Week 1

Well, folks, here we are in the Mahoosucs. We hiked up to Carlo Col Shelter on Wednesday morning and started working on the boundary. We accomplished our goal for the week, which was to clear, paint, and sign the line from Success Pond Trail to the Maine line. Both Sally & I agree that this was the hardest week we have ever worked on the AT. (And that's after 2 years of trail crew for me!) We've been beaten up by spruce and fir trees and crawled over some of the steepest and most difficult terrain we've ever worked on the boundary. We had to go down a very steep ravine and back up on footing that consisted of roots and rocks covered by moss, so that you look and say, "that looks like solid ground" and then end up knee to hip deep in a hole. We also came to the other side of where the line dropped off a vertical rock face. That's where we stopped as we could not go any further. But, we stayed safe, we had fun, and we accomplished our goal for the week!






This doesn't even begin to show how thick the boundary is with spruce and fir trees.

Sally went out first, found and painted the line. She was pretty much swimming in trees the whole time, and had to wear the orange safety vest so the person on the clearing saw would be sure to see her.

The excitement of finding a monument! Yay!

We had to clear, paint, and sign from one side of this very steep ravine to the other. Follow the compass sight to see where the boundary line goes.

Tom passing gear up through the "keyhole," one of many obstacles we encountered on the boundary.

Sally & Ray (the third member of our crew, who just finished his ridgerunning season and joined us on Saturday) on the steepest section of the boundary yet!

Ray painting the last blaze as it's pretty obvious that we couldn't follow this side of the boundary any further. Sally & Lauren had worked the other end of the boundary line in 2005. The monument in between where they worked and we finished is on a vertical rock face on this rock outcropping above Ray's head.

Ray & Tom hiking up the boundary line. It was slow, tough going!

More pics of how tough this boundary was - the toughest boundary section Sally & I have seen!