"Rest is not idleness,..."

"...and to lie sometimes on the grass under trees on a summer's day, listening to the murmur of the water, or watching the clouds float across the sky, is by no means a waste of time."
-J. Lubbock

August 11, 2001

Some nights it's where you stop.

Rand's View in Connecticut

I'm taking Ladder's advice [Ladder was a northbounder] tonight and camping on top of a mountain.  I'm on top of Prospect Mountain listening to Prairie Home Companion, eating creamy tomato Ramen and M&M, mixed-nuts gorp, looking out over northern Connecticut.

Camped out on Prospect Mountain

It's peaceful with cool air flowing through oaks bringing a desire to relax.

"The rebellion in Massachusetts..."

"...is a warning, gentlemen."
-James Madison, referring to Shay's Rebellion

August 10, 2001

I filled up the water bags at Benedict Pond, had breakfast, and drank a root beer.  

Hiked to US 7 where the Corncrib is (it's a plant nursery/fruit stand).  I had 5 plums, 3 peaches, 2 pieces of fudge, orange soda, and root beer.  It threatened rain but it wan't bad.

The Corncrib stand is in Sheffield, MA, near this monument:

Final battle of Shay's Rebellion

The monument is the location of the final battle of Shay's Rebellion in which 30 rebels lost their lives.  This rebellion set in the mind of many of our forefathers that we needed a stronger central government, leading to the demise of the Articles of Confederation and the birth of our Constitution.

At Jug End Road I filled the water at a piped spring, and then climbed Jug End.  It was straight up and felt like 2000 feet (I think it was just over 1000 feet).  I was soaked it was so humid.

View from Jug's End

Jug End's name came from the German "jugend" which means "youth" (see history here).  There used to be a barn and ski slope (with two rope pulls instead of lifts), but is now simply a beautiful reserve in SW Massachusetts.

Today, I did 19.7 Trail miles.  With the side trip to Benedict Pond it was 20.7 miles.  All on one of the hottest, most humid days of the year!