Lake Watrous, New Haven, LI Sound views

Lake Watrous
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis. From the cottage, I continued on past the radio tower and giant satellite dishes, skirted a couple of large houses, and finally hit Downs Rd, which is completely overrun with McMansions these days.

Instead of reversing course there, I walked out to Gaylord Mountain Rd, and then followed that south back to my car. I thought that I could use the road as part of a quick loop back to my car, and from there I could then head east on the Q Trail. But hiking Gaylord Mountain Rd back to my car took about 45 minutes, longer than expected.

The road is lightly trafficked and you can see some interesting things along the way - a couple of horse stables, and some lovely houses. I passed a woman in heels crossing the road to bring a bucket of grain and a block of hay to a couple of horses in a corral, which was a little amusing.

I did hike on up the east side of the Quinnipiac Trail to catch the view of Lake Watrous and Long Island Sound. I sat there enjoying the view for a little while, and then headed back to my car. It was a very enjoyable hike.

View of New Haven and LI Sound
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

Quinnipiac trail cottage

Abandoned cottage
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

Old walls at the abandoned cottage.

Abandoned cottage

Abandoned cottage
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

Today's hike: 2 h 25 min at a leisurely pace

I did part of the Mad Mare's Hill section of the Quinnipiac Trail today, starting in Bethany Gap. There's basically one parking spot there on Gaylord Mountain Rd/Westwoods Rd, and I grabbed it. From there, I hiked northwest to the summit of Mad Mare's Hill (not much of a view).

I stopped at the abandoned cottage off the trail, and took a look around. It's pretty neat. There's an old pipeline (for water?) that runs up here from down the hillside somewhere, and some picturesque old walls that are studded with round stones. The cottage sits on a ridge and might have had a nice view back in the day. I startled a small snake which slithered off into a crack in a wall.

Hot cacao

Hot cacao
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

This is the final product. I found that this cacao powder made a smoother paste than Rapunzel cocoa does when mixed with a little milk and sugar.

The flavor is interesting. There's that distinct acidity, but it's not nearly as strong as eating raw cacao beans. Also, there's a bit of a fine powdery texture (not gritty, though) to the drink, as if the grain of the powder is larger than for regular cocoa. It's interesting. I think I'll enjoy finishing off the package, but I don't think I'll be buying this on a regular basis. It's nice for a somewhat exotic change of pace.

Cacao

Cacao
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

The Navitas Cacao Powder was a new product that I hadn't seen before. It was undoubtedly the attractive packaging that provoked me to buy, I have to admit it. I've eaten raw cacao beans previously, and they're an acquired taste. To me, they're very acidic - a bit too close to stomach acid to enjoy. Plus this stuff is so much more expensive than the stuff I usually buy to make hot cocoa - Rapunzel Kokoa, which is also a pricey item at $6.50 per 7.1 oz.

Anyway, I decided to give it a go. Here's what the cacao powder looks like upon opening the bag: it's a lighter color than the Rapunzel cocoa powder. It has that strong acidic cacao smell along with a nice cocoa scent.

Luxury food purchases

Luxury food purchases
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

I had a bout of consumeritis at the health food store today. These are a few of my purchases: a pack of Navitas Cacao Powder (8 oz. for $15.35!!!), The Bridge Tofu ($2.19), and a box of Naturally India Simmer Sauce - which was a free sample! The simmer sauce motivated me to buy the tofu, so it was an evil free sample.

Adventures in car repair

A couple of weeks ago, one of my car headlights, a Wagner H6545, went out. I've been putting off taking care of it because I hate wasting time on things like this.

Last weekend I finally made it to Pep Boys. They had a replacement headlight (a Sylvania H4666 IIRC) for $21. When I went to the aisle to get one, I found that the two lights in stock had had their boxes opened. On one, the connectors in back were bent. Irritated, I decided not to buy.

Later in the week, I went to a nearby independent auto parts dealer, the type of place where you tell them the part you need, they look it up, and bring it to you from aisles and aisles of stuff in the back. Here, it was a GE H4666. Unit price: $9.29. List price: $17.94. Presumably the latter is what I'd be charged for the part if I had the repair done at my mechanic's. The first time I bought this light, years ago, I got it from a dealer for $35! I rubbed my hands in glee over the savings, even compared to Pep Boys.

Since it's forbidden to do car work in the parking lot of my apartment complex (raspberries to the management), I went to work this morning to do the job there. There are loads of tools at work, so I figured I'd grab something there if my screwdrivers didn't fit. When I arrived, I saw that one of my coworkers was at the office. In one sense that was good timing, it was one of the guys who does hardware work. In another way, it was bad timing because I deliberately wanted to do the work on Saturday with no one around.

When it turned out that the screws for the light were rusty and stuck, I asked said coworker if we had something to loosen the screws; he got me some WD-40 and instantly volunteered to help. I like doing little repairs like this, but I know from past experience that the headlights on my car can be a real pain, so I agreed. He got out his torque screwdrivers and did the whole job while I looked on. I appreciate his help, but it had the side effect of making me feel like a weak damsel-in-distress. Damn, I hate that!

How to raise a feminist

Over at Moderately Insane, sailorman wonders how he can raise his children to be feminists.

This is my reason number 336 not to have children: the fear that, despite my best efforts to program them to be what I want, they will turn into something horrifically (or maybe only slightly) disappointing, so much so that I wouldn't be able to love them. I mean, what if I raised an Ann Coulter or a Ted Bundy? I know I wouldn't be able to bear it.

Is it actually possible to program your kid to be a feminist? Or more nicely put, to cultivate feminism in him or her?

My sister-in-law recently sent out photos of my 7-year-old niece's birthday party. It was a party of about 15 girls; I didn't see a single boy in the photos. One of the major activities was to play at applying cosmetics to their faces.

So I'm flipping through the photos and my immediate, visceral reaction is "what is this sexist crap!!". I can't just look at the photos and see a bunch of happy kids playing. Instead my hair is standing on end, wondering just how my niece is being socially programmed. I can only hope that she'll rebel against it all in her teens.

But do experiences like that really have anything to do with how my niece feels about herself as a female person? Will she be less inclined towards feminism as a result? I have no idea. Something tells me it doesn't matter at all.

Donkey Skin

Last week I watched the movie Donkey Skin (Peau d’âne). A ring – une bague – plays a prominent role in the story. So here’s a question: why does “bague” mean “ring” in French but “baguette” means “stick of bread”? Are the two words related at all? Very strange. Much like the movie, which is a bit trippy.

See more progress on: learn french

Lamentation view

Another nice view of the Metacomet range, from the top of Lamentation Mountain.

View to southwest from Lamentation Mountain
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

Lamentation view

View to north from Lamentation Mountain
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

Silver Lake

Silver Lake
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

This is the view from Lamentation looking out to the west of where the USGS survey marker is located. That's Silver Lake down below. There's a nice panoramic ridge view when you reach the top of Lamentation.

USGS marker

USGS marker
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

The marker reads "U.S. COAST & GEODETIC SURVEY ... AND STATE ... ELEV... LAMENTATION ... FEET". Someone(s) has been chiseling at it - which is, ya know, illegal! - it's illegible in places. This would appear to mark the peak, but if you walk on a short bit, I think you come to the highest point on Lamentation.

Quarry

Quarry
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

This is a closer view of the quarry that I saw in the distance during yesterday's hike. It's the York Hill Trap Rock Quarry, run by L. Suzio (not Tilcon as I guessed yesterday).

Cosmopolitan Club

Cosmopolitan Club
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

There are numerous engravings in the flat trap rock at the top of Chauncey Peak along the blue trail. I guess it makes a very tempting surface for carving.

This one says something like "Cosmopolitan Club June 20 1875". I wonder if this was really carved in 1875. There are other engravings (somewhat illegible so I'm guessing here) - "Frank Studinst 1935", "Reuben Roo 1800", "Joseph Hill 1812". I wish I knew the history of these engravings.

View of Mt Higby from Chauncey Peak

View of Mt Higby from Chauncey Peak
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

This is another view from Chauncey Peak, looking out to the southeast. That's where I hiked yesterday, Mt Higby. The power lines that were in some of my photos yesterday are clearly visible.

View of Giuffrida parking lot from Chauncey Peak

View of Giuffrida parking lot from Chauncey Peak
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

Today's hike: 2 h 50 min | 4.2 mi | 1.5 mph

I did the section of the Mattabesett from Giuffrida Park to Lamentation Mountain. I've done this section once before, in September of 2004. I think the hike up to Chauncey Peak from the dam at Giuffrida is the toughest that I've experienced in Connecticut to date. Today, it took me about 20 minutes. It's very steep and covered in small, loose rocks that make the footing treacherous.

This is a photo taken from Chauncey Peak. In the lower left corner you can see the parking lot at Giuffrida Park. The reservoir is to the right, but obscured by trees. In the upper right corner, off in the distance, you can see the Metacomet range. If you zoom in close you can even see Castle Craig.

Steep drop

Steep drop
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

The trail is not especially difficult or dangerous, but it does take you past some pretty steep drops, right off the trail, like this one. Last week, a girl died after falling from this trail: "she fell some 200 feet off a large cliff in Middlefield. She and her friends had just hiked the trails of Mount Higby... Rescue workers had a tough time trying to reach the 17-year-old. A state police helicopter was used to help find her but rescue workers had to carry her out by foot."

Be careful out there, people!

The trail

The trail
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

This is a view of the trail on the way back.

I made it all the way down to Guida's (at the intersection of Routes 66 and 147) at the south end.

There's a new parking area off of Route 66, so you don't have to park at Guida's anymore if you start at the south end. The parking area is about half a mile west of Guida's on the north side of Route 66. There's a red-blue blazed side trail that connects the parking area with the blue trail here. I was astounded because the parking area is paved and even has painted parking lines! There are about eight spaces, and one of them is a handicapped spot, which struck me as kind of ironic.

When I got to Guida's, I really really wanted to get one of their hotdogs. But it looked horribly crowded, so I just headed back.

I should mention that you can get a couple of glimpses of Black Pond to the south of the trail, between the new parking lot and the ascent to Mt Higby. Views of the pond are largely obscured by trees.

Natural bridge

Natural bridge
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

I was up on the ridge, checking out this natural bridge from the cliffside, when a large dark snake slithered into a crack in the rocks near my feet. It gave me quite a shock! You don't want a surprise like that when you're standing at the edge of a cliff!

Quarry

Quarry
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

When you get to the ridge there's a pretty nice panoramic view for a nice length of the hike. First thing you see is a large quarry operation. I want to take a guess and say that it's run by Tilcon, but I'm not sure. [Edit: On Sunday, I discovered that the quarry is not owned by Tilcon, but by L. Suzio.]

View of Route 91 from the trail

View of Route 91 from the trail
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

After about 2 miles of hiking, the trail begins to rise as you approach Mt Higby. The trail turns into a ridge walk that follows Route 91. You know you're approaching it when you hear the rather loud traffic noise.

One thing that's nice about this section is that the trail is level to start with, whether you approach it from Guida's at the south end or Country Club Rd from the north. This gives you a chance to warm up before doing any climbs. The climbs are not very steep or difficult, either.

Blue and white striped tape

Blue and white striped tape
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

After about 5 minutes' hike into the woods, I came to a sign that said the trail was marked with blue-and-white striped tape from there until the road, back the way I came. That would explain the lack of blue blazes! It would be helpful if they posted this sign at the start of the trail, too! Or not; there were only a few taped trees, anyway.

The first two miles of trail meander as if they were blazed by a drunken or crazed person. There's a lot of blowdown, and the trail seems to be all broken up. You have to be careful not to lose the trail since there are dirt roads that criss-cross the area. I passed some off-road bikes and ATVs in this area on the way out. Since I'm paranoid, I melted into the woods when I heard them coming.

Keep Out

Keep Out
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

Once you enter the woods, it's confusing unless you know where to go - no blazes in sight, aside from the first ones marking the turn-off. I just walked up the woods road, and hoped I'd eventually find blazes. I passed a couple of "Keep Out" signs. Very friendly! Beyond the signs you could see old tires scattered about in the woods.

Country Club Rd

Country Club Rd
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

Today's hike: 4 h 25 min | 8.6 mi | 2 mph.

I did the Mount Higby section of the Mattabesett. Lotta people out there today. Nice weather: cool, breezy, sunny.

I've done this section before. This time I hiked it in the opposite direction, going south. I took Rte 91 to exit 20, turned right onto Country Club Rd, and then zagged an immediate left onto an unmarked road. That is "Miner Rd" according to the map, but there was no sign - well, aside from the "Public Golf Course" sign. Almost immediately you get to the dirt shoulder where you can park - lots of trees for all-day shade, very nice!

From the dirt parking area, you walk about 5 minutes going east along Country Club Rd to get to the turn-off going south into the woods. It's not a bad walk: speed limit is 25 mph and there's a grassy shoulder the entire way. The turn-off is a little difficult to recognize. It's almost opposite house number 666 (really!).

This photo gives you an idea of the walk along Country Club Rd. No danger.

Pistapaug Mountain

Paug and Trimountain
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

I did a 2-hour hike on the Paug and Trimountain section (mostly Pistapaug Mountain) of the Mattabesett today; about 5 miles round-trip, starting from Rt 17.

Nice and sunny, hot but bearable.

This view is of Pistapaug Pond. It's the first view you get of the pond, coming up off Rt 17; about 20 minutes in.

A day of culture

Chihuly blue floats
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

I visited MoMA this morning (actually, Thursday morning...) for the Dada exhibit, and the Chihuly exhibit at the New York Botanical Garden this evening (complete with Jazz ensemble).

I highly recommend Terrace 5 at MoMA for lunch, especially if there's room to dine outside, overlooking the outdoor sculpture garden. Fantastic service, mouth-watering food (in particular, the chilled cucumber soup). I visited MoMA with two wheelchair-users, and all of the staff that we encountered were notably accomodating, friendly, and gracious.

Delightful day!

The Birthday Cupcake is sacrificed

Birthday cupcake, part II
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

This photo shows how many matches it took to get that candle going... It also depicts the luscious innards of a Hostess cupcake, in the midst of fulfilling its sacrificial destiny. Although my palate has become fairly sophisticated, I still find the Hostess cupcake to be a delicious treat, if taken only once a year. Let that be a warning to parents about what to feed their kids. You never know what they'll fixate on.

The only thing missing here is the Birthday Latte. But that's more a tradition for the Birthday Breakfast, and this year it was an evening celebration.

Happy Birthday to you...

Birthday cupcake
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

The weather was perfect, except for the slight breeze that kept kicking up just when I'd strike a match to light the candle. With the heat we've been having, I shouldn't have been cursing a breeze, but it made it devilishly hard to keep the candle lit. Lit, of course, the candle must remain, for the entirety of the performance of the "Happy Birthday" song - a crucial part of the birthday ritual.

Eventually I gave up and moved the picnic to a more sheltered area nearby, which lacked the nice view. Even there, I had difficulty keeping the candle lit. But it finally worked - as evidenced in this photo.

Hezekiah's Knob

Hezekiah's Knob
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

Today being July 31, I hiked up to a "high place" for the traditional celebration of the birthday of a good friend, in absentia. I picked Hezekiah's Knob, off the blue trail at Sleeping Giant. This photo gives you a cupcake's-eye view of some industrial area off to the south - if you stand up, you get more of a panorama. Alas, the cupcake does not have the good fortune to be able to stand up; sitting is pretty much all it does. I did hold it up to give it a good look at the scenery. That was the least I could do, as it was soon to meet its demise.

Macedonia

Macedonia view
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

On Sunday, I hiked the Macedonia Ridge Trail, which is a loop 6.7 miles in length. It took me 3.5 hours to complete it, a pace much slower than yesterday's.

I found this trail fairly difficult. I was carrying a backpack, which weighs more than my daypack, which didn't help. The heat and humidity were as oppressive as on Saturday, with rare cool breezes. And maybe I was a little worn out from my Tunxis hike.

This is the view from Cobble Mountain, which is about two miles from where I started my hike. Supposedly those are the Catskills out there, somewhere.

The trail up to Cobble Mountain was so steep and rocky that I had to use my hands to crawl up parts of it. At one point there was a slab of rock where I had to pull myself up using just my arms. Ordinarily I enjoy this kind of thing, but not when wearing a pack. At some point I was thinking about how they'd find my body at the foot of the cliff, and what a shame that my organs would all be far too rotten for donation by the time they'd found my body.

Anyway, I made it up alive, but it kind of wiped me out. That was at mile two, and I still had almost five miles to go, with many more ascents! I was a zombie by the time I got back to the car - just putting one foot in front of the other. I could really use a break from this brutal weather we've been having.

Toadstools

Toadstools
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

These large fungal specimens had sprouted in the yard of the home where I stayed this weekend. I placed a US quarter on the middle one for scale; it easily handled the weight.

They looked edible, potentially yummy, but I bet I'd have been vomiting up my guts if I'd tried one...

Ratlum Brook camp area

Swimming hole
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

This is a great spot, at 2.9 miles in. I should have brought my swimsuit. As it was, the spot had a nice breeze and was remarkably free of bugs. I stopped to eat lunch here - there's even a picnic bench.

According to the Walk Book, this Northern Region of the Tunxis Trail is "one of the steepest, most remote, and least used of the system." I won't vouch for steepest or most remote, but it sure was quiet. I didn't see a soul the entire hike.

Little Brook register

Tunxis brook register
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

This is the first page of the Little Brook register on the Tunxis. The first entry - a mixture of the mundane with the tragic - is from September 11, 2001.

Tunxis

Tunxis
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

This weekend I went hiking in the northwest corner of CT. On Saturday, I hiked part of the Tunxis.

My plan was to do a long hike, but I got started late, and wound up at the trail around noon. It was hot and humid, really beastly - sweat was running down my face and body, which meant that it was not doing a very good job of evaporative cooling. I decided to chuck my plans and leave the trail early.

I wound up doing 6.2 miles, if I believe the Connecticut Walk Book. But that just doesn't seem right, because I timed it at 2 h 10 minutes, which would have me doing almost 3 mph, an unusually fast pace (the trail was not easy). It's a mystery.

A review of "Girl in Landscape: A Novel (Vintage Contemporaries)"

Girl in Landscape: A Novel (Vintage Contemporaries)

by Jonathan Lethem

I became a fan of Jonathan Lethem after I read his powerful and disturbing short story, “The Happy Man”, in the February 1991 issue of Isaac Asimov’s Science Fiction Magazine. From then on, I’ve kept an eye out for his work. He’s never done anything quite so good as “The Happy Man”, IMHO, but he’s an excellent writer, well worth reading.

"Girl in Landscape" is an absorbing novel; every time I picked it up, I got sucked right in. With uncomplicated prose, Lethem evokes strong, disturbing moods – alienation chief among them. He easily delves into the mind of his protagonist and puts everything there on view, in a very interesting way.

My only disappointment with this novel, alas, is the end. This is not to say that the ending was bad; it’s just that I was hoping for something really really good, and this was just ok. Still, this is well worth the read – a fascinating work.

I compare this novel favorably to Donna Tartt’s "The Little Friend", a good novel whose ending also disappointed me just a bit. Similar characters, similar moods, feelings of disconnection and alienation in a bizarre environment, etc.

See more about Girl in Landscape: A Novel (Vintage Contemporaries)

Route 68

Route 68
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

A word about the Mattabesett where it intersects Route 68: the trail is poorly blazed here, so it is hard to see where the trail turns off to the north, unless you are constantly on the lookout. I didn't see any blazes marking this turn.

This is a view looking down at the parking area in the distance, as you come out of the trail onto Route 68. It's about a 3-minute walk along Route 68 between the parking area and the turn-off going north into the woods. Or, more accurately, a 3-minute dance with death. The shoulder along Route 68 becomes frighteningly narrow in places - less than a foot wide - and traffic travels at about 50 mph along the road. When you're walking in the direction of traffic, it's particularly nasty. This is one of the reasons that I rarely hike here.

If you leave the parking area, and, after walking for a few minutes you come to the beginning of a guard rail, you've come too far. Keep an eye out for the turn-off to your right soon after you've passed the very narrow part of the shoulder.

Helianthus

Helianthus
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

There was a big field of these tall yellow flowers just in front of the ridge. I think these are Helianthus divaricatus (woodland sunflower). I'm going by the shape of the leaf as well as the flower itself. There are many plants that have a similar flower, so it's hard to tell.

Black raspberries

Black raspberries
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

When I took this trail on August 7 of last year, the black raspberries were at their peak. It's only July 23, and I'd say they are a little beyond their peak now. Still some very tasty ones to be had, though!

I am pretty sure these are black raspberries; I saw just a few that had turned black. I tried them but they were not as tasty as when they're red - kind of seedy and more sour when black. I wonder if the birds like them that way.

McMansions

McMansions
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

I posted a photo of this view last August. There is new development work going on this year - notice the large swath of fresh earth where the forest has been cut back in the upper right corner of the photo. Will the trees all be gone some day?

Beseck Ridge section

I did a four-hour hike today, about eight miles. This is the same trail that I did on August 7, 2005, only I didn't complete the entire section.

It was a cloudy day, and a smattering of rain came down on my way to the trail, but otherwise the rain held off. It turned out to be a good day for a hike, finally - a nice cool breeze was blowing most of the time.

This section of the Mattabesett must just be unusually buggy. Similar to last August, I was plagued by deer flies, picked up a few ticks (lots of tall grass), and blundered through several micrathena webs (which is more or less a room 101 experience).

The Large, the Small, and the Human Mind

I finished "The Large, the Small and the Human Mind", by Roger Penrose. This has been on my shelf for quite some time because it was rather daunting, and I wanted to pay it proper attention.

It is not an easy read, but it’s worth the effort. It has refreshed my interest in physics.

See more progress on: Read one book a month

Raspberries... or maybe black raspberries

Raspberries
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

These berries have neither the taste nor the texture of domesticated red raspberries, so they're either quite different in the wild, or they are in fact not red raspberries. They could be black raspberries, although at the moment none of them are black. I suppose they might eventually become black, if anyone could resist eating them from the vine (excuse me, I guess I should say "cane") before they got to that state.

These were growing right alongside the trail. Lovely and delicious. I guess I got more than my share of anthocyanins today, since I've eaten cherries and red grapes in addition to these berries.

Looks like rain

Looks like rain
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

And it did, about 40 minutes into my hike. A steady downpour. I popped on my Helly Hansen rain jacket and did an immediate about-face. After about two minutes, the rain stopped. But I headed back anyway. The rain continued on and off... I don't mind hiking in the rain, but I was not in the mood for it today. Real crappy weather we've been having this summer!

Millers Pond

Millers Pond
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

This section of the Mattabesett winds around Millers Pond in Millers Pond State Park. If I had known this pond was open to swimming, I might have brought my swimsuit with me. The heat was oppressive, and as it was, I was tempted to jump in with my clothes on.

It was pretty crowded, and the trail does wind its way through some of the bathing areas. Not the most peaceful wilderness experience!

Directly after taking this photo, my camera's battery, which lacked my stamina, was "exhausted."

View from Bear Rock

View from Bear Rock
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

This is the view from atop Bear Rock. It was pretty hazy and blistering hot. Not the best day for hiking, but you have to take what you can get.

You can barely see the church spire in Durham, to the left a bit, down near the tree line.

Bear Rock

Bear Rock
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

I hiked the Mattabesett section from Higganum Rd to Wiese Albert Road today: a 6-mile round trip in 2 hours and 35 minutes for a pace of 2.3 mph. Not bad, for a hot and humid day. I was not especially strong; rather, this section of the trail is not especially challenging. It's mostly flat. Any gradients are rarely steep, and when they are, they're short.

I should mention that there is good parking on the shoulder of Higganum Rd near the trail crossing, although the trail map doesn't mention it. I see no advantage to parking on Harvey Rd at the official parking area.

This photo is taken from beneath Bear Rock, as it overhangs the trail. The rock does look a bit like a bear's head in profile. Bear Rock is one of the few steep crawls along the trail. You can avoid the crawl via a bypass trail, if desired.

Looking at more charities

I get lots of solicitations in the mail from charitable organizations. Usually I toss them, but recently I got something from FINCA, a micro-lending non-profit, that caught my eye. After reading their material, I put them on my list for further investigation for my end-of-the-year giving. I'm also thinking about National Resources Defense Council. Both get a reasonable score from Charity Navigator.

I finally signed up with Charity Navigator, because you can maintain your personalized list of charities there. It does concern me that Charity Navigator does not evaluate itself, but they give a plausible reason for not doing so. I am curious about how much the president, Trent Stamp, pays himself. When I review a charity my eye automatically goes to the director's compensation. I get irked when I see a non-profit director being paid more than me. I then have to weigh my level of irked-ness with my fondness for the charity.

I do read Trent Stamp's blog on occasion. His rants can be quite amusing! Hard not to like and trust the guy.

Words that begin with "ch"

I took a short hike today, and inexplicably became obsessed with the number of French words that I know which start with "ch". These are the ones I could come up with off the top of my head:

• chacun - each
  
• chaise - seat/chair
  
• chalet - chalet
  
• champagne - champagne
  
• champignon - mushroom
  
• chance - luck
  
• chanteuse - singer (f)
  
• chapitre - chapter
  
• chaque - each
  
• charme - charm
  
• chauffeur - driver
  
• chaussure - shoe
  
• chemin - road (e.g. chemin de fer - railroad)
  
• cheval - horse
  
• chèvre - goat
  
• chien - dog
  
• chiffre - cipher (as in code) or number
  
• choc - shock
  
• chocolat - chocolate/hot chocolate
  
• chômeur - unemployed
  
• chose - thing (or something)

In running through my French dictionary, I noticed a few that I didn't think of - chambre (room); change (exchange); chanson (song); chapeau (hat); chapelle (chapel); chat (cat); etc etc. There are about 400 words beginning with "ch" in my dictionary, and I know perhaps 5% of them. Room for improvement. I wonder if this carries over to the entire dictionary. It seems unlikely that I know 5% of all those words.

OK Computer

My Sony Vaio died two weeks ago. It was a slow process, and I was able to try some fixes (in no particular order):

• fdisk /mbr
  
• scandisk
  
• Maxtor PowerMax utility, which consistently said everything was fine
  
• replacing the CPU fan
  
• Running Norton Antivirus on the hard drive, from a CD-ROM

Nothing worked; rather, the problems got progressively worse until the hard drive finally joined the choir invisible. I could have bought a new hard drive to see if that was truly the only problem, but I decided to spring for a new PC. I bought the Vaio six years ago; it was running Win 98, and it was getting a bit dated, although it generally served my purposes well for home use until it died. I may still try to replace the hard drive and see if it can be revived.

I got my new machine, a Dell, on Friday. It's OK. I'm slowly getting my old software installed: Firefox, AT&T Worldnet software, MS Office, MS Money...

The new machine came with a get-six-months-free offer from Earthlink, so I decided to try it. It kind of sucks - their toolbar seems to be screwing with Microsoft's Data Execution Protection (DEP), which causes the system to hang unpredictably. I think it's their toolbar, I'm not completely sure; DEP seems to be messing with a number of applications (which makes me miss Win 98). In comparison, my old AT&T Worldnet service seems to be performing without a glitch, so I'll probably drop Earthlink soon.

I'm incredibly lucky in having backed up most of the stuff on my old hard drive just one week before it died! Am I psychic?! As I'm starting afresh, I've realized that I missed a few things: my browser bookmarks and history, and stuff I'd been keeping on the Desktop. I wonder what else got left behind?

Leaf springs

Auto wreck
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

I love this wreck. Rarely do you get to see a car's innards so clearly. Check out these leaf springs - cool!

Car wreck

Car wreck
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

I didn't notice when the trail took a sharp right turn, and kept walking along an unmarked trail, which led up to this old auto wreck, where several trails intersected. It was here that I noticed the lack of blue blazes; fortunately not too far from the turn off. This is getting close to Higganum Road.

Relocation

Relocation
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

This notice is posted just below Coginchaug Cave. "From this point, the Mattabesett Trail has been relocated to circumvent a new housing subdivision. From here, the trail turns generally south, then east, reaching a high point at a state forest boundary in 1/2 mile. From there the trail continues in an easterly direction, and then more northerly, rejoining the old trail in another 1/2 mile. From here, it is 1.6 miles to Higganum Road. The relocation adds 0.8 mile. Connecticut Forest and Park Association 1/20/05".

I'm happy to get the extra miles added to the trail, but I have to wonder if the total woodland area has decreased in this area due to the new subdivision.

I took the side trail up to Pine Knob Overlook, which used to be where the main trail went. I haven't been on this section of the trail since the relocation occurred; I think I was up here last in 2004.

Coginchaug Cave

Coginchaug Cave
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

Parking notice

Parking notice
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

This is a closeup of the sign near the trailhead directly off Old Blue Hills Rd. The top sign says "NOTICE TO HIKERS Please park on grassy area - Do not park at curb on street. Thank you - C.F.P.A". So yeah, you can park here.

Trailhead

Trailhead
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

Here is the entrance of the Mattabesett Trail into the woods off Old Blue Hills Rd. Two signs mark it. That's my little daypack beside the curb.

Misleading

Misleading
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

I hiked the Coginchaug Cave section of the Mattabesett Trail today - about 6 miles in 3 hours.

I parked on Pisgah Rd, near the intersection of Sand Hill Rd and Rte 79. I crossed Rte 79 on foot, following Old Blue Hills Rd to this point, where the blue blazes indicate a right turn. I was doubtful, but I followed the road to the right. That was a mistake; I couldn't see any more blue blazes, and the road quickly led to a cell tower. I came back down and found the real trailhead to the right, a few hundred feet beyond this turnoff.

First tick bite of the season

I went for a hike yesterday, covering 9.5 miles in 4 hours and 10 minutes, for a pace of about 2.3 mph. This is pretty good, considering that the weather was beastly: hot and humid. I did the Mattabesett-Lone Pine Trail loop. When I got home I discovered a deer tick attached to the back of my left calf. It was easily removed, probably got it before Lyme infection could occur.