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View Full Version : Trail Towns between Salisbury, CT and Bennington VT?



Gambit McCrae
07-27-2015, 10:49
I am starting to plan for meal prep and get somewhat of an idea of sleeping locals between this stretch of trail. It looks like to me that the trail goes thru numerous towns in the 110 mile stretch. I see some "pubs and inns" along the way. If I start with 4 days of food can I resupply thru out these little towns? Are there some really worth staying at or should I move on from them after a beer or two?

tdoczi
07-27-2015, 12:30
theres not much immediately north of salisbury, but once into MA if you can do 20 mile days you can get all the way to bennington carrying no supplies lor camping gear if you really want to, and without hitching. you can stay very near the trail at a hostel near great barrington, theres a lodge practically on the trail near lee, then there is dalton, cheshire, north adams, all towns right on trail.

now are any of these places "worth" seeing in their own right??? ehhhh

BillyGr
07-27-2015, 20:49
theres not much immediately north of salisbury, but once into MA if you can do 20 mile days you can get all the way to bennington carrying no supplies lor camping gear if you really want to, and without hitching. you can stay very near the trail at a hostel near great barrington, theres a lodge practically on the trail near lee, then there is dalton, cheshire, north adams, all towns right on trail.
now are any of these places "worth" seeing in their own right??? ehhhh

and don't forget one lodging option right on the trail - Bascom on Greylock.

tdoczi
07-27-2015, 21:17
and don't forget one lodging option right on the trail - Bascom on Greylock.

indeed. i guess i just figured it was too many list. its like once you get to dalton you can practically sleep inside and eat food someone else cooked every 5-8 miles.

in fact, if one were willing to take the bus into bennington, then back to the trail in the morning, some people might be able to make stratton mountain the next day and take the skilift down to the resort for the night, then make manchester the next day.

thatd be pushing it, but i bet it could be done if one were really so inclined. after that i think pretty much anyone normal would have to stay in the woods one night.

Leanthree
07-27-2015, 23:07
I liked Great Barrington a lot. Plenty of good restaurants and bars. North Adams has a close grocery to the trail but Williamstown has a bit more to see/hang out around. I skipped Sheffield and quickly walked through Dalton, but I'd like to go back sometime. These towns often have a few roads in as well as a decent bus system for a rural-ish area to bounce between the few of them if necessary.

Bus=berkshire regional transit authority

Gambit McCrae
07-28-2015, 08:08
So would it be safe to bring 4 nights food out of a 8 night trip and, bring my snacks and "wing" the rest? last years week long trip was NoVa into SNP and there was only 1 town so we carried half our food and resupplied but if there are that many towns I might not worry about prepping for more then 4 nights and pick up some stuff if I run low

Migrating Bird
07-28-2015, 08:21
Major resupplies at Gt. Barrington, Lee (both short easy hitches on Rt 7 & Rt 20), Dalton, Williamstown/North Adams. 2-3 days supply is plenty if you don't mind getting off the trail to go into town. Sheffield does have small store, but easier just to go into G.B. All have good restaurants.

tdoczi
07-28-2015, 09:30
So would it be safe to bring 4 nights food out of a 8 night trip and, bring my snacks and "wing" the rest? last years week long trip was NoVa into SNP and there was only 1 town so we carried half our food and resupplied but if there are that many towns I might not worry about prepping for more then 4 nights and pick up some stuff if I run low

were i doing this trip-

day1- from salisbury to the north end of the taconics. about 15-16 miles? i'd be tempted to not bring a tent and sleep at the last shelter on the north end. there are actually 2 shelters, one is totally old and ghetto but itd do in a pinch so getting away without a tent would be super tempting to try. if i brought a tent i'd be looking for someplace to ditch it in the woods for the rest of the hike. come back and get it later.

day 2- about 20 miles from there is rt 23 (i thinks its 23, might have the # wrong), hitch into GB or stay at the hostel right off trail (id confirm its still there, its at some religious retreat center). youll also pass a place to get lunch/more snacks on the way.

day 3- another 20 miles and you have your choice of upper goose pond, a lodge right on the highway next to the trail, or hitch into lee. restaurants in lee will deliver to the lodge, at least they did when i was there. been awhile though.

day 4- 20 more miles and your smack dab in the center of dalton.

after that you have stuff every few miles- i think 8 or 9 to cheshire, another 8 or 9 to bascom lodge, another 8 or 9 to north adams. break that up however you desire, then its about 18 miles from north adams to the road crossing outside bennington on the last day. one day at least will have to be short to set up the day to bennington.

youd be carrying nothing but snacks and water most of the trip and the distances are totally doable, ive done all of them. though obviously if youve never hiked more than 15 miles in a day it might be tough on you. dont think itd take more than 6 days, maybe 7. 8 would involve either going super slow and hitting all the towns in northern MA or carrying more gear and camping out a night or two.

if you really want 8 days i'd take the bus or hitch into bennington, stay there a night, hike more the next day and look for somewhere to get picked up further up the trail. it could be tricky though, there arent a ton of good options that i remember, but theres probably something.

Gambit McCrae
07-28-2015, 10:29
td: I think I will try and keep to your first 4 day schedule. I can pull 20-25 mile days in GA/NC/TN so I think those mileages should be doable. My plan A is to get to Bennington, If I get there a night early or so, I will probably try and get a shuttle up in VT 20-30 miles and hike sobo back down to Bennington.

Gambit McCrae
07-28-2015, 10:37
Although I wont be ditching my tent lol. Ill carry the extra 2 pounds

tdoczi
07-28-2015, 11:27
td: I think I will try and keep to your first 4 day schedule. I can pull 20-25 mile days in GA/NC/TN so I think those mileages should be doable. My plan A is to get to Bennington, If I get there a night early or so, I will probably try and get a shuttle up in VT 20-30 miles and hike sobo back down to Bennington.


the MA miles from jug end road (north end of the taconics) to cheshire are easy. hardest day in my theoretical itinerary is north adams to bennington.

well if youre going to insist on carrying the tent the whole way you might as well use it. that opens up all manner of different possibilities and also makes it pretty easy to make manchester in 8 days i think if you can do the miles you say you can.

i cant imagine leaving trail to go into town just to get food though, and if im carrying a tent, i dont want to leave trail and pay for lodging i dont need. i guess to me you either slack or you dont, no point in doing it half way.

so if you carry a tent, then you can just camp for the night near either GB and/or LEE, but youd have no food unelss you brought that too. maybe someone will deliver to a road crossing? dunno. like i said, i'd commit to doing it one way or the other not somewhere in the middle.

Jeff
07-28-2015, 12:06
In Bennington stay at the Catamount Motel...very hiker friendly. From my experience, avoid the motel closest to the trailhead.

colorado_rob
07-28-2015, 12:09
I hiked this section in early-mid May and it was fantastic passing through those cool little towns like Salisbury, Dalton, Tyringham, Cheshire, my memory fades, but if I do remember, I don't remembering any need for hitchhiking for a lot of towns. From Salisbury (where I topped off some snack foods), I resupplied in Dalton, that took me to Bennington easily, so basically one resupply, but I think you already know all this.

Walking into Dalton, there is a trail angel living right on the trail that lets you camp in his yard (he's in AWOL). Nice guy. I also had a great burger/beer fest at the pub in Dalton.

I also treated myself to a night at the Cobble View B&B in Tyringham, great folks there, reasonable price I think. No dinner food though, but I had some delivered from Lee (some Italian joint, great pasta dish).

I wasn't impressed at all with Bennington; too big and not really a hiker town, though I did hitch in, pig out and resupply, then using a taxi to get back to trail.

Great little section of trail, one I might repeat sometime in the fall.

Gambit McCrae
07-29-2015, 14:08
My flexible Itinerary:
Friday: Airplane lands in CT at 11:58pm-Sleep in airport
Saturday: shuttle pickup to Salisbury, CT-Start Hike-Salisbury, CT - Glenbrook L/T(13.5)
Sunday: Mt Wilcox L/T (19.6)
Monday: Upper Goose Pond Cabin(15.8)
Tuesday: Dalton (20.6)
Wednesday Mt. Greylock (17.2)
Thursday: Congdon Shelter (20.4)
Friday: Walk into Bennnington, VT and get shuttled up to Manchester, VT Then hike SOBO to Stratton Pond Shelter (15.0)
Saturday: SOBO to Kid Gore Shelter (15.0)
Sunday: SOBO Back into Bennington for shuttle pickup to Albany, NY (14.4)