wiley shelter to sharon mountain campsite

the rain wasn’t too bad last night, and had stopped before i woke. i packed up and was on trail a little before 6.

the morning was slow. everything was wet and slippery and extreme caution was warranted. though it hadn’t rained since before i rose, it took the trail until early afternoon before it had dried.

i spent the day moving along again trying to baby my right shoe in the hopes thst it’ll last. the day had a ton of elevation and it really wiped me out. to make things worse, the ridge lines are infested with caterpillars. the trees in some places were completely defoliated. so much caterpillar poop, leaf fragments, and whole caterpillars were falling from the trees it sounded like a soft rain. this meant that there was little shade and it was hot. i was constantly having to stop and filter water because i was drinking so much.

my plan had been to do a 30 mile day to pine swamp brook shelter, but i pushed a few miles past to sharon mountain campsite because it had a bear box and a privy.

just as i got to the campsite i needed to use the privy, and it was quite the experience. i had to ask the folks hanging their hammock at the top of the hill to avert their eyes. that being said, it didn’t smell and had a great view!

the plan tomorrow is another 33 into great barrington where magz will pick me up! we’ll see how it goes though. it’s supposed to rain tonight and tomorrow morning, and today has me feeling my knees and hips.

some additional images from today: