6 Miles on the AT in Dutchess

 6 Miles on the AT in Dutchess

On Saturday, Aug., I had my Sunday homily drafted before our morning Mass. So when Bro. Bill asked me, "Mikey, are you going hiking today?" I took his hint, and around 9:00 a.m. I was heading north toward the Appalachian Trail crossing of Long Hill Road on the boundary between Putnam and Dutchess counties, where I halted on my last wee stretch of the AT (from Fahnestock State Park).

It took me quite a while to find the spot; I didn't do a good job at reading the maps. So it was 11:10 before I was parked and putting on my gear.  I hiked north 3 miles, taking a lunch stop at the Shenandoah tenting area 1.1 mile from the parking area.  That's a mown meadow .1 mile off the trail, taken care of by a kind soul who calls himself (herself?) the "caretaker." There's a picnic table, grill, fire ring, 3 Adirondack chairs, a register inside a mailbox, and a supply of bottled water.  Since I had my canteen, I didn't take any of the water.

Shenandoah tenting area

That far on my hike, I'd met only 2 hikers returning to the parking area.  They were a dad and his son, prepping for a Scouting trip to Philmont Reservation in New Mexico. 

The trail was pretty easy; I scarcely noticed the little rises and falls.  It was very pleasantly shaded.

Sign at Ralph's Peak Hikers Cabin

After the lunch stop, I was soon passed by 2 thru hikers, up more than 1,400 miles from Springer Mt. in Georgia and moving at a good clip.  Happy Meal and Hickory (their trail names) are hoping to reach Mt. Katahdin before the snow comes.

When I reached Ralph's Peak Hikers Cabin, just before Hortontown Road, I stopped to check it out and to have a little snack.  It's a sturdy concrete block structure with bunk beds within, a writing table, a very small library, a big supply of water, etc., well cared for.  It's 3 miles from Long Hill Rd. and was my turnaround point.

The approach to the cabin is down a long downhill (and uphill returning) that I compared to going down/up Bear Mt., till one comes to a delightful creek crossed by bridge (and approached by some boardwalks over what must be boggy ground after a rain.

Happy Meal, a young woman, agreed with my comparison of the hill (Shenandoah Mt.) to Bear Mt.; in fact, she moaned that New York's section of the AT was the worst she'd encountered so far--for the ups and downs.

But I have say, again, that NY-NJ Trail Conference--God bless 'em!--does a terrific job of trail maintenance. 

At the shelter I was joined by 3 more thru hikers.  There was a couple who'd started in Tennessee and hope to reach Mt. Katahdin; I got a photo of them as they lunched at the shelter. They were the only hikers who were on the older side. The 3d was a woman, probably 40-ish, who was southbound (the only one of all whom I met today), from the Conn. state line to Bear Mt.; when we met again at the parking area, I used my map and guide book to help her plot the rest of her day's hike (hoping to get to Dennytown Rd. to camp and replenish her water).

I didn't ask any of the hikers when they'd started from Georgia or Tennessee.

On my way back to the car, I met 5 more full-geared hikers, a bunch of 3 and then a young couple.  They may all have been thru hikers, or they may just have been heading to the cabin for the weekend--there were 2 cars besides mine in the parking area when I got there (at 3:10 p.m).  Fully-loaded hikers tend not to want to stop for chit-chat.

Link to today's AT photos:  https://link.shutterfly.com/0jiEFlaExib