Praying to the Trail Gods:
As we got closer to the South Egremont Road Junction, my dad and I could make out a red cooler with a couple gallons of water sitting next to it. I had been secretly hoping for some trail magic (when kind folks leave supplies by the trailhead for hikers) and by the looks of it, the Trail Gods had delivered!
Duh, duh, duh…nope.
Unfortunately, when we got close enough to inspect the cooler and water gallons, they were all empty.
Not sure what to do, we hung out by the parking lot for a few minutes debating our next step.
We still had another 8.2 miles to go before reaching camp for the night and we definitely did not have enough water between the two of us to stay hydrated for the remainder of the hike.
My dad suggested we try and hitchhike to a local store, but I really didn’t want to do that for a couple of reasons.
One, I don’t like hitchhiking. Even though I’ve done it a bunch of times and it always turned out ok, I generally hate the idea of getting in a car with a complete stranger. I mean, that makes sense, right?
Two, because I didn’t want to lose any more sunlight hours.
As it was, we were already cutting it close with the mileage we had left and the difficult terrain that was ahead of us: we still had to cross June Mountain before reaching the Tom Leonard Shelter, where we were planning to stay for the night.
We decided to get back on the trail and hope that a water source would present itself in the next couple of miles.
If not, then we could always turn back to this spot and eventually someone would drive by who could help. Cell phone service was spotty, but I’m sure that if we walked on the street long enough, we’d reach an area where we could call for help.
Back on the trail with no water
So, off we went. We crossed South Egremont Junction and then walked across a beautiful piece of property with a healthy cornfield and then re-entered the woods. It was within this first mile of re-entering the woods that my dad and I started to bicker:
Me: “Why didn’t you bring more water? I totally said before we left that you should bring more water!”
My dad: “I have my water filter and I thought for sure we would’ve found a natural water source by now!”
Me: “Well we didn’t and now what are we going to do?!? Do we keep going and run the risk of not finding water, or do we turn back and throw in the towel on this hike, admitting defeat. Soul crushing defeat. Blah. Blah. Blah.” (I can be super annoying sometimes).
My dad: (looking over my shoulder): “Holy shit, is that water”
Me: “Wait, what? Holy shit, yeah!”
About a 100 meters off of the trail was a small stream, barely noticeable beneath the leaves, but definitely deep enough for us to skim some water.
Had we not taken the time to stand there and argue, then we never would’ve seen it…
Excited, we took about a 30 minute break to restock.
While my dad filtered water for us, I explored the area and took some pics – obviously…
(This is a continuation post. To start at the beginning of this section hike, visit Sages Ravine Northbound)