. I heard something big in the woods near here, maybe a bear.
Well it is time to go. I stopped in a field and washed up in old bathtub used for watering trough for cattle and took
another break at a beaver pond outlet at 10:30 a.m. I need water but will not drink this stuff. I could drink it with my
filter but only if I have to. I went a little farther and found a much smaller clean looking creek and got water there but
still filtered it. I don’t usually treat water but this is the worst area for good water on the entire trail so far after doing
the southern 1000 miles. The trail leveled out and I stopped in and decided to stay at the North Wilcox Mountain
Shelter. It is off the trail .3 but a level one. The water here is a small non flowing pool in a creek. In another week
there will be no water here. These areas dry up in the fall and cisterns should be considered for emergency drinking
water. They would be easy to construct and 200 gallons of water would go along way in relieving the problems of the
couple of months of dry springs each year. I see outhouses with cisterns on them, why not shelter cisterns. There is
another shelter in less than 2 miles and the water source is better there. It is 60 degrees at 3 p.m. I have seen no
one else on the trail today. I looked all day for mushrooms while walking today and none were found. I wanted to see
the outhouse and on the trail to there I found some fresh ones. I picked enough for me and went back to the shelter.
My little radio is working out well. I don’t get a lot of stations but I can hear what I need as far as weather goes.
Around 5 p.m. the sobo Tooth Ferry came in and stayed at the shelter. I showed her the mushrooms and since she
was a vegan she will now eat them going south on her through hike. We gathered up some wood and had a nice fire
here in the evening. Two other fellows came in and set up a tarp nearby. One came into the shelter later because
he was sleeping on a rock.
August 25, 2005 - North Mount Wilcox Shelter to Tom Leonard Shelter
I was up and out of the shelter by 7:10 a.m. after good nights sleep. I hiked an hour to the next shelter and the trail
to it was up a bit so I decided not to go there. I went another 1.3 miles to Benedict Pond where another large break
was in order. I was here in 1981 on a hot day and I remember swimming the whole afternoon away. This time I just
washed up me and a shirt because it was sunny but not too warm. The hike up to Ice Gulch was a nice climb but
very interesting. I made it to Leonard Lean-to, dedicated to a former thru- hiker who died. The water was way down
in the gorge, but the first good water I have encountered in Mass. so far. This is a nice shelter on a nice setting and
tent platform nearby has an excellent view. I took a picture of myself here at the shelter. I will resupply at Great
Barrington tomorrow. I need to leave here early. It is 6.4 miles to the road. I met Pack Ass today again on the trail.
We had spent the rainy night at Brown Mountain Shelter south of Fontana. We talked for a while and he
remembered me well. He had just bought a new stove at Wesser and used it at the shelter the first time when we
stayed together. He still had it and it had served him well. I have been reading the trail register here and Snapper,
who had been at Standing Bear Farm working, had signed the register. He has a brother who works for the Corn
Crib near here. Snapper had got the Shine for us. He signed,” keep the moon shining” at the shelter. I met many
thru-hikers again today. I met many in the shelter too. I read about Vapor, Hardcore Hiker, Tomcat, and many more.
I had met these three near Damascus Virginia. It is indescribable at how it makes me feel to meet a hiker for the
second time so many miles farther up the trail. It is good to see that they made it this far. Bubble Toes who I stayed
with at Thomas Knob and Mr. Beer too. I am here alone at 6:00 p.m. I am almost out of food and will shop tomorrow
supplies. The mosquitoes are bad here tonight. I will have to get a smoky fire going to run them out.
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