Today's route was no loop, lollipop, or line -- but a figure eight: Undercliff (y) to Breakneck (w) to Notch (b) to Brook (r) to Cornish (b). Total distance, from the tourist information office up into the hills and back to Le Bouchon, was about 9 miles. It took me about 6 hours including all rests and photo ops. The steep bits proved quite challenging after hibernating all winter.
To start, I walked up Main Street into Nelsonville.
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| These are red blossoms, not berries. It's spring! |
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| Easter is coming!!!! |
There was not much traffic on the trail - but then it's a bit early, and the Nelsonville trailhead is probably more popular with the locals than with us weekend outdoorsfolk from the city. Certainly, people are a bit friendlier on this side of the hills.
When you start the Undercliff trail (y) from the south east (as I usually do), you have to pay attention once it merges with the green trail; there's an unheralded 90 degree left turn to stay on yellow. (It is easy to miss if you aren't specifically looking for it, and it can take a while before you notice that you are only seeing green blazes, and no yellow ones. Fortunately, I learned that lesson a year or two ago and haven't forgotten it!)
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Isn't it funny how sometimes, when you look at a rock,
it seems like you can almost discern a human face in it? |
When I got to the intersection of Undercliff (y) and Washburn (w), I met a father and daughter who were dismayed to find that they were not nearly as far along as they'd thought. I sympathized; the first part of Washburn is always much longer and steeper and zig-zaggier than one expects. But I was able to help them get oriented, which felt good. The father was guessing that maybe they would reach the top of Mount Taurus in 20 minutes (as the daughter despaired), and I didn't say anything -- figured I'd let them be pleasantly surprised that it was only 5 or 10 minutes away.
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| The first big intersection - I kept going on Undercliff |
It's been a while since I've followed Undercliff (y) past its intersection with the Brook trail (r) and over the bridge to its terminus at the Breakneck trail (w). And I found this section very, very hard going. As I started the ascent, carefully following the blazes, I was surprised at a series of right turns which eventually took me downhill. To my chagrin, I'd gone in a circle and was headed back down to the bridge! That first section of Undercliff can be a bit confusing, because you can see the blazes marking other portions of the trail (which are not yet part of your path), and if you head toward them, you can end up all turned around like I was. Grrr. I almost gave up, but instead I checked my water supply, gritted my teeth, and headed back up the slope, going even more slowly and carefully than before.
This particular portion of the Undercliff trail, from the bridge crossing to trail end, is supposedly only 0.3 miles. It took me
over an hour. (By contrast, the remaining 8.7 miles - including a short scramble up to Breakneck Ridge - took me less than 5 hours.)
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At the T intersection with the white-blazed Breakneck trail,
a yellow arrow pointed me back down the slope I'd just ascended.... |
The Breakneck trail was far more populated than Undercliff, but fortunately not congested.
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| View from Breakneck Ridge |
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This is the only type of butterfly I saw today. I don't know if it was just one creature that followed me
from the lowlands to the heights, or if each area has its own (identical) butterflies. |
The ups and downs along Breakneck Ridge are quite enjoyable, but when I got to the intersection with Overlook (r), I got nervous and wondered if I'd missed the turn for Notch (b). Nope - happily, Notch was still up ahead!
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| Really? A black cat on the ridge? |
To my surprise, I saw the shape of a large black cat out of the corner of my eye. This unfocused shot actually captures the impression quite nicely.
Once your eye is sensitized to this, you may still be able to see it even in the more focused shot below:
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| Lovely weather! It was a foretaste of summer. |
Once I reached the actual intersection with the Notch Trail, I realized I could never have missed it.
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| A message to would-be suitors |
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| I thought this looked like a monkey clinging to a tree |
Eventually, one reaches the long slow concrete ramp that winds around down, down, down to the bottom of the hill.
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| Bits of bark suspended in the vines.... |
I was really surprised to see a substantial snowbank as I descended the west side; there had been no sign of snow on the east side or in any of the interior areas I'd crossed over the course of the day.
It turned out there were several patches of snow peaking out from under protective leafy covers; it was actually a bit hard to see just how big they were.
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| Snow under the leaves! |
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| This lawn was ethereal with the grayish grass and clumps of blue flowers. |
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| Weeping angels? Don't blink!!!! |
I snagged a spot on the porch at Le Bouchon, and enjoyed a glass of wine with the house salad (featuring beets, pistachios, goat cheese) and sweet potato fries, then a lovely creme brûlée for dessert. Oh, bliss!
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| Almost there! Around the corner from Le Bouchon. |
The moon had risen by the time I headed toward the train station...
A lovely day.
A lovely day.
