sapblatt
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Well, the 48 list obsession has taken a short break as my family headed for Vermont to visit with two different sets of friends for our summer vacation trips. Fortunately, there were no Clark Griswold moments on this trip! 
I know all of you laugh at me when I say I am just “going to hike after I finish the 48 and that there are not other lists that matter to me.” So if that is true why was I sure to get some Vermont 4ks (NE 67) in on this trip!?
Ah…the hiking lists…
Saturday morning Paul (Rols) picked me up at where I was staying in Bristol for the short trip over to the Jerusalem Trail for our epic, all day adventure on Mounts Ellen and Abraham, and the four or five subsidiary peaks that are between them. As per our usual protocol we were on our way by 5:45 and hiking by 6:20am…and I think this felt a little late for us! The trail could have been a little easier to find, but somehow we made it. The tough part was that a fir tree was blocking the sign for Jim Dwier Road (off of Jerusalem Road) and the other tough thing was actually spotting the trailhead on this road…you can easily go right by this one.
Anyways…off we were reasonably early. The Jerusalem Trail was a very leisurely ramble of about 2.4 miles up to the Long Trail. The grades are quite moderate, dare I even say that except for the last ¼ to ½ mile they were quite easy. Lots of mixed woods and ferns…I managed to flush two grouses about ¼ of a mile apart on this trail. The first one came out of the ferns and scared the hell out of me , and my reaction in turn scared the hell out of Rols! They sure make a lot of noise. This was the first time I have done this and actually could see the bird. As I am sure you all know, they make a lot of noise but they are hard to see. We were already feeling the oppressive heat that would be our “third” partner for the day. After we reached the Long Trail we headed south towards Ellen, which we reached in a little over an hour. This would be the first of three major ski lift areas we would cross today as we traversed the Sugarbush area. It is amazing how much territory they have for skiing – truly massive. The heat on top of Ellen was stifling and the views were quite hazy. Could barely make out the valley and the bottom of the ski area.
Shortly after Ellen I heard a noise behind me and as I turned I saw the tail end of Rols spectacular fall off of one boulder onto another and onto the ground. Luckily, he only had some minor scrapes on his arms. Damp rocks were occasionally a threat on this day to good footing; more on that later. After a little food we were on our way towards Lincoln Peak.
Lincoln Peak has more ski lifts and a great observation deck. In the few minutes we were there, Rols and I met a few hikers and there dog, Tucker (named after the ravine) who were also day hiking. As we made our way towards Abraham the trail dipped and cooled a bit and then rose rather gently most of the way and it got hotter. We broke out into the alpine zone and stopped briefly on Abraham for food and drink and some more hot and hazy views.
By noontime we had turned it back around and were heading back the same 7.9 miles we hiked in during the morning. Two issues were water and water on rocks…I thought I had enough so I did not bother to filter at Holt Hollow…I ended up having enough, but I was worried enough about it to be rationing my supply. I consider this a big mistake that I will not make again…the time I saved by not pumping was not worth it. I became the second slip and fall victim of the day. Shortly after leaving Ellen on the return trip I slipped on a real simple, little rock. Well, it was not a simple fall…I bounced off a couple of rocks and landed on one with two large points about three inches above my area of most cushioning. I got up quickly but was really hurting. I figured out in about a minute that I did not break anything, but that I was going to be pretty sore, in fact I still am 5+ days later…Always need to be more careful when descending and tired.
Thank you to sli74 and SherpaKroto for enlightening me about the ease that you can lose the Long Trail near the tops of some ski runs. Your knowledge kept Rols and me on the trail. This 15.8-mile/eleven hour day was long enough and hot enough without adding any wrong turns!
I am tired…Camel’s Hump report will have to wait.
I know all of you laugh at me when I say I am just “going to hike after I finish the 48 and that there are not other lists that matter to me.” So if that is true why was I sure to get some Vermont 4ks (NE 67) in on this trip!? Ah…the hiking lists…
Saturday morning Paul (Rols) picked me up at where I was staying in Bristol for the short trip over to the Jerusalem Trail for our epic, all day adventure on Mounts Ellen and Abraham, and the four or five subsidiary peaks that are between them. As per our usual protocol we were on our way by 5:45 and hiking by 6:20am…and I think this felt a little late for us! The trail could have been a little easier to find, but somehow we made it. The tough part was that a fir tree was blocking the sign for Jim Dwier Road (off of Jerusalem Road) and the other tough thing was actually spotting the trailhead on this road…you can easily go right by this one.
Anyways…off we were reasonably early. The Jerusalem Trail was a very leisurely ramble of about 2.4 miles up to the Long Trail. The grades are quite moderate, dare I even say that except for the last ¼ to ½ mile they were quite easy. Lots of mixed woods and ferns…I managed to flush two grouses about ¼ of a mile apart on this trail. The first one came out of the ferns and scared the hell out of me
, and my reaction in turn scared the hell out of Rols! They sure make a lot of noise. This was the first time I have done this and actually could see the bird. As I am sure you all know, they make a lot of noise but they are hard to see. We were already feeling the oppressive heat that would be our “third” partner for the day. After we reached the Long Trail we headed south towards Ellen, which we reached in a little over an hour. This would be the first of three major ski lift areas we would cross today as we traversed the Sugarbush area. It is amazing how much territory they have for skiing – truly massive. The heat on top of Ellen was stifling and the views were quite hazy. Could barely make out the valley and the bottom of the ski area. Shortly after Ellen I heard a noise behind me and as I turned I saw the tail end of Rols spectacular fall off of one boulder onto another and onto the ground.
Luckily, he only had some minor scrapes on his arms. Damp rocks were occasionally a threat on this day to good footing; more on that later. After a little food we were on our way towards Lincoln Peak.Lincoln Peak has more ski lifts and a great observation deck. In the few minutes we were there, Rols and I met a few hikers and there dog, Tucker (named after the ravine) who were also day hiking. As we made our way towards Abraham the trail dipped and cooled a bit and then rose rather gently most of the way and it got hotter. We broke out into the alpine zone and stopped briefly on Abraham for food and drink and some more hot and hazy views.
By noontime we had turned it back around and were heading back the same 7.9 miles we hiked in during the morning. Two issues were water and water on rocks…I thought I had enough so I did not bother to filter at Holt Hollow…I ended up having enough, but I was worried enough about it to be rationing my supply. I consider this a big mistake that I will not make again…the time I saved by not pumping was not worth it. I became the second slip and fall victim of the day. Shortly after leaving Ellen on the return trip I slipped on a real simple, little rock.
Well, it was not a simple fall…I bounced off a couple of rocks and landed on one with two large points about three inches above my area of most cushioning. I got up quickly but was really hurting. I figured out in about a minute that I did not break anything, but that I was going to be pretty sore, in fact I still am 5+ days later…Always need to be more careful when descending and tired.Thank you to sli74 and SherpaKroto for enlightening me about the ease that you can lose the Long Trail near the tops of some ski runs.
Your knowledge kept Rols and me on the trail. This 15.8-mile/eleven hour day was long enough and hot enough without adding any wrong turns!I am tired…Camel’s Hump report will have to wait.
