The following is a continuation from the previous post.
[Click on the photos to enlarge them]
Although the Greeley Ponds Trail is closed, I have little choice but to descend this way, on the established routes, rather than returning to the woods and bushwhacking for the brook, as there would most likely be a friendly mutiny on the bounteous Goodrich Rock; and so, as I skip down the worn path of the Goodrich Rock Trail, feeling a unique sense of pedestrian mastery, as the walking on a trail is so much easier than tramping through the untrodden woodlands, I am suddenly relaxed, as the anxiety and mystery of the adventure has mercifully left the scene.
We weave through the Davis Boulders with great aplomb, and are doing fine, very cheery, until Ralph reminds us that for all who are not wearing Crocs, we still have some bushwhacking to do. I confirm that, as far as I know, Greeley Ponds Trail is still full of water. Running water, because the Mad River has been diverted by a giant log jam, and until that gets dismantled, the trail will remain a "branch" of the river itself.
And sure enough, that is what it is, almost two months after Hurricane Irene. There are three areas where the river has been diverted, flooding the trail, but one of them crosses the trail and then weaves back and forth across it a few more times, causing havoc for both the trail and the hikers.
...And as the hike comes to a close, we feel a mixture of relief, pride and fatigue, as the bushwhack was typical: every few feet or so there is a route-finding decision, because no tramp is ever exactly the same, and there was effort and perseverance and a little anxiety, laughter, conversation, beauty and peace, and we did it. And on the conclusion of our epic excursion, we are amazed at the power of nature as we witness the condition of the Greeley Ponds Trail, crossing the rivulets and thrashing through the trailside hobble bush. Another adventure complete.
Look for our newsletter coming out soon which will have the latest on the the recovery of the Greeley Ponds Trail.
