No more day-trips - I will be spending the night at a friend's house in nearby Warren, and hike Mt. Mansfield tomorrow.
Left home at 8:30, got to the trailhead just before 1, on a beautiful sunny day:
Although you can go straight up-and-down Monroe Trail (3.4 miles each way), I am a bit of a "trail snob": I like going up-and-down different trails. It is not that the "trail experience" is different (It is WAY DIFFERENT going up from going down the same trail) - it just looks cooler on a map! So I will go up Monroe Trail (for 1.3 miles), then take a left up Dean Trail (1.2 miles, listed as "Easy-Moderate"), then take a right on The Long Trail (for 1.7 miles) up to the summit of Camel's Hump (4,083 feet). After the summit, continue down the north side (0.3 miles) to Monroe Trail, which I will take all the way back down to the parking lot (3.2 miles):
On the Dean Trail (almost all in the woods), I crossed over a beautiful brook, over a bridge constructed in 1991 by the Vermont Youth Conservation Corps:
and then went through a lovely meadow:
with a view of Camel's Hump in the far right.
When you hit The Long Trail, you turn right (north), and the trail becomes DIFFICULT:
but the view back behind me is wonderful - looking south at Mt. Ethan Allen (3,688 feet):
That's why they are called The Green Mountains of Vermont!
Continuing up The Long Trail:
You eventually get to the summit:
A nice view looking southwest:
Looking northwest:
and looking north:
It took me about an hour-and-a-half to get back down to the parking lot via Monroe Trail. It was very nice to make such good time, and see some cute streams on this "Moderately Difficult" trail:
At the bottom of the trail is a memorial to the Men (8 dead, 1 survivor) in the B-24J Liberator Bomber who crashed into Camel's Hump on October 16, 1944:
About a half-mile down the road from the trailhead, a side road (Vilcins Road) goes over Ridley Brook:
which is a BEAUTIFUL spot for a refreshing afternoon swim!!!
An hour to get down to Peter in Warren, and blackened tuna for dinner!! Thank you God for an Excellent Day - 7.89 miles in 3 hours 49 minutes (= 29 minutes-per-mile!)
Friday, August 19, 2016 (left home at 8:40 AM, got to Warren VT at 6 PM)
210 miles -- up 93 into New Hampshire, then west on 89 (1 PM at the trailhead)
7.89 miles -- hiking (3 hours 49 minutes)
28 miles - 1 hour to get to Warren, VT
Music today: LIVE MUSIC
Traffic - The Last Great Traffic Jam, 1994 tour, released 2005
Big Head Todd and The Monsters - live monsters, 1998
This is a WONDERFUL live album by the band, and I especially love their live version of "Boom Boom" (which is now the theme song for NCIS: New Orleans). [sidenote: it is played at Carolina Panthers home games when a touchdown is scored]
Eric Clapton & Steve Winwood - Live From Madison Square Garden (2 cds), February 2008 performances, released 2009
An excellent collection of 21 songs ranging from Winwood's Traffic days ("Glad", "Pearly Queen", "Dear Mr. Fantasy"), Windwood/Clapton's Blind Faith days ("Had to Cry Today", "Can't Find My Way Home", "Well All Right", "Presence of the Lord"), some from solo Clapton ("Forever Man", "After Midnight"), plus KILLER Versions of Jimi Hendrix's "Little Wing" and "Voodoo Chile".
Shameless Plug: if you enjoy this blog, you may like my other one about Art Museums and National Parks (on July 23, 2016 I finished a 6-day trip to Indiana/Kentucky/DC/Connecticut)
hyperlink: dixonheadingwest
http://dixonheadingwest.blogspot.com/
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