So on Day 3 of this adventure I managed to cover 7.9 miles and that got it in my head that 8 miles is a reasonable goal for each weekend. Then on Day 5, I came to appreciate how much of a factor the elevation change of the hike plays into my endurance. I felt like I damn near had a heart attack that day when I covered 6.5 miles with over 1,000 feet of elevation gain. So you think I’d scale it back a bit and be more sensible and reasonable with my plans. Nope! I’m gonna go ahead and try and do another 8-mile hike with 1,000+ feet of elevation gain. If I can follow this plan, then I’m done with the 4,000’s and can move on to another area in the Blue Hills. Plus, while I say this is a 6-month challenge, I am really hoping wrap it up by the end of August before the kids head back to school. On top of all that, the final rationale for continuing to push, is that a thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail has been on my bucket list since I was a teenager and this whole challenge is a first step on trying to make that dream a reality. Hiking the AT means being able to cover about 15 miles a day while carrying as much as 50 pounds on my back. So shooting for 8 miles with just a 10 pound daypack is a very necessary stepping stone.
I had procrastinated making my Day 7 hiking plan all week long so it wasn’t until late Friday night that I laid out a convoluted 7-miler that would cover all the trails in the 4000 block between Fox Hill and Randolph Avenue with a quick detour across Chickatawbut to cover the circle path around Blue Hills Reservoir. I was going to wake up early to fit this in for two reasons. One: we had tickets for “Downton Abbey – A New Era” for 3:20pm at South Bay and didn’t want to be late; and Two: temps were going to be in the mid-80’s so the earlier I got started the less I would be melting in the afternoon heat. Unfortunately, I slept through my alarm clock by a whole two hours so when I finally got out of bed I knew I’d have to cut things short. I had no idea how so I figured I would just improvise along the way. On the plus side, the morning was much cooler and cloudier than forecast, so even with my late start, I didn’t have to face the brunt of the day’s heat. There had been some rain showers over night and that lead to a coastal fog that cooled things down. However, it also came with a huge blast of humid air that I knew would bring out the skeeters, muck up the trails, and cause me to sweat a river.
Suspecting another roadside gravel parking lot I took the teenagers car, a 2014 Kia Soul in Solar Yellow – impossible to lose in a parking lot, to avoid bottoming out my precious Golf R. I parked at the lot near the intersection of Chickatawbut and Randolph which turned out to be nicely paved, so the car swap wasn’t necessary. Regardless I’ll think I’ll keep using the Kia for these morning hikes. Before heading out, I thoroughly sprayed myself in some Deep Woods Off! and am so glad I did. As suspected, the rain and the humidity brought out the bugs in force. As I hiked I could feel them bumping into me non-stop like an invading army of blood suckers. But the bug spray worked like a charm and the bugs would retreat away from me right after I felt their attempted landing. The trails were moist and wet and there were some substantial mud patches, but nothing that was impossible to traverse.
I knew I had to cut things short but I hadn’t figured out quite yet what to cut. I started out on my original path which was to head North-East on the Headquarters Path, which became a Pipe Line trail, until I hit the section of Sawcut Notch Path on the South side of Little Dome that I had covered last week. I retraced my steps from last week until I hit #4086 and then it was decision time. I figured I’d cut out the eastern portion of my hike, so instead of covering everything west of Fox Hill, I’d just zig zag around a bit without straying too far from the parking lot and just head back when time was getting short. I turned onto an unnamed trail between #4082 and #4049. I did a prompt U-turn and covered Pine Tree Brook Path half way through and then turned onto a side trail that curved around to the parking lot for Chickatawbut Tower. I then turned up Pasture Run and did another U-turn on Headquarters Path to come back down Cedar Rock Path. Then I hoofed it down Chickatawbut Road until I got to the driveway for the Norman Smith EEC. I did a re-read of the Official Rules of the TTBH and noted that Rule 6-G says that while the driveway isn’t part of the trek, the unpaved connector path from the driveway to the water tank is. So I covered that section, which I’m glad I did as I found a magnificent hawk feather just laying on the path. It was getting hotter and later and buggier, so I took a sharp right and made it back to my car with plenty of time to make the movie.
The Day 7 plan was an ambitious 7-miler that would cover almost all of the remaining intersection markers from the 4000’s block. Alas, that plan did not come to fruition. So the 4-miler I got in still leaves a lot of the 4000’s left to cover but hopefully I’ll be able to mark this whole section done next week.
Once again I’ve worked up a complicated zig-zag plan that will have me hiking with my phone in my hand the whole time – but wandering aimlessly surely isn’t the best idea either – so there ya go.
Unlike last week, I was able to pretty much stick to my plan. Covered Sawcut Notch Path, Crags Foot Path, Short Path, and Old Furnace Brook Path. There is one dead-end trail right before the rectangle shape that was on the Blue Hills Reservation map, but no record of it in AllTrails. I was worried this would be some overgrown path that would require hacking through thorn bushes and mud, but in reality it was an easy to find path that was more like a small ravine that wound up to the edge of the 4th Hole of the Milton Course at Granite Links.
My early morning weekend schedule continues to deter Patricia and the kids from joining me on my hikes. In all fairness, Patricia and Penny have seasonal allergies and were happy to stay sealed up in our air conditioned and air filtered house. Luckily my good friend Brenda is fine with both early mornings and long hikes so she volunteered to join me on today’s outing. We started out at the parking area on Wampatuck Road where I was concerned for the health of the front bumper of my low riding Golf R as we pulled off the pavement onto the gravel parking area. Nary a scrape was heard so the car survived, but barely. May grab the teens car (Kia Soul) next time I know I’m parking at one of these side-of-the-road gravel pits. We started out on a small connecting path that lead to Crags Foot Path and then zig-zagged across Wampatuck Road a few times and then turned onto Sawcut Notch Path. Unlike last week, I was able to stick to my planned path pretty easily and there was an abundance of trail markers to pose in front of. Brenda was quite amused at my selfie project. We turned onto Old Furnace Brook Path at #4180, cut onto Crags Foot Path again at #4145, onto Short Path at #4124. We rejoined Sawcut Notch Path at #4133. The skeeters were out in force today and Brenda and I patted ourselves on the back having dosed ourselves in DEET back at the car.
A left turn at #4133 had us headed to Little Dome and then onward to the CCC Camp. This part of the trail runs along the edge of the Granit Links Golf Course. We came across a swampy patch that was covered in a reddish brown residue and sludge. Neither of us had any idea what caused it. I wondered aloud if any runoff from the fertilizer on the golf course could be the cause, but no way to know. We also encountered the first of many ferns that Brenda was interested in. She had an app that identified each fern and we found a Sensitive Fern, a New York Fern, an Interrupting Fern, but I honestly don’t remember the name of the one I got a picture of. The map showed some sort of parking lot and structure on the northern path around Little Dome. When we got there it turned out to be a pumping station for the Algonquin Gas Pipeline. It also had an ominous WARNING sign on the fence but no members of House Slytherin were spotted on the trails. We got a little confused in tis area direction wise as the trail goes straight through the pumping station and follows the pipeline a bit where it was very muddy. Then we missed the turn onto the Sawcut Notch and had to double back a few yards to get back on track. Brenda was a good sport and joined me on the first of several back-and-forth journeys down dead-end trails in order to cover every marked path. The first dead-end path worried me as it was clearly on the official Blue Hills map, but not on AllTrails so wasn’t sure what to expect. Luckily it was very easy to find and was a ravine like rain trench that followed the path on the trail map perfectly. It dead-ended into a brush covered hill along the edge of the 4th Hole of the Milton Course at Granite Links. We re-traced our steps back to the main trail and headed to the CCC Camp.
On the way to the CCC Camp, we had a few more dead-end trails to cover and took in a few interesting sites. I love seeing trees that have toppled over in dramatic fashion and came up on one that he clearly been wrent by a storm and twisted apart at the trunk. At marker #4011, we saw the sign announcing and describing the Civilian Conservation Corps Blue Hills Camp, the granite trail marker for Sawcut Notch Path, and a friendly toad. As we headed towards the trailhead at Ridgewood Road, Brenda’s sharp eye spotted a beaver swimming right towards us in the stream. I tried to get a picture but the beaver was underwater and there is too much reflection to make it out. Finally we got to the CCC Camp and poked around a bit. It’s hard to imagine this was home to hundreds of men during the depression.
At this point, the mercury was rising and Brenda and I were both feeling the effects of the ambitious 7+ mile length of the planned hike. It was practically a record-breaking temperature for the day. We finished up the loop and spokes around the CCC Camp, and headed back to Little Dome along the southern side and then the reverse of the zig-zag we walked on the way out. Made it back to the car right around 11:30am with both of us fantasizing of tall ice-filled drinks, oscillating fans, and a soft place to put up our weary feet.
I’m going to keep being ambitious and planning out 7-8 mile hikes otherwise I’ll never finish this challenge by the end of the summer. For Day 6, I’m heading back to the 4000’s. Planning to park at the very small lot off Wampatuck Road and then make a sort of zig-zag loop out of Crags Foot Path and the Sawcut Notch Path, with side runs through the Short Path and Old Furnace Brook Path. Gonna hike that all the way to the CCC Camp and stomp around there for a bit to hit all those dead-end trails, then come back via the opposite zig-zag. Less than half the elevation change from last weeks hike so I shouldn’t be as winded this time, but the temps will be peaking into the 80’s so will bring plenty of water. As always, reach out to me if you want to meetup for this one. Planning on and early morning start to avoid hiking through the hottest part of the day.
I still managed to hit the wrong button half-way through the hike so the video got split into two chunks again. I could fix it, but I don’t want to. For the few people who may actually watch these videos, please note that the soundtrack features that classic hit, “Out-of-Breath” by Overweight Dad. If you want to get a look at the fire damage from the May 1st brush fire, check out Part 1 at about 13:55. That covers the East edge of the fire. For the North, West and South edge, check out Part 2 at about 49:11. Lastly if you want a first-person view of me stumbling on rocks, falling forward, scraping my shin, launching my water bottle, uttering an expletive, smashing my phone on the rocks, then muttering not one, but two delayed exclamations of “Ow”, you can skip right to 1:02:45 of Part 2. It’s quite amusing.
I tried all week to hype my family into coming with me on this hike, but to no avail. The eight mile planned path was not helping, and as the day approached the grim weather forecast ensured I would be alone for this one. While prepping for this weeks hike, I spent way too much time in AllTrails messing with routes and paths in an effort to minimize the amount of time retracing my steps. Eventually I came up with a convoluted plan that switched directions and zig-zagged and bounced around with the hopes to save me some steps. Then on Saturday morning as soon as my feet hit the trail, I forgot all about my plan and just charged forward. It wasn’t until 30 minutes later that I checked my app and realized I was totally screwing up my plan. So I stopped, reviewed the route plan, made some mental notes on how to adjust course and then carried on. I then discovered… Hills. With a capital “H”. I guess there’s a reason my app tells me the elevation change. So about half way through the hike I realized I might not make the full eight miles. Either way, I started out going down Slide Notch Path and right away came upon the aftermath of the May 1st brush fire. It was almost surreal how the East side of the path was just fine, and the West side was charred and burnt out.
This was mostly a downhill hike and then I came to Bouncing Brook Path which was flat and level and I was going strong. I took a sharp left on Curve Path, another left onto Sassamon Notch Path and then a right onto the Skyline Trail. I reached the top of Nahanton Hill and that’s when I realized that this was going to be a lot harder of a hike than I expected.
After checking out the view, catching my breath, and checking my heart rate (169 BPM!) I headed down the hill and enjoyed a fairly flat long walk around Squamaug Notch Path and then Curve Path. I kept going according to my newly revised plan and headed down to Laurel Path. When I got to marker #3111, I had to stop, reassess, and revise my plan. Again. I’m not a morning person and I got a late start and it had taken me 2.5 hours to make it 4 miles and I was hoping to cover the entire hike in less than 4 hours. If I stuck to the plan, it would be 4 miles of trails until I returned back to this point and then, I’d have one more mile, all up hill, covering 300 vertical feet to the peak of Kitchamakin Hill and then a short walk to my car. OR I could skip the 4 miles and just hike the one more mile up Kitchamakin Hill, then car, then home. Decision time.
I decided to abandon the 4 mile loop I had planned and headed up the hill to cut the hike short and then head home. Again, old man gravity took it’s tool and I was huffing and puffing like a geriatric wolf trying to get to his little pig dinner. With this image in mind, I found I was getting a little hungry so grabbed one of the several varieties of energy bars I had picked up to experiment and figure out which brand / flavor I like best. After I dug a PowerCrunch Salted Caramel bar out of my backpack, I figured I’d save time by not stopping and enjoying my PowerCrunch Salted Caramel protein as I continued to trudge up the hill. This is when I learned two new and important facts. Fact One: PowerCrunch Salted Caramel protein bars, are VERY dry. Like sandstorm dry. My mouth was filled with a cloud of wafer cookie protein dust with every bite. Fact Two: If you are huffing and puffing like a geriatric wolf, you do NOT want to fill your mouth with a cloud of wafer cookie protein dust as you will quickly inhale sed cloud and find your self coughing and choking all alone in the middle of a hiking trail while scrambling to retrieve your water bottle which is in the side pocket of the backpack still strapped to your back in an effort to re-hydrate the wafer cookie protein dust sandstorm currently raging in your mouth and windpipe. It’s moments like these where I’m grateful none of my family chose to join me, as I’m sure this little act would have induced peels of laughter from my immediate relations. With these two new facts firmly implanted in my brain, I found a handy rock to sit for a spell while I finished my snack with my water bottle readily available. With snack finished and re-hydration complete, I continued on and finally made it to the top of the hill. This is when plans changed for a fourth and final time.
When I finally crested Kitchamakin Hill, I stopped yet again to admire the view, catch my breath, and check my heart rate (173BPM!). After recovering briefly I took a left turn and headed West on the Skyline Trail for a bit and then came back to the Slide Notch Trail. This is when I changed plans for a fourth and final time. I was back in the burn zone from the brush fire and I was curious to see how far the damage extended, so rather than heading back to the car I kept heading West on the Skyline Trail for about 500 feet when I reached the West side of the burn zone. I knew the Northern edge wasn’t that far away since I walked through it earlier, but I wondered how far South the fire had spread. There was no trail here so I stopped and had a serious debate with myself. Should I satisfy my curiosity and hike off into the uncharted parts of the Blue Hills or should I just take my tired ass home and not waste my energy on hiking where it wouldn’t ‘count’ towards my 125 Mile Clube and TTBH goals? In the end, curiosity won and I spent the next 40 minutes or so stomping through the woods, tracing the edge of the burn zone. It was kind of fun to make my way through the woods, climbing over rocks and along ledges. At least it was fun until a stumbled on some loose rocks with a sharp 30 foot drop just a few feet away. I fell forward onto my hands and I slammed my right shin into some rocks. My metal water bottle was launched from backpack and landed a few feet away. I was foolishly walking with my phone in my left hand and so when I fell, it was slammed against a jagged rock with my full body weight behind it. As I got up, my right hand had some abrasions on the palm but no blood. My phone screen was completely shattered at the point of impact. Thankfully, I’ve been using a 9H glass based screen protectors for a while now. I was hoping that the damage was to just the screen protector and not the actual screen. My shin was bleeding a little but was more or less okay. If you are curious, you can see the whole fiasco play out on the video from my bodycam. After a delayed “ow” or two, I cautiously proceeded. I got a real sense of the damage from the brush fire and when I finally reached the end of the burn zone I found myself at the bottom of Kitchamakin Hill, again. So I climbed up the Slide Notch Trail one more time. I stopped for an energy bar and some water and finally made it back to the car thoroughly exhausted.
Two things to note about this map. One – ELEVATION!!! 1,056 Feet (322 Meters)! That’s the same height as the Chrysler Building, including the antenna, and an extra 10 feet thrown in for good measure. Two – I totally screwed up my well thought out plan by taking the wrong trail from the very beginning and then towards the end I really went off track, literally. I was curious about the fire damage, so I went off trail and followed the edge of the burn zone to get a sense of how much area it covered.
