Sunday I wanted to head up and hike somewhere in the Adk’s but I wasn’t sure what trail to do. Mike was going to the Santanonis but – while I’d dearly love to get 2 (or all 3) of these peaks off the list – I didn’t feel I was ready for this hike. It’s purported to be long and rough and, once you head in, there is little in the way of options. I felt I should go somewhere with more options in case I had a problem with the ankle that forced me to choose not to push to a summit. I flipped and flopped – maybe this… perhaps that… and finally on Saturday afternoon I chose Marshall. It provided me with a choice to enjoy Lake Colden and Flowed lands (low elevation) even if I didn’t go for a summit. This was also the summit Mike and I were headed to when I first injured my ankle…. so there was a score of sorts to settle.
I parked at the Upper Works trailhead and hiked into Flowed lands (pictured) under dark skies. Flowed lands are the remains of a lake, which sat behind a dam that was breached 20 or 30 years ago. Thirty percent chance of showers became 100% as I climbed and the clouds shrouded the peaks all day. After climbing the bouldery trail up to Flowed lands I made my way to the herdpath for Marshall. This herdpath is a beauty that looks very much like a west coast trail with thick dark evergreen forests and moss everywhere – it was a nice climb up. When I got to the summit however the rains started to fall more consistently. Light drizzle to start but heavier as I descended. The beauty of the trail quickly became a slippery, muddy mess, which took me a fair bit longer to descend then it took to go up... and of course the views were non-existent as the cloud level was quite low. Finally down I had lunch at Lake Colden and then headed back to the car – somewhat soggy but none the worse for wear.
In spite of the rain and tricky trails things went well so the ankle is healing nicely. It still feels “soft” and tweaks incredibly easily given some bad footing but it’s getting there. I probably won’t have a carefree hike until next year but I should have a good fall season this year as long as I’m careful.
Marshall - 31 of 46
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On a not-so private road to the woods
3 comments:
Awesome! That Marshall jinx is now well and truly broken.
Yeah I think we've both now put the nails to that curse.
Way to conquer your fears brother! Although you may have to go back one day in order to have the "photos to prove it".
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