A futile attempt at The Long Trail Vermont

kwc

Member
Joined
Mar 31, 2016
Messages
883
I planned on an extended 6 day backpacking trip along the Long Trail in Vermont, starting at the southern end of the trail and hiking as far as Bromley Mtn. I thought I was prepared for this hike but I truly wasn’t. Need to make some adjustments to my kit before heading out again. On the plus side I did get to meet some pretty amazing people on the trail and in camp. And some AT thru hikers. The last 3/4 mile was a 1000 foot drop on large rocks and that’s what did me in. Took me an hour to make the descent. It was an 1100 foot climb up to the next shelter and I was beat so I thumbed a ride into Bennington, called my wife, and drove the 2 hours to come pick me up. (The descent takes the trail to a road crossing of Rt. 9, hence the hitchike)

3F9249AE-A25B-4152-9A01-CED9B4454B26.jpeg

Burn section on the approach trail (Pine Cobble Trail). This burn closed the AT for a short while a week or so ago.

4D8E3013-926A-4466-A2A8-06247E70DDF6.jpeg

White blaze of the AT

1258FCD8-B262-4651-8028-9B1C3FD19611.jpeg

Welcome to the Long Trail sign. The AT and the Long Trail are together for about 100 miles before the AT branches off to the east towards NH

626B4C1C-76EB-4781-899B-4F7B37050D91.jpeg

Random erratic boulder along the trail

07A731A3-6BF0-44B1-9DB1-26E2181EB092.jpeg

First of two beaver ponds that were along the trail

FF07C14F-0692-458B-8BF5-1125E04EBF47.jpeg

Same pond, note the beaver dam.

70B364A4-9318-4CD4-B0CC-3D10DBCEB269.jpeg

Thought this was a nice shot of the meadow and pond before crossing the same stream

626DF3F0-D0C4-4F61-8FA7-688BF2DF5F03.jpeg

Boardwalk around the second beaver pond

4FF2063D-3BED-4E7A-8CAF-AC7266075ADB.jpeg

DCA49B54-CC17-4FD4-BBF1-78173416B3EF.jpeg

Second beaver pond

E4DD8DB7-800D-44CF-85AA-A07A60C22439.jpeg

Followed this stream for a while. It was pretty and had lots of small waterfalls.

645D798F-306F-454E-ACC4-BD00F54019AF.jpeg

Met this young lady while climbing up Harmon Hill. It’s tough to see but there is a small fawn at her feet. She stood and stared at me for several minutes before bounding off into the trees.

64B57EF0-1C6E-4F09-A3BE-85F1728750D6.jpeg

The view to the west from Harmon Hill (City of Bennington off in the distance)

3C4B5D23-15BF-4686-82D9-1286D805B72A.jpeg

Another deer that I saw just after cresting Harmon Hill. About a mile later I started the steep descent that did me in.

There aren’t many views in this part of the trail, at least not mountain top type views. Much of the time you are in the woods. The trail had some very muddy sections and generally speaking you just had to embrace the suck and walk through. It was a bit humid so if you stopped for any length of time the bugs (black flies and a few mosquitos) found you. Night time was cool, in the 40s, so the bugs were gone by then.
 

fossana

Member
Joined
Jan 11, 2018
Messages
753
You still got to see some beautiful terrain, as well as test your setup. I had a similar experience on the JMT back in college, terrible timing with the mosquitoes and poor gear choices made it a complete slog. I bailed after ~57 miles, and went climbing instead. :)
 

scatman

Member
.
Joined
Dec 23, 2013
Messages
3,425
Now if a kilt was part of your kit, I think you would have made it. :D Enjoyed your report, and remember that any time in the woods is a worthwhile endeavor. But I'm guessing you already knew that.
 

LarryBoy

Hiker Trash
.
Joined
Jan 4, 2015
Messages
2,755
Great report and lovely photos, thanks for sharing!

That descent down to Rt 9 just about broke me as well. I did it in the pouring rain, everything was slippery and terrible, and it just kept getting colder. By time I got to the shelter on Glastenbury Mtn, I was so chilled that I couldn't untie my shoes. I took off my wet clothes to let them dry overnight... and in the morning they were frozen solid. The Greens don't have the same difficult reputation as the Whites, but they really are no joke. Glad you were able to have a good trip in spite of it.
 
Similar threads
Thread starter Title Forum Replies Date
Kullaberg63 Hillers Attempt Hiking & Camping 2
NorthwestWanderer Backpacking Okanogan National Forest : Copper Glance Lake & failed attempt at No Dice Lake Backpacking 2
misSOULa Into the Winds: Titcomb Basin and Gannett Peak Attempt Backpacking 6
scatman Ensign Peak to Grandview Peak Attempt Hiking & Camping 10
Perry My First Attempt at Astrophotography Photography 5
NorthwestWanderer Goat Rocks attempt & Tahklak Lake Hiking & Camping 1
Jackson A Winter Attempt of Provo Peak Backpacking 9
Miya A First Attempt at Snowshoeing - Now I am Hooked Winter Sports 12
fossana Zinke's last ditch attempt to suppress Dept of the Interior FoIA requests (public comment open) General Discussion 2
K TR 5-6 An Attempt to find a beautiful pink-ish Sunset in SEKI Backpacking 5
scatman Lookout Peak Attempt - April 22, 2017 Hiking & Camping 6
WasatchWill Summit Park to Provo Attempt Backpacking 3
Udink Early Uintas Attempt Backpacking 8
Tyler First Time lapse attempt with my GoPro Photography 0
Bob New USA long trail Trip Planning 2
J Info needed: Bown's Canyon, Long Canyon Trip Planning 8
Outdoor_Fool Week-long Ramble Through Southern Yellowstone Backpacking 22
westy Hammock Gear Economy Burrow 20° long wide zippered Gear Market: Buy, Sell, Trade 0
zionsky TR: A long weekend in Baxter Backpacking 7
fossana Delano Peak the long way (Tushar Mountains, UT) Hiking & Camping 14
C plans for long day hikes in Yellowstone Trip Planning 2
conorfell Long time CO River lover ready to consummate union with packraft Noobs: Introduce yourself! 1
TractorDoc Long Time Lurker, First Time Poster. Noobs: Introduce yourself! 10
Yvonne A long weekend in Tucson, April 2017 Everything Else 10
Yvonne Testing the limits: A long day of hiking in Hawai’i Volcanoes NP Hiking & Camping 12
Nick So long, Barke Diem On The Water 9
Nethos Long time NYC lurker Noobs: Introduce yourself! 4
SKLund How Big a Pack for Long Trips Gear 32
balzaccom How long is your list? General Discussion 1
uintahiker Requiem for 2015. So long old buddy. General Discussion 2
12trysomething VIDEO: Long Trail - Part 3 Backpacking 0
12trysomething VIDEO: Long Trail - Part 2 Backpacking 1
Nanda Long Road Trip/Fly Fishing Invite Meet Up (Members Only) 0
12trysomething VIDEO: Long Trail Part 1 Backpacking 3
Spencer Sutherland Long Sleeping Bag Gear 7
Matt Price A remote week-long trip, Late-may/Early June, Utah or the Southwest Trip Planning 34
Dave Long Lake, October 4-5 2014 Backpacking 7
Scott Chandler A Long Weekend in Glacier NP- Part 2 Backpacking 5
Scott Chandler Long Weekend in Glacier- Part 1 Backpacking 6
Scott Chandler Summer in the CPW- A long weekend in SLC Backpacking 5
Ralph Perry I am a long-time backpacker needing UINTA suggestions Noobs: Introduce yourself! 1
BJett Long Canyon/White Canyon Backpacking 9
Bob Teton Highline Trail - The long way Backpacking 22
Mike Jones Week Long backpacking, Zion or Grand Canyon? Need Suggestions Trip Planning 27
Nick Food management on long distance trips General Discussion 4
Nick Long-range bucket list General Discussion 23
IntrepidXJ Invite Long Shot: San Juan Overnighter Meet Up (Members Only) 32
Nick Long distance backpacking Trip Planning 4
IntrepidXJ Long Weekend in Chaco Canyon Hiking & Camping 8
IntrepidXJ Long Fingers Canyon Hiking & Camping 1

Similar threads

Don't like ads? Become a BCP Supporting Member and kiss them all goodbye. Click here for more info.

Top