Saturday 7/3

We spotted our car at Lee/Becket town line and off we went. Hiking for a few days.

Right off the bat we met up w/Inferno, Fastlayne and their dad. They were going out to Dalton today and taking a 0 on the 4th. PTD haven't seen her since Duncannon, PA.

Of course, right out of town it was up for a bit. Climbed Becket Mnt., Walling Mnt, and Bald Top. We skirted around Finerty Pond. We thought we were going to be able to stick out feet in it. Nope. No trails leading to it. The brush was too thick to cut threw. Went crossed over several roads. We had lunch by the Washington Mountain brook, a small trickling river. We entered the October State Forest. Went and rested at the October mnt Lean to. Dave also got to see Rooster another Thru Hiker that he hadn't seen in awhile.  Didn't see much for animals. A frog, some chipmunks and a few snakes slithering in the tall grass. A few dead mice/voles too.

Much of the trails were overgrown. Knee high in some spots and eye high in others. We just kept checking for ticks. Guess some of these sections are maintained by someone very elderly that has not been out to keep it up, IN YEARS!

We stayed in the field at the "Cookie Ladies" house. It is a working blueberry farm w/hundreds of trees. Some over 100 years old. Her and her husband let hikers camp in their yard. Sometimes she will have fresh baked cookies for the hikers in the afternoon. When we got there, not a soul. They must be on vacation. We set up camp in the shady grassy area, far away from all the blueberry trees. Didn't want any bears stumbling into us in the night. We also hung our packs in the garage as the hikers note stated so, no animals would get them.

We lounged for a bit on the picnic table watching the hummingbirds and eating fresh quarter size blueberries we had just picked.($1.50 a pint - not a bad deal). She also sells fresh and hard boiled eggs. She has chickens. But w/no one home. No eggs. After a bit we decided to make dinner. Ponytail had freeze dried Chicken & Rice and I had Mac & Cheese. After dinner we cleaned up and brushed our teeth. We stayed out a bit longer, writing in our journals till we couldn't''t stand the bugs any longer. They were eating us alive.

What a great day together, can't wait for the next.

We hiked - 9.4 miles - warm day but not humid

October Mountain Lee To











Proud to be next to the blaze

 

Lunch by a small river

 Making dinner

Ponytail in one of the blueberry patches

Taj Mahal