Connecticut and Massachusettes - Gotchas?

[FarmerChef]

Hi all - my family and I hiked NJ and NY (most of it) last week and we were a bit surprised by the condition of the trail in New Jersey (lots of marsh/much) and the climbs in southern New York. I say surprised because I didn't see it mentioned in any of the material I read before doing the trip (companion, guidebooks, threads, etc.).

Next up we'll be hiking Connecticut and Massachusetts and I'm wondering what gotchas I should be aware of and what kind of miles we could expect to put in. Fwiw, we averaged 20 per day through NJ and NY, especially once we got north of the Hudson. Any help would be appreciated as I plot daily "targets" and plan where to spend our nero on day 7.

[jakedatc]

beginning of CT is definitely fairly flat, north has 1 days worth of decent hills that can be broken up if the timing is right. you should be able to cruise across it all in 3-4 days. Hemlock shelter in S. mass is awesome and if it works in your plan to stay there then good job. Riga is also really nice in CT.

[WingedMonkey]

Next up we'll be hiking Connecticut and Massachusetts

Maybe because I have done that section so many times that the familiarity makes it just seems easy. Some think that the climb over Mt Everette at the border is hell, but after all the flat walking along the Housatonic River, the boulders are a change of pace.
Then again there is the climb up and over Mt. Greylock at the north end of Mass section, it's a good constant climb, not the usual up and down up and down, then you pop up on all the tourists that drove up there. The climb down is polite on the legs.

[hikerboy57]

welcome to the northeast! its full of surprises.
+1 on Hemlock shelter. some really nice sites there

[Slo-go'en]

You walk through an old forest in southern CT which is nice. There are some easy walks along the Housatonic river. But anywhere they can find a hill, a pile of rocks or something to scramble up and over, they detour you over there and make you do it. Since there are so few miles of the AT in CT, they seem to go out of thier way to find stuff to slow you down.

Central Mass is a little swampy and the mosquitos are legendary. The AMC cabin at upper Goose pond is a must stay with thier "free" (donation requested) blueberry pancakes in the morning. The Bear Mt/ Sages Ravine/ Mt Everett section as you start Mass is the best and most rugged part of the state.

[Cookerhiker]

CT has its easy walk along the Housatonic River but the rest of the state is up-and-down. The descent to the Housatonic is down St. John's Ledges, very steep but short.

I thought Mass. was fairly easy. I agree that Sages Ravine is a treat - camp there if you can. And Race Mountain is a nice mountain than Mt. Everett even though it's not as high.

[coach lou]

I'm not sure if the previous poster meant Bear Mt. on the border. The north side of Bear mountain is all Bouldering, truely the most difficult part of the trail from The Hudson to Sages Ravine, Race and Everett are gradual hikes, but up. St.Johns Ledges are no picknic NOBO, but you are then rewarded with about a 5 mile river walk. You should try to resupply at Rt.4 or Salisbury. The grocery in the latter being more fully stocked and a short walk from the trail. Riga camp area and shelter are renowned for the morning view, which would take you[at your pace] to Everett, The Hemlocks shelter [1st one nobo] is nicer than Glen Brook. Once down Jug End, you are in the swamps for 4 miles. Hopefully a Mass guy will fill you in from here. Have fun!

[10-K]

Then again there is the climb up and over Mt. Greylock at the north end of Mass section, it's a good constant climb, not the usual up and down up and down, then you pop up on all the tourists that drove up there. The climb down is polite on the legs.

That surprised me too.

On one of my wife's first hikes I took her from Sam's Gap back to Erwin and she huffed and puffed her way up to the top of Big Bald and just as we reached the top a Lexus SUV full of senior citizens pulled up.

[FarmerChef]

Great info so far. Keep it coming!

I had already planned to stop at Riga and Goose Pond. So glad to hear you guys recommending stays at both.

If I could expand just a tad on my original question... On 9 day hikes, I usually like to have a low mileage day around day 6 or 7 to let us rest up a bit. I try to find a place with a hot shower we can use and a restaurant we can eat at and one that will let us have the dog with us (inside or outside). Right now, I'm eying Dalton, MA for day 6 or 7 but I'm flexible within 10 or 15 trail miles of there. Any suggestions?

[BarFight]

In Connecticut you start to break away from the routine of ridge walking with only one or two climbs per day. The ten miles or so north of Kent is pretty up and down-hikers were laughingly calling it the Connect-i-coster. Most of the shelters in Connecticut are pits (except for the first one) but the campsites are all nicely situated (except for the first one), so you should really plan to tent. Sages Ravine is indeed the prettiest, though I wound up going on to Laural Ridge and found that to be quite lovely as well. The mosquitos can be absolute hell through Massachusettes-bring the strongest DEET you can find, even if you haven't used bug repellent until this point. Graylock is a surprisingly large climb, and it was hard for me to find where the trail left the summit going north (it went down the ski trail), as there was no one on top the day I was there (it was raining, and the buildings were closed that year). Goose Pond is indeed a great place to stop, though my year part of the hiker's joy involved the cabin's screened windows. The bugs were that bad.

[BarFight]

I just saw your last post. Great Barrington would probably be my pick for taking an afternoon off-there is a great co-op, grocery stores, and downtown. However, both Barrington and Salisbury will probably be too early in your hike if you're doing 20-mile days, in which case Dalton is a fine choice. I have good memories of sitting in the sandwich shop on the main drag in Dalton talking and laughing as it poured buckets outside.

[Cookerhiker]

In Connecticut...The ten miles or so north of Kent is pretty up and down-hikers were laughingly calling it the Connect-i-coster. ....

LOL - from one of my trail journals - a look-back entry over a year after-the-fact. "...And what about Connecticut between Rt. 4 and Rt 7? This is certainly a roller coaster."

The original entry: "...Ed Garvey’s books detailing his thru-hikes in 1970 and 1978 described Connecticut not having much elevation but the 'hiker will experience some strenuous ups and downs.' I think he must have been referring to this section I hiked today. Under partly sunny/mostly cloudy skies, I walked nearly entirely up and down..."

[jakedatc]

Riga is not a pit... Nice privy and bear box. Pine swamp was similar and also not a pit.
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i wouldn't suggest aiming for Limestone brook shelter.. since it is .5mi at a pretty steep grade down. i stayed at Sharon mtn campsite which was nice

and for reference.. Hemlocks in MA really... really nice
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[Driver8]

FarmerChef:

The bugs are pretty bad this year, so factor that in. There's lots of good info here, so I'll just chime in with a thing or two not yet covered.

First, if you're going to be doing this section in the mid-July to early August range, it's blueberry season, and parts of the trail have lots of nice, wild blueberries. Bear Mtn (and I think Lion's Head) in CT, Everett and Race in Mass, have blueberry bushes galore. One thing - they also have rattlesnakes that you have to look out for. If you're here in blueberry season and want to partake, by all means do, but use a trekking pole or a stick to rustle through the bushes first to confirm there are none of the slithering buggers hiding out in the bushes. I've read, somewhere along the line, that they like to hike in those bushes lying in wait for prey - small mammals, birds, etc., which come to feast on the berries. A rustle in the bushes before reaching to pick berries is a good call. There are also other berries along the way - raspberries and blackberries come into season July and August.

Speaking of blueberries, the blueberry/cookie lady is up in the Dalton area. She's nearby, IIRC, where the trail crosses Rt. 9 in Mass (or is it Rt. 8). Someone else here s/b able to plug in that info. I head that she and her family, as well as another trail angel or two in the Dalton area, might be able to accommodate your need for a hot shower, etc. Dalton and Pittsfield together are a big town, in the 50,000 population range or more, so plenty of restaurants, lodging, retail, as you might wish. IIRC, also, there's a church in Cheshire which might also help you with a sleep-over night, shower, etc.

Finally, if you're here in the summer, the weather can range from the occasional night with lows in the 40s to the occasional afternoon in the valleys with highs in the 100s, and we've already had a few days with highs in the mid-90s this week. It will probably be a hot, dry summer, but even then you can and will have some pretty cool nights in Litchfield and Berkshire County.

Finally, if you really like waterfalls, there are some nice ones in the Bear-Everett region to take a look at. Bear Rock Falls are on the south shoulder of Race near the Laurel Ridge campsite. I understand it's a bit of a tricky scramble and bushwhack to get to them, but they are right next to the A.T. I've not yet seen them - hiked past them two years ago. On a trail, well blazed, in the saddle between Mts. Race and Everett are the Race Brook Falls. It's about a 1.5 mile detour, each way, to go see them. There are 6 main falls ranging from 85 feet to 14 - the uppermost being the shortest, incidentally, and the lowermost being the shortest - and Race Brook loses 600 feet of altitude in the space of 0.25 mile. PM me if you're curious and I'll be happy to give you more info on them. It's a beautiful trail with a very pretty set of falls, one of my favorites.

[Driver8]

Hide, not hike in the bushes. ...

[lemon b]

After you come off the Mt to Jug End Road you have a couple miles of lowlands and flatlands. Can run into some real bug problems here. You'll cross a bridge just before the Danial Shey Mont a buggy area. Then up over alittle hill. You'll come to some railroad tracks then a neat looking building with a pond on the right. The Road at this point is Rte 7 left is a quick hitch to either Great Barrington or the Big Y Supermarket. Where there is also a hardware store. Good resupply point. After that you'll go over a couple fields. Then up a semi steep section which brings you to Tom Leonard shelter which is just before 23. There are then 3 shelters within 6 miles. The South Wilcox Old and New., The book says 2 to North Wilcox I put it more at 3. There is a buggy tent area about 6 easy miles North. Those roads between 23 and Rte 20 really go nowhere and the hike from North Wilcox area over to Goose Pond is smooth. At 20 Lee is an easy yet long miles wise hitch. There is a Big Y there also for resupply. From Rte 20 over to Oct Mt shelter is about 8 miles. I wouldn't stay there because it can be a party spot... Kay Wood is maybe another 10 or so and the last part toward Kay Wood can be like a brook if we have had alot of rain. Kay Wood is about 2 miles from Dalton. Rte 20 to Dalton is doable. After Dalton you go up past Crystal Mt shelter. Give yourself some time to enjoy the views past there. I'd just go right thru Cheshire and up to the shelter on the South Side of Greylock abit off trail on the right. Water is findable down past the shelter. Bascom Lodge is another 3 maybe 4 miles and they have showers and stuff. If your just passing thru there is a hose out by the garage before that weather / radio tower. Wilber Shelter is another place that can be a party spot. The hike down to North Adams can be testy on the knees.

[Driver8]

Another correction: the tallest of Race Brook Falls is the most downstream - lowest in elevation - and the shortest is the highest one up. I really do need to brush up on my English. ...

[Sarcasm the elf]

As many people have said, CT and MA can get a bit buggy, by my standards it's manageable, but I haven't done much hiking in your neck of the woods, so I can't make a fair comparison. Once you get up to new England be very aware of deer ticks and the Lyme disease they carry. Make sure everyone in your group thoroughly checks themselves daily (most accounts I've read says that ticks have to be attached for at least 24 hours to transmit the disease) also make sure you know the symptoms, any time a hiker has a bullseye rash or a fever with joint pain They need to see a doctor that understands Lyme and get a prescription for doxycycline, if caught early treatment is almost always effective. FWIW, I check myself for ticks constantly and I've still had Lyme disease twice, so be careful!

The one section I would warn you about is the Berkshire lowlands from just north of Everett to Rte. 23. If I recall it's a distance of about 19 miles and gets truly miserable in spots. The area is full of marsh streams that go through cow fields, and unless you he a good filter there will be water everywhere, but not a drop to drink. The bugs I this area are legendary and my hiking partner has decided that the giant tiger striped Mosquitos in the area were bred by the nazis and sent over via U-boat as a biological weapon.

Besides that one stretch, most trail in MA is fairly pleasant, just don't night hike MT. Race in a thunderstorm like I did, if you miss the 90 degree turn that the trail makes it's a long way down.

[coach lou]

Besides that one stretch, most trail in MA is fairly pleasant, just don't night hike MT. Race in a thunderstorm like I did, if you miss the 90 degree turn that the trail makes it's a long way down.

Oh gee, that's the one spot I was showing Cliff we should go to.......at nite.......in January!

[jakedatc]

Pfft on Mt Race ridge it snowed briefly in late april while i went across it.. then it started to rain a bit.. then at Sages it freaking hailed..