Sages Ravine Campsite 1510.4 to Great Barrington, MA 1525.1 (14.7 miles, 499.7 total miles)
It was a very chilly night, though I was quite warm in all my layers and 10 degree bag. I wanted to get up at 5am, but it was so cold I didn’t start moving till 20 after. It was a very long walk to the bear box, and that took another 20 minutes.
I was shivering as I packed up, and wiped a lot of gypsy caterpillar poop off my tent. I broke one of my rules and kept my base layers on as I started to hike at 6:45, but knew I’d be washing them later anyway.
Hiking along Sages Ravine was totally beautiful, a sort of canyon with running water throughout. Neon reminded us in the group text that it was Father’s Day, so I made sure to text my dad, and we all started a thread of father pics. It was very wholesome.
There were only two big mountains to hike for the day, and the first one was Mount Race, a nice gradual uphill for 800 feet over 2+ miles. On the way up, I changed into my shorts and t shirt, as I’d started to warm up while hiking with the sun out. I ate a Snickers on top of the mountain.
The ridges and views were absolutely gorgeous all day today. There were blue skies, puffy white clouds, a light breeze, and low humidity all day. I kept my breaks to a minimum so I could hike steadily all day and get to town as early as possible.
Mount Everett was the big, steep climb of the day, about 5.5 miles in, and right before it I drank a caffeine drink, ate some trail mix, and put on my music. With that, I was able to complete the mile long, 800 foot climb in 25 minutes, which I was quite happy with.
Shortly after the summit, I saw Wizard and QT taking a break. QT is usually the fastest, but Wizard was only on a section, so he was a little slower. I hung out with them for a few, then kept going. I wanted to hit town by 2:30, and it was around 10am by then.
A mile down Everett, I stopped at Hemlocks Shelter to get water and use the privy. I met Bearfoot, who thru hiked in 2016. I also met a woman named Audrey who was out for the weekend with her dad, who I wished happy Father’s Day to. They were with two adorable dogs named Luna and Fern. I ate a protein bar and talked with them for a few minutes before heading out.
There were a couple smaller ups and down for the next mile to Mount Bushnell, where Piñata caught up with me. She’d started half an hour after me, but hadn’t taken any breaks all day. We hiked together for a bit, past a beautiful and expansive view to our left.
I kept up with Piñata for a few miles, but fell behind after the descent finished and the trail leveled out. My feet were tired from the lack of breaks and lunch, but I just wanted to get into town early enough to enjoy the day there.
There was just over 3 miles left to do, and most of it was almost perfectly flat to the road that lead to Great Barrington. I hiked through pine forests, marshes, over lots of boardwalks, and through some fields as well. I was hurting, but almost there and it was a more mental challenge by then.
Some of Baked Potato’s trail family from last year had just arrived from Michigan and he was going to get lunch with them. He’d offered to come get me from the trailhead, but I told him to enjoy his time with his friends and I’d find a ride.
It was 1:30 when I got to the road, and I found Piñata waiting for me. She’d only been there for five minutes or so, but her phone was dead so I didn’t know if she’d be there or not. We knew there was another shuttle driver we could call, but decided to try our hand at hitching into town.
It only took a few minutes to get a hitch, and a nice couple, Jill and Steve, pulled over in their sedan to bring us into town. They were getting ready to set up a daily trail magic tent starting the next day, so they were happy to pick us up.
We stopped by the Holiday Inn, where we were all staying, and saw Jedi and Halfway. They checked in and let us drop our bags in their room. From there, we walked over to a Mexican restaurant, Agaves, for lunch.
We sat with Tater, Meta, Grasshopper, and their nephew, Mountain Goat. It was really great meeting them, and trading trail tales. They were excited to hike for a few days and get to revisit some memories.
I had an amazing lunch of enchiladas with green sauce, rice, beans, and chips. Then I finished the others’ fajita toppings, had a frozen pineapple margarita, and an order of caramel flan. Piñata is usually the one who eats the most and fastest out of all of us, but somehow I was the one with that honor at lunch.
Meta and Grasshopper were super sweet and paid for our lunch, which was really appreciated. Stomachs full, we headed back to the hotel, where Piñata and I had a room with Speedgoat and Riveter. So we had an all girls room.
We spent the rest of the evening on showers, laundry, hanging with the rest of the Cult, including Platinum who’d just rejoined us, and Baked Potato. We got dinner at the brewery across the street, and were planning on breakfast at the hotel in the morning.
I was glad to have gotten to town so early, and enjoyed some time at the hotel with everyone. We have some big days ahead because we’re planning a long 4th of July celebration in a couple weeks. I’m hoping my body can keep up the miles and make it happen.