6/22/06 Thursday: West Mtn to Dennytown Rd Campground

PICTURES:
1.0719: Morning view from West Mtn.
2. 0844: Bear Mtn. Observatory, closed for renovations as were the toilets.
3. 0847: View of the Hudson River from Bear Mtn.
4. 0851: Stumbled across this guy while beginning my descent from Bear Mtn.
5. 0902: I had a number of views of the Hudson River throughout my descent of Bear Mtn.
6: 0922: Came across this old ski jump from yesteryear.. Used in the Bear Mtn. Olympics.
7. 1001: The AT passes through the Bear Mtn. Zoo, a well kept Appalachian Themed park.
8. 1013: Decided to head to Port Clinton to get something to eat
9. 1024: While walking to Port Clinton took this pick of the bridge with the AT heading N in the background and a footbridge in the foreground heading to Fort Clinton
10. 1559: I took a side trail to this Catholic Retreat which offers shelter, water and a shower to passing through hikers. Took a quick shower and rested a bit while chatting with a number of hikers seeking shelter from the heat.
11. 1605: A welcome relief...

I had quite an uncomfortable night on this uneven, badly pitched campsite and was eager to move at first light... I had decided to get some breakfast in Ft Montgomery, NY, a .7mi walk or hitch from the trail. First I had to descend from West Mountain and ascend Bear Mtn. My water supply was sparce, so I hoped to replenish it at the sumit of Bear Mtn where my book showed there were full bathroom facilities with running water and an observatory. When I got the the summit of Bear Mtn, everything was closed for repair.... No water was available other than the bottles from the vending machines... They had set up some porta-potties also.. Well, I helped myself to the soda and water in the vending machines, took a few more pics of the views of the Hudson River Valley, and began my 1200" descent... When I got to the bottom of the mountain, the Bear Mtn Lodge was also closed for renovations, that was an on trail breakfast option... It was 0930, so I continued on my way to the muzeum/zoo... The trail actually passes through the zoo and exits near the Hudson River Bridge... I had to wait until 1000 for the opening of the zoo but enjoyed a leizurely stroll through the park which boasts the lowest elevation on the entire AT. The zoo houses creatures from Appalachia as well as a myriad variety of trees found on the east coast, many labeled. I am glad I waited for the zoo to open, many of the other hikers simply avoided it... When I got to the bridge I noticed the traffic circle and attempted to hitch to Ft. Montgomery... After about 20min I decided I'd probably be better off walking. On my way I met a woman walking her dog and we chatted. I mentioned I was looking for some breakfast/lunch place and she suggested one deli a block from where we were... I took her advice and was soon placing my order at Fox's Deli... I chatted with Tom who I learned was retired from the Navy... He also mentioned he was up here from NJ to shop at the Commisary at West Point... He offered to take me there if I had my ID on me, and I agreed. We finished our meals and were soon off to visit the base.. It was only a 10 min drive to the base from the deli and soon we were grocery shopping. I picked up some luxury items for immediate consumption; OJ, yogurt, banannas, and some trail snacks too.. I made my purchase and found a picnic table outside to consume it all:).. Tom completed his shopping and soon we were headed back to the traffic circle by Bear Mtn where they dropped me off for my trek North while they drove off SW to NJ... I thanked Tom for the ride and was soon on my way... It was about 1300 and I had only completed 5 mi today so I was eager to get moving... I crossed the Bear Mtn Bridge over the Hudson River and began my 700" ascent of the Mtn. Once on top, the trail was somewhat pleasant with some ups and downs but nothing too severe.. I crossed a number of roads and by 1500 I had made it 6 more miles to the Graymoor Spiritual Center, a Franciscan retreat that has set aside their ballfield pavillion for hikers... They offered a cold water spring shower, picnic tables, portapotties, and a place to rest. It was quite hot and I was saturated with sweat so a midday shower sounded great.... I met a few other hikers there and quickly stripped and showered and rinsed my clothes off also... I laid my clothes out to dry in the sun and relaxed for an hour while chatting with the section hikers already there... Switchback arrived a little later and followed my lead with the shower. We both left there refreshed and heading for our destination still another 9 miles off.. The late afternoon hike was not too bad with the heat and humidity tapering a bit... I had 2 unfavorable dog encounters on this day, neither dog was leashed, the owners thinking no one would be out on such a hot day... A pit bull and a husky in two seperate incidences didnt take to me well and I was a bit fearful of being bitten... The owners seemed not to be in control either which didnt help my nerves... LOL... But all went well in both cases and no permanent marks left...;)... I finally arrived at my destination and proceded to the pump house to replenish my water. There were no water options since Gramoor and Dennytown had a spicket off the pump house with camping across the street up a short driveway... I rinsed my clothes off at the spicket, washed the sweat off, filled my water bottles and began my trek to the campsite.. Once there I found a nice area to pitch my tent and set up camp.. I was joined about 30min later by Switchback and we had dinner together.. We soon retired for the night with me thinking of my rendevoux with Jackie in just a few days...