MT GREYLOCK

AT Day 093: Sunday July 9, 2023

Mile 1586+ 14.5 miles/22.5 km

Total Distance Hiked: 1600.5 miles/2575  km

Father Tom Campsite, Cheshire – Howard Johnson  Inn, Williamstown

A:3432 ft / 1046 m  D: 3465 ft / 1057m

We had fireworks and fireflies last night just after hiker midnight.  We were surprised how quite the town was after the fireworks. 

The air was cool and still and the birds were chirping as we walked out of town.  The cool of the morning didn’t last very long. Sweaty work started as soon as we left the town streets and started the ascent towards Mount Greylock. 

The climb up Mt Greylock was broken up into number of different sections: a steep start then it leveled off a little bit then there was another steep section and then we were up in the fog. The trail again leveled off over Saddle Ball Mountain with a very steep  last mile to the summit of Mt Greylock, the highest peak in Massachusetts. 

We made the summit just after 10:00 a.m. and we met Slim Pickins who passed us a little bit earlier on the way up the mountain. We stopped for breakfast/lunch at the Lodge and chatted to Slim Pickins and some weekend hikers we had met on the way up.

The  views were completely socked in although we did get a fantastic view of the lighthouse and the monument to the fallen soldiers inside.  Quite moving and the lighthouse is such a beautiful symbol of the eternal flame of remembrance. 

We headed off the mountain fairly promptly afterwards because there is a thunderstorm predicted to arrive around 2pm. We were  pretty sure we could make it to nearest shelter, halfway down the mountain, before the storm arrived. The descent was a constant steep downhill. Both Hammer and I have started to develop unusual blisters. Mine on the ball of my clumsy left foot and Hammer on the tops of his toes. We stopped several times to tape up the hot spots before they got worse. Not sure why we are having blister problems now. 

Anyhow we passed the William Clearing Shelter half way down the mountain. It was around 2pm and the rain had not started although we could hear rolling thunder in the distance. We decided to continue to descend off the mountain. We stopped briefly at the Mt Prospect ledges on the way down. This gave us the only distant vistas we had all day.  The descent was slow and precarious with wet rocks and lots of tree roots. 

We made the Route 2 crossing around 3pm and decided to detour to accomodation in Williamstown before the storm arrived. We have 4 more miles left to hike in Massachusetts. Hope the early finish helps with the blisters.