Training Log Archive: CleverSky

Townsend State Forest. 20 years ago, when we first made this map, I intended to go scope out Pitcher Bog and see if I could find the pitcher plants, but I never got around to it. I decided that today was the day. Parked across from the old senior center and ran up through Orphan Quarry, continued on trails to the top of the map, cut into the woods at the big cliff so I could check out the nice woods inside the fence, and came out on the trail that leads to Barker Hill Rd. Pitcher Bog may have been a crossable marsh when Mikell did the fieldwork, but these days it looks a lot like Big Down, courtesy of some beaver action. I looked along the edge a little bit, and didn't see any pitcher plants, but I may not have been looking in the right places, and I'm not sure what they look like anyway. Or maybe they got flooded out. Anyway, I was thinking of continuing up to Morse Rd. and taking that to the railroad bed and coming back that way, but I couldn't remember how far it was, and after going up the road a way, I figured I must have remembered wrong. In truth, I just stopped a little too soon. Just as well, I had been out long enough anyway. Back down the road, then cut through the thick woods and bashed through a little laurel to get back to the trails. Maybe 50% trails, 25% pavement, 25% woods. Didn't see any pitcher plants, but I did go past a herd of turkeys.

The GPS track is seriously screwed up. Looks like it didn't start recording until I was about halfway done, and even then it was all wonky until I was halfway down Barker Hill Rd. The last 3 km looks accurate. That's what I get for turning it on just before I start running. When I go flying, I turn it on before I even pack up my glider bags, so it has plenty of time to acquire satellites.

C • gps 1

Wanted to do something, but something different. Muggy evening, so I went over my options in my mind and decided to try a loop I hadn't done before. Out on the road to the bottom of Holman, then got onto the Lane trail from that end, and took it to Mystery Blazes, and did the Mulpus Brook section, but kept going along the brook until it came out on the main trail where the glaciers form. The last section (beyond where I usually turn right and leave the stream bank) was kind of thick with laurel, and the very last part featured a patch of poison ivy, so I don't see any need to go through there again. Not much exercise, but at least it was something. Distance is an estimate from a sketch on gmap-pedometer, which I think has had a recent facelift, though they don't seem to have added any obvious features of any interest to me.

Mystery Blazes loop, cool but very, very humid, and a lot of FDFs around (not biting much, but getting stuck in my hair a lot). Low energy, thought about adding a Mulpus loop, but the woods were thick and wet and slippery, so I was insufficiently motivated.