the benannie republic: May 2012

133.6 what, you ask? that's the number of miles on the appalachian trail between kent, connecticut and a country road just after the vermont border.

day 1 -

1 323 mile drive

1 stop for gas and diet coke

2 stops for restroom breaks

1 car drop-off

11.1 miles slackpacked from kent, ct to cornwall bridge, ct

no ice cream was harmed in the taking of this photo.

i know it's annoying when people point out grammar and spelling mistakes, but i really think they spelled "benannie" wrong.

my knees no likey

looking back up what we just came down.

we so seldom get out of the trees on the trail that i always get camera happy.

although, on this trip, there were so many out-of-tree moments that i got sunburned on the trail for the first time ever.

day 2
1 11.2 miles to belter's campsite
inaugural use of the pocket rocket
cool campsite, but no tables or platforms, so we cooked on the ground, which was new for us. most AT sites have tent platforms or picnic tables. s'all good. we adjusted. and it was cool to hear the owls and know that rodents probably wouldn't get to our food!

day 3
2.8 miles to falls village
1 awesome brunch at
1 very cool cafe

8.3 miles to salisbury to stay with
1 kick n the pants
83 year old lady

stopping off at cool little cafes like this and eating lots of delicious breakfast makes it all worth it.

although, this was day 2 for me, so my hiker appetite hadn't kicked in yet and i only had an egg and veggie sandwich.

after breakfast and back on our way to salisbury.

taking a break at yet another, but not as high, summit in connecticut.

maria mccabe runs a hostel out of her home. she is a kick. 83 years young and never stops goin. she told us all about her life. she grew up in europe and actually witnessed - at age 16 - mussolini and his mistress' execution by hanging. <shudder>

don't judge. our real clothes are in the wash.

day 4
11.6 miles to race brook falls
highest point in connecticut
crossing into massachusetts

in case you can't see it, "this monument marks the highest ground in connecticut. 2354 feet above the sea. built in 1985. owen travis. mason."

at least, i think that's what it says. i can't really see it.

the view from atop the monument

freddo and alfalfa on the highest point in connecticut

just before the massachusetts border, the trail ran along this creek and there were lots of waterfalls. bugs, too.

we had to cross this creek before the border and there was no way to do it without getting wet. trail like that led to our deep dislike of massachusetts.

massachusetts welcomed us, but we did not enjoy her. she was our least favorite part of the trail thus far. but we still had a really good time.

we did a lot of ridge walking this day, which contributed to my super-cool hiker tan.

looking back at the view into connecticut. this ridge was really cool and really made it feel like we were walking on the edge of the world in places. as we walked, three eagles (falcons? hawks?) swooped out from the ridge just yards from me. sadly, i couldn't get my camera out of it's protective sandwich baggie in time to capture them.

day 5
8.8 miles to great barrington
1 rainstorm
1 shuttle to comfort inn
1 walk to mcdonald's

i love me some stormy sky. makes for humid hiking (ick) but gorgeous pictures. not that this picture is gorgeous. just, you know, in general.
day 6
1 shuttle to beartown mountain road to slackpack
14.4 miles from beartown mountain road to great barrington
1 walk to mcdonald's
1 walk to grocery to resupply

the middle of the trip is always the hardest for me. everything starts to look the same (hence the lack of pictures), i'm tired and dirty and my feet hurt. so i kept telling myself, "just make it to dalton and then you get a shower AND there's only one more day till you get to see ben!" it's always good to have something to look forward to.

day 7
1 shuttle to beartown mountain road to hike
13.1 miles to upper goose pond cabin
1 caretaker who said
too many times to count, "oh just backtrack, it's only a mile and a half"
3 hilarious ladies
some other people
1 cabin
3 moldering privvies (moldering privvies are the best)
1 thunderstorm breaking AFTER arrival
3 very delicious blueberry pancakes consumed by yours truly

day 8
8.8 miles to october mountain shelter
many swampy puddles
1 very humid day

i love cairns.* there's a kind of modern-day stonehenge-y mystery to them - so obviously man-made, yet still so natural. i've always thought it's a much more beautiful way to mark a path than an arrow or the (necessary) ubiquitous white blaze that usually marks the trail. and it's easy to leave your mark without ruining nature - just add a stone to the pile.

this is one of the 3 lakes we could see from the highest point in connecticut. i swear we could see them for about 3 days.
day 9
11.8 miles to dalton
1 hiker very excited for a shower

total AT miles hiked so far...
freddo: 166.4 (he started in ny about 9 days before i did)
annie: 102.9

*i know. i dislike birds and love piles of rocks. go figure.

last summer, whilst climbing at carderrock, we came upon a rather strange group. they'd yell lots of stuff then run face-first down the rock. we were awed. what are you doing? we asked. they told us. they're part of a mountaineering group that was certifying to go on longer rappel trips. we were intrigued. we signed up for their mailing list. then, this summer, several of us decided to join them.

larry and jon teach the class in 2 day-long sessions, going over knots, anchors, and ascending, descending and rescue techiques. because it's a free class and isn't associated with any organization, there's no official certification, but a list of skills we have to perform for them so they're comfortable with our competency level.