View Full Version : Wilcox South
An older CCC-build shelter which has been well-chewed by porcupines. Off the trail by a tenth mile or two. Water source is on the AT 50 yds. south of the spur path. Limited tenting - one good site behind the shelter, another site behind and right could hold a very small tent. Otherwise the ground is decidedly sloping. Privy down hill from shelter about 50 yds. There are plans to add either a tent platform or a hardened tent site this summer. As of May 2003 there was alot of trash (tin cans, foil) in the fire pit.
poison_ivy
05-26-2003, 15:15
Stopped by South Wilcox while on a section hike this weekend. Lots of trash around the shelter, including toilet paper and tins. Way too much stuff for one hiker to carry out.
-- Ivy
I stopped here on a day hike 12/13/04. The shelter was swept and clean. The fire ring was cleaned out. Everything looked tidy. There was nothing to pack out except for a few Pop Tart wrappers I found stuffed behind a floor board.
There is a privy, a picnic table and a screened pit for washing up.
There is a good-sized birch tree on the ground just steps from the shelter for all your fire-starting needs.
The place looked very inviting.
The last note in the (new) register was from 10/24; perhaps lack of a pen rather than total lack of visitors.
I'm not sure why this shelter should accumulate trash. It is 1.5 miles to the Beartown State Forest parking lot, but no overnight parking is allowed there. I was told by a ranger that the nearest overnight parking is on Route 23. That's 3.5 miles to Wilcox, all uphill.
There is, however, a lightly used ATV track just .3 below the shelter.
Blue Jay
12-14-2004, 08:36
I'm not sure why this shelter should accumulate trash. It is 1.5 miles to the Beartown State Forest parking lot, but no overnight parking is allowed there. I was told by a ranger that the nearest overnight parking is on Route 23. That's 3.5 miles to Wilcox, all uphill.
There is, however, a lightly used ATV track just .3 below the shelter.
I just hauled a large load of trash out of there a week or two before you. I'm not sure why it accumulates there either, as most of the other shelters in Mass. do not. It may be because a lot of people do overnight park in Bearstown, and the uphill from 23 is slight until you get near the shelter. Glad to see your out and about.
Blue Jay-- Spent the night of 15-16 Jan 2006 at the Wilcox S shelter under severe conditions, having broken trail on snowshoes from Rt 23 following a storm. The shelter has little or no chinking, so there was a uniform layer of 3" snow on the floor, easily swept away with the broom (broken handle). The spring at the boulder on the blue blaze access trail was flowing. The privy was usable, although the roll of toilet paper had undergone a remarkable transformation, frozen solid after having been shredded by mice. Through the night the winds remained high and roared in the tree tops, but inside the lean-to matters were OK. Dawn temperature 0 d F. No wildlife seen or heard; mouse preventer useful, picnic table and fire ring snow covered.
I had tried to reach Wilcox N leanto, but turned back when I realized I wouldn't make it by sundown. There were ATV tracks under the utility line about 20 minutes N of the shelter, and there I did not see white blazes on the other side. No trash.
Walt
Limited tenting - one good site behind the shelter, another site behind and right could hold a very small tent. Otherwise the ground is decidedly sloping.
There are also a couple of additional tent sites to the left and rear of the shelter.
Chef2000
06-12-2007, 20:09
Today we moved all of the prefabricated pieces ,for a brand new wilcox south shelter, from the AMC mt greylock tool shed over to a staging area .2 of mile from the shelter site.
We then moved a majority of it downhill, past the soon to be old shelter, past the privy to the new site. Some of these pieces were 18 ft long and weighed over 100 pounds. Special thanks to all the great dudes from Massachusetts DCR trail crew, you guys rock.
Work parties are scheduled every Sat and Tues thru July 3. I will be going out next Tuesday. A great opportunity to do somethin for the AT other then just talk about it. Check out AMC berkshire website for more details
Hopefully this Saturday (July 7th--that's 07-07-07 for you lottery types), will see the new shelter at South Wilcox completed. It is a "traditional" Massachusetts trail shelter just like the other newer ones we have built over the past 20 years. This one has a red metal roof and a skylight. We've had help from a dedicated group of local AT volunteers, Mass DCR trail crews and AMC trail crew leaders, a real combined effort over the past month.
The new shelter is located past the privy, follow the blue blazed trail from the old shelter--or come see for yourself on Saturday.
Cosmo
minnesotasmith
07-08-2007, 04:28
Today we moved all of the prefabricated pieces ,for a brand new wilcox south shelter, from the AMC mt greylock tool shed over to a staging area .2 of mile from the shelter site.
We then moved a majority of it downhill, past the soon to be old shelter, past the privy to the new site. Some of these pieces were 18 ft long and weighed over 100 pounds. Special thanks to all the great dudes from Massachusetts DCR trail crew, you guys rock.
Work parties are scheduled every Sat and Tues thru July 3. I will be going out next Tuesday. A great opportunity to do somethin for the AT other then just talk about it. Check out AMC berkshire website for more details
Now, how about the AMC goes on to build just a couple of shelters in the White Mountains? :D
Undershaft
08-05-2007, 16:10
Minnesotasmith: You are a *****ing schmuck. Nobody appreciated the seven pages of shelter rules you wrote down in the register at Mt. Wilcox South. Don't believe me? Go read the scores of negative comments regarding what you wrote in that register. I suppose you had nothing better to do since you zeroed at every shelter between Kent and Lee. What people do appreciate is all the hard work that was put into the new shelter. It is fantastic. One of only 5 shelters I have actually slept in (I tent or hang 95% of the time). Thank you to the volunteers who built this beautiful place.
minnesotasmith
08-06-2007, 14:30
I'm trying to remember who you are, and why I might give a rat's posterior what you think. Out of curiousity, how many of the 14 states the AT goes through have you hiked even in part? Your experience WRT the perspective it would give you on the AT as a whole sounds questionable, for you to defend the AMC in such a knee-jerk unthinking fashion.
P.S. Re the suggested rules for shelter use I've written in registers several times: feel free to list ones you disagree with. Do you actually think, say, that people with dogs should let them when wet run around inside shelters (when unaffiliated hikers already have their bedding spread out), let their dogs steal other hikers' food, threaten other hikers, etc.? If you're against the list of suggested rules I wrote up, that's exactly the sort of hiker behavior you're in favor of, which makes you IMO someone other hikers would be best off not ever having to deal with on the Trail.
wystiria
12-18-2007, 16:33
Beautiful shelter! had it all to ourselves Friday of columbus day weekend this year. The water wasn't running but there was a stream that was not far south on the trail.
This shelter is awsome, I love the design with the bunks and sleeping loft - Also with the bonus skylight. If all shelters were like this I'd ditch my tent.
Kudo's to all the Mass. people who built this - Job very well done. Thanks.
canoehead
05-18-2008, 20:28
Sweeeeet Nice job folks,
I was working in the Sages area this weekend (AMC/RR) but was up that way last week.
Many hands make light work, so bring in an extra empty trash bag next time you venture into the woods and bring it back full of__________?.
Thanks
Last Saturday (June 14th) saw the completion of a earthen terrace in front of the shelter so the picnic table will sit (mostly) level on the ground. For photos of the efforts, see:
http://www.flickr.com/welcome/30577518/786287/
Probably a little top dressing will be needed once things get a little compacted.
Cosmo
UCONNMike
06-26-2017, 11:14
Stayed at Wilcox South Saturday June 10th, 2017; Lot's of Bear Activity, we had 3 tents set up early around 4PM but spent our time at the new shelter, after about an hour one of our crew went to get something from the tent and found a bear jumping on and trying to get into one of the tents. After making enough noise it left. In the evening more bears were heard around the site, but we were sure to pack everything into the bear box that might have an enticing aroma. Other than that, great level tent sites, the new shelter is beautiful, and great water source from a spring.