Saturday, December 30, 2006
Since we were heading down to visit my folks, I decided to take Ann for a hike in the Berkshires. Originally I had planned to start with checking out the glacial erratics at Balance Rock State Park (part of Pittsfield State Forest) but we got off to a late start and had to skip that part of the trip. Instead, we headed straight to Stockbridge for a visit to the Ice Glen and Laura's Tower, two places I'd never been before (despite spending six years working 15 minutes away in Great Barrington.)
The drive over to the Berkshires always makes me homesick for the mountains - I loved living there. Unfortunately, it would be a killer commute to Albany (I know that all too well, seeing that I commuted from there for three months before I finally found a place here!) Drove through West Stockbridge and into Stockbridge, and parked in the small parking lot next to the Housatonic River. Snow was falling in very light flurries - enough to barely coat the ground and make it very pretty walking through the woods.
The bridge across the river was cool - a suspension bridge with stone arches at either end. After crossing the bridge we hiked uphill into the woods, and at the trail junction headed toward Ice Glen. What a cool place! Huge boulders in a ravine bordered by huge trees... apparently it stays dark and cool enough that some of the caves retain ice well into the late spring and summer. The glen was a favorite walking and picnicing spot in the 1800's and 1900's; supposedly, Herman Melville and Nathaniel Hawthorn first met at a picnic in Ice Glen. We didn't get very far in - the trail involved a lot of scrambling over boulders, and Ann had worn her good coat. But I saw enough to know that I definitely want to go back again!
From there we headed back to the trail junction and began the uphill trek to Laura's Tower. The trail was clear and switchbacked, so it wasn't terribly steep, but it was a definite workout, and Ann wasn't too happy - she hasn't done much uphill hiking lately. About half a mile and 500 vertical feet later, we reached the top, which has a viewing tower. Apparently the cleared hilltop is known as Laura's Rest because Laura Belden, niece of David Dudley Field (who donated the land to the town) used to retreat there for solace after the deaths of her husband and children. The tower is about 25 feet high, with fairly steep and quite narrow steps. We made our way to the top and enjoyed the views of the surrounding countryside. Then came the trip back down the steps - I ended up scooting down partially on my backside a step at a time, slow but safe going! Ann was quite amused - she knows I dislike heights.
I initially thought the trek back down the hill will be much easier than the trip up, but such was not to be... early on the muscles in Ann's leg cramped up, and she ended up limping painfully to the bottom... even more so after she turned an ankle about halfway down! So she was not a happy camper.
Still, it is a beautiful spot, and one I definitely plan to visit again. Special thanks to the Laurel Hill Association which oversees the park and to Dunn & Delaney's Trails with Tales (2006) for both directions to the park and much of the background info I've included here. (Barbara Delaney also wrote an excellent article about hiking to these two spots in the December 2006 issue of Adirondack Sports & Fitness - that's what gave me the idea to go there in the first place!)
JMH
