5/7
My first view of the day overlooked a massive frozen river of fog in the lower valleys, similar to one I saw on a North Carolina morning an Appalachian Trail lifetime ago. But this time I thought to take out my camera.

4/7
My first taste of the Appalachian Trail this morning was a steep climb straight uphill for more than a mile. If I ever needed a sadistic ascent, it was today. After a couple of minutes, I stopped shivering. Ten minutes later, I regained the feeling in my feet. Another five minutes passed, and I removed the shirt, resuming the climb in shorts and tee shirt. Amazing how a typical New England climb will warm you up on an icy morning.

3/7
After a couple of minutes, I stopped whimpering. I find that hiking in shorts adds about two extra miles to my day compared to hiking in long pants, and I need every mile I can manage in order to reach Stratton before the food runs out. I would like to avoid that long, emergency detour into Rangeley if I can help it. So, I set out in my shorts, tee shirt, and chamois shirt, with a gleam in my eye, a song in my heart, and crystals of frozen mucous in my mustache.

2/7
It was still dark, so I went through my morning routine by candlelight and flashlight. My stove functioned poorly in the cold; I had a great deal of difficulty coaxing it to remain lit. Hot instant oatmeal and hot chocolate did little to warm me this morning, although they usually do the trick.

It was tough to psyche myself into removing my wool sweater, hat, and long pants when I set out in the cold, brittle sunlight of 7:00 A.M., but, being a mean and macho guy, I did it.

🧵 1/7
September 15, 1983: Last night was a memorably cold one, easily topping two very frosty nights I remember from Georgia. Some mornings are so icy you hate to leave your sleeping bag. This morning, I had no choice but to get up and get moving. Having shivered through two final miserable hours, dozing off for brief periods of time, I dragged myself out of the bag’s feeble warmth at 5:30.

#backpacking #hiking #outdoors #landscapephotography #Maine #nature #forest #mountains #AppalachianTrail

Pink-fringed clouds sunset. New Britain Reservoir, Southington, Connecticut. October 13, 2019, 6:21 PM.

#hiking #photography #outdoors #landscapephotography #hikingadventures #nature #Connecticut #forest #sunset #sunsets #sunsetphotography #trails #lake

7/7
The footway seemed composed mostly of loose rocks and exposed tree roots. I was staggering by the time I scaled the final vertical rock face to the summit. My pigheadedness about overcoming my late start and not stopping left me a mass of exhausted muscles. There were marvelous panoramic views from up there to ease my frustration.

More of My 1983 #AppalachianTrail Hike in Photos at https://www.georgesteffanos.com/places-i-ve-been

6/7
The Marquis de Sade could not have designed a stretch of trail more imaginatively cruel than that incredible climb immediately following the scramble through the notch. This was the stuff of which backpacking legends are made. The one-and-a-half-mile ascent bolted straight up old rockslides and smooth ledges.

5/7
If I had it all to do over, I would have taken a half-hour meal break at the bottom of the notch, just before the ensuing climb, but as usual my stubborn streak was a mixed blessing. I was determined to keep going and make up for lost time. My legs were a little rubbery when I emerged from the notch, and the sick, twisted climb up Mahoosuc Arm finished them off.

4/7
Over the millennia, the floor of the notch had become the final resting place for every huge boulder which had broken away from those precipices. The trail wound over, around, and occasionally under that chaotic jumble of rocks. Those rocks were covered with a tenacious growth of gnarled conifers and dripping moss. It is probably the most deranged section of backpacking trail in the world, but its weird alien landscape was so striking I would not have missed it for anything.

3/7
The passage through Mahoosuc Notch truly lived up to that reputation. The notch was a deep, extremely narrow defile sandwiched between the towering cliffs of Fulling Mill Mountain and Mahoosuc Arm.

2/7
The hike began with a steep but short climb up out of the col to the south peak of Fulling Mill Mountain. The Appalachian Trail descended gradually along the scrubby crest, turned left, and dived precipitously off the ridge down into Mahoosuc Notch, which is famed as the most difficult mile of the entire trail.

🧵 1/7
September 14, 1983: Last night was wintry, topping even Monday night for cold. Today was a perfect backpacking day: about fifty degrees and sunny, with another invigorating breeze.

#backpacking #hiking #outdoors #landscapephotography #Maine #nature #forest #mountains #adventure #trails #AppalachianTrail

June evening near Hidden Lake, Fall Mountain, Plymouth, Connecticut. June 23, 2021, 7:36 PM.

#hiking #photography #outdoors #landscapephotography #hikingadventures #nature #Connecticut #summer #June #forest #sunset #naturephotography #trails #summertime

3/3
The river below meandered gracefully through a landscape of quiet beauty. Forests and fields along the banks and wooded ridges flanking the valley appeared idyllic and almost surreal in the slanting, rose-tinted early morning sunlight.

From my book Then the Hail Came (A Humorous and Truthful Account of a 1983 #AppalachianTrail Thru-hike). Available in paperback, audiobook and eBook: https://amazon.com/dp/B09QFG4ZR6

2/3
Thankfully, I had some decent trail and some enchanting scenery to get my engine going. The first nice view of the day was a mile up the trail, from St. Johns Ledges — a hundred-yard stretch of open ledges perched atop high, steep granite cliffs overlooking the Housatonic River Valley. I reached it just as the early clouds were drifting off over the eastern horizon and the day was turning fine.

🧵1/3
August 13, 1983: It was still cloudy this morning when I woke up, and the air had turned even chillier. I had not seen a morning that cold since Tennessee. After the persistent heat wave that dogged me through six states from Virginia through New York, shivering was a pleasure. Still, in order to warm up, I really had to start moving quickly when I hit the trail.

#backpacking #hiking #outdoors #landscapephotography #Connecticut #nature #forest #mountains #trails #AppalachianTrail

Flowering shrub. Lost Ponds, Plymouth, Connecticut. Mattatuck State Forest. May 11, 2021, 7:33 PM

#hiking #photography #outdoors #landscapephotography #nature #Connecticut #spring #May #forest #flowers #wildflowers #naturephotography #trails #springtime

6/6
Eventually a long, narrow finger of Flagstaff Lake began to dominate the view ahead as I descended towards it.

More of My 1983 #AppalachianTrail Hike in Photos at https://www.georgesteffanos.com/places-i-ve-been

5/6
Although significantly smaller than the giants I had been traversing for days, the summit of Little Bigelow had been almost three thousand feet. As I walked along, the ridge gradually diminished, its crest reaching towards the low country.