Gearing up

Current Elevation: 4 ft above sea level

Location: Home

Currently, I am sitting in my living room pouring over a USGS Quad for the Berlin area of New York, Massachusetts and Vermont. Throughout my travels over the recent weeks, I spotted this mountain while I was driving. I had seen the mountain before and I finally decided to find it on a map, and assess the possibility of climbing it next time I get a free moment and a nice day. The former and the latter don't happen very often, mainly because this summer has been a nightmare for farmers and the like from my hometown as a result of excessive rainfall.

I checked the weather a few days ago and decided that Tuesday was going to be a swell day to hit the mountain. My preliminary finds on Google Earth indicated to me that I was looking at Berlin Mountain, Which sits against the easternmost point of New York and pushes into Massachusetts. With that said, I needed to procure a trail map of the Taconic Mountain Range, where Berlin Mountain was situated; and learn a bit more about what this mountain was all about, and if it was even worth my time.

I took a look online and read a few things about the mountain and decided to go for it. I thought it was interesting that I never knew it was there; and that it was the highest place in the county which I grew up in. It's not really bragging fuel for conversations with the bigger climbers, but it's a cool thing to slip into conversation telling people that I was the highest object in the county for a brief moment. Playtime is over, It was time to recruit potential companions for the trip, as it would be really boring just doing it myself. I asked everyone, and I got to usual answers: "I'm working," "I don't wake up that early," and "You have to be kidding me, I would much rather go up on a {insert anything other than "on foot" here}." My only taker was my good friend, Ben. He will do just about anything at any time, and anywhere; as long as you give him notice a few days before hand.

Today I took a quick ride over to my local shopping plaza, where my local Eastern Mountain Sports is located. I usually get my maps from there because a lot of those guys love mountain climbing, and know of some neat places for cool day-hikes. I figured while I was there I would see if they knew about this mountain I was looking to traverse.

All said and done, They did not have what I was looking for in that region of the Taconic Range, but instead suggested I try the book store further down the sidewalk and ask for a USGS Quad for that area. The Quad would be not as detailed as a trail map, but has a lot of landmarks and such on the map, which would be a big help for navigation. So, I thanked the man who had helped me and made my way to the book store. Once there, they had exactly what I was looking for. (Thanks E.M.S., you guys were very helpful in pointing me in the right direction!).

With map in hand, I went about my other tasks I had to accomplish for the day, then went home to plan out the hike which is to take place tomorrow morning at 8 AM Sharp.

I was rather disappointed with the lack of trail detail on the USGS Quad, but it's more of a topographic/feature map. I just needed something to give me an idea of where I am in relation to the summit. There was, however, 1 or 2 trails marked on the quad that go to the summit (not with any great detail), so I think this is a good place to start.

So now we wait. The clock is ticking and I have to pack the rest of my stuff so I can just get in my car, pick up Ben and go when I wake up tomorrow. Hopefully tomorrow will work out well and that it won't be a complete disaster.

-Rick