13-15 August 2012 Camel's Hump, VT
Cascade near the old shelter site
I crossed over Camel's Hump in 2009 as part of my Long Trail hike. The views from its dramatic summit were said to be outstanding. My views were only in my imagination as the summit was engulfed in a thick cloud during my visit. I wanted a second go at the Hump to get the views I'd been denied in '09. I got in touch with Rough, of Rough and Tumble, and we planned an easy-paced two-night trip. Just before I arrived at Rough and Tumble's summer home I stopped at a local natural food store to pick up a sandwich for the afternoon. After a few logistics at the condo, Tumble dropped us off at the northern trailhead on the Duxbury Road. We made our way up the trail at a fairly relaxed pace. Rough knew about an abandoned side trail to the site of an old shelter. We went to check it out. The shelter is long gone but it's obvious people still camp here. The site is perched on the edge of a lovely, mossy stream and a small cascade. It was a worthwhile detour. Continuing on, we wound our way up and around the banister. This was a favourite section of Tumble's before erosion sculpted the tread into a rooty, slidey adventure. Still, it was an impressive bit of trail that traversed the base of a steep ledge on one side, and lovely, open hemlock woods on the other. Soon after, we arrived at Duxbury Window. Here a bench is perched with a view to the north. The spot was opened further by a substantial blowdown. The root mass nearly jettisoned the bench. We sat here and took in the view while I thoroughly enjoyed my sandwich. I had only meant to eat half of it here but it was so good, well, I couldn't wait to eat the second half. When I finished we put our packs back on - mine needed the hip belt to be let out a bit - and continued on. We crossed a few open ledges with hazy views ahead and to the west. By late afternoon we came to the Bamforth Ridge side trail. It's longish for a shelter trail, but it only took ten minutes or so. We arrived to find a group of UVM students who were on a short training trip. They will be leading orientation trips in a week or so. Half of the group arranged a tarp on a large tent platform and half stayed in the shelter. Rough found a place to hang his hammock but I found no suitable spot to pitch my tarp so I set up in the lean-to. Still full from my sandwich, I had only a small snack before settling in for the night.
Early morning view to the Hump
The forecast was for rather unstable weather today so we sought to hit the trail early, hoping to make the summit before any afternoon storms. The morning, like the night, was clammy. It seemed like the sort of day that would breed thunder weather. I remembered from '09 that the ridge we had to ascend today was long and had a lot of ups and downs. It wouldn't be a straight shot to the summit. It did, as a payback for its challenges, feature plenty of open ledges with views in many directions, including Camel's Hump. In between these ledges were descents into and climbs out of small valleys. The valleys were modest but sometimes the trail they held could get a little interesting. When I descended this in '09 it was wet and slick, making a long and tedious day even more so. Today, climbing and dry, should be a little easier, right? Up and over ledges we went, each one showed a slightly closer view of Camel's Hump. When we arrived at the Alpine Trail junction we knew we were getting close. A short while later we arrived at the clearing where a few other trails join the party, and knew we had only a very short distance to go. From this point there were many day hikers on their way to or down from the summit. When we arrived we found a few small parties enjoying the views as well as a caretaker on duty. We enjoyed chatting with him and he was kind enough to take our picture.
Wing of the B-24 Liberator bomber
The views from the summit were hazy, making the Adirondacks and the Whites difficult to pick out. Nevertheless, the visibility was infinitely better than on my previous visit. I snacked heavily as I took it all in and made the rounds with my camera. To the west, Lake Champlain was evident, as was the Burlington air strip. To the north lay Mt. Mansfield and to the east was some part of the Whites, though whether it was the northern Presidentials or the Pilot-Pliny range is unknown to me. To the south were Burnt Rock Mountain (another one whose lovely views were shrouded by clouds when I passed over) and the Monroe Skyline. We knew our descent would be steep, rough, and fussy so we didn't linger overlong on the summit. We began to pick our way down, carefully, over ledge and boulder. When we came to the first trail junction, Rough told me that the remnants of a 1944 B-24 Liberator bomber crash were just a few minutes down to the east, and suggested I go check it out while he waited. So off I went. It was only about ten minutes to the obvious and short herd path. There, a large wing rested on the ground. That was all I could find, although I didn't go looking very far. Below is a download about the crash, researched by Brian Lindner.
View back to the Hump
Our progress down the ridge to Montclair Glen Lodge was very slow but the weather was holding so we were unconcerned. At last we arrived at the junction with the Forest City trail, just a short distance before our camp for the night. Two men were waiting there for an ultrarunner who was trying to set the record for a supported Long Trail hike. The men were part of a team who were making a documentary of the attempt. Nikki Kimball, the runner was expected some time this afternoon. We chatted with them a bit before making our way to Montclair Glen which seemed to be overrun with an orientation group from Cornell. Some of them would be in a tarp, others would be in the cabin, but right now all were sprawled all over in front of and inside the lodge. After some effort, Rough found a place for his hammock and I found a nice spot for my tarp. As we snacked and ate supper a woman arrived and set up an aid station. She was also awaiting the runner and was part of the support team. We learned more about Nikki, including her age (41) which really impressed some of the young men in the Cornell group. It interested me that they were apparently unfazed by the fact that a woman was going for an athletic record, only her age seemed to get their attention. As other hikers arrived, word spread and we were all eagerly awaiting the arrival of Nikki Kimball. At around 18:30 we heard her approaching; she was chatting animatedly with her pacers. It was really interesting to watch the aid stop. It was kind of like watching a pit stop in an auto race, except it was a woman instead of a car. Nikki sat on the rock and someone put food in her hands while the support woman stripped off Nikki's shoes and socks, wiped her feet down with baby wipes, tended her blisters, and put on dry socks and shoes. Nikki's water was refilled and she was offered a change of clothes, which she declined. While all this was done to Nikki, she concentrated on putting food in her system, answering questions in between bites. Once the aid and food were completed, Nikki was on her feet and on her way. The whole stop took about five minutes. A few days later I learned that, while Nikki did not set a new overall record, she shattered the previous women's record.
Despite the crowd at the Lodge it was a quiet night, interrupted only but the sounds of a few scurrying Cornell kids who decided sleeping out under the stars wasn't so awesome when it starts to rain. Tumble would be picking us up in the morning so we set out early and followed the Forest City trail down. It was a blissfully easy descent and we made excellent time. Tumble met us with orange ginger cookies, still warm from the oven, and cold gatorade. At the condo, a shower and a delicious lunch were waiting, and we traded stories around the table. Eventually, it was time to head home and I was well fortified for the long ride.
