February Newsletter 2024
Long Pond, Grafton Lakes State Park, pic by M Waldman
End-to-End Challenge Registration Opens March 1, 2024 at 6 AM
Are you eagerly awaiting to register and challenge your endurance by hiking the 30+mile 7000 feet gain one-day trek along the Taconic Crest Trail? The date is almost here! Registration for the May 11, 2024, End-to-End Challenge opens Friday, March 1 at 6 AM.
Registration is via Eventbrite, the link will be posted on the End-to-End page of the Taconic Hiking Club website. The entry fee is $50, and the challenge will be capped at 25 entrants. A wait list will be maintained.
The challenging hike goes over undulating terrain along a tri-state ridge from Berry Pond in Pittsfield State Forest to the northern end of the Taconic Crest Trail at Route 346 in Vermont. Hikers are supported from beginning to end by volunteers of the Taconic Hiking Club. Participants who successfully complete the Challenge will receive a Certificate of Accomplishment and a special “TCT 1-Day” patch. Participants who are Club members will also receive the “Bloody Foot” patch. Be aware: this Challenge is for very fit and experienced hikers and will be held rain or shine!
For more details or volunteer opportunities for the Challenge, see the End-to-End page.
TCT End-to-End One Day Patch
Hikers and Bikers Belated New Year’s Resolutions—2024
It’s never too late to make New Year’s Resolutions. They may come to mind through the year and rear their demanding heads at inopportune times, when bad habits have had their way with us. Why feel guilty. Here are some for you to think about now for this Happy 2024 New Year!
I resolve—
1. not to throw away my analog maps. They might save me some day when cell service or phone power is out.
2. to throw away all my duct-taped pants. They’ll only rip further, causing possible embarrassment.
3. not to go on a new year’s diet the day I go hiking, subjecting my group to hangry rantings.
4. to sharpen my micro-spike points before winter.
5. to wear a mask when carpooling; COVID and RSV are making the rounds
6. to clean out my rancid water bottles with a disinfectant.
7. to take care of my feet before blisters appear, to trim my curling toenails before a trek, and to proactively remove tiny pebbles from my boots.
8. to wash my sleeping bag and clean my bike helmet before I need them in the spring.
9. to save my precious down jackets by not doing trail work in them, bushwhacking through prickers in them and sitting by a fire with shooting sparks.
10. to buy from a professional a women’s bike seat that doesn’t hurt.
11. to be smart about crowded trailhead parking and plan ahead; full parking lots are more worrisome than encountering bears.
12. to hike, bike, and row with gratitude for the privilege of recreating in these beautiful places on our lovely earth.
Spring Gathering - 2024
Save the date! Our Spring Gathering will be at Grafton Lakes State Park on Saturday, June 1. We have the Deer Field Pavilion reserved for the day. There are great hiking and paddling opportunities as well as time to socialize! More details to follow.
OUTINGS: Refer to the THC website outings page for details about the outings and how to register. We schedule on a monthly and short-term basis, so check the website periodically.
Monday, February 5: Grafton Lakes State Park, Mill Pond to White Lily Pond RT B-
Thursday, February 8, XC Ski
Friday, February 16: Perry’s Peak & Hollow Fields B
Tuesday February 20: Huyck Preserve loop trails B
Wednesday February 28: Phelps Trail to Berlin Mountain B
“It is not the mountains we conquer, but ourselves.” Terri Guillemets
Thacher State Park, M Waldman
Bernard Farm Trail to Mnt Williams, Greylock Reservation, first snowshoe of the season, pic by M Waldman
Stone wall along Shaker Mtn loop trail, pic by J Berninger
Fire Tower, Grafton Lakes State Park, pic by J Gorman
Lunch stop, Shaker Mtn Trail loop, pic by S Roberts
View from Bald Mountain, pic by D Pisaneshi
Bernard Farm Trail, Greylock Reservation, pic by M Waldman