River of Gold, Mill River, Sleeping Giant State Park, Hamden, Connecticut. October 25, 2024, 11:22 AM. #hiking #autumn #forest #river

🧵1/6 June 12, 1983: Before 6:30, as the first faint blue twilight tinged the blackness, I was on my way. The woods were at their prettiest in those fleeting moments before sunrise; I promised myself that I would try to get early starts more often. #backpacking #AppalachianTrail

Beaver pond sunset. Marino Pond, Plymouth, Connecticut. June 19,2020, 8:37 PM. #sunset #hiking #forest #lake

October sky at the reservoir. New Britain Reservoir, Wolcott, Connecticut. October 12, 2019, 4:17 PM. #hiking #autumn #forest #lake

🧵1/6 July 3, 1983: My final twelve miles today were in Shenandoah. The trail inside the park was well-graded and almost completely cleared of overgrowth. I hiked through dignified old forests of stately trees. #backpacking #hiking #AppalachianTrail

Gray April day in the pines, Scoville Reservoir, Wolcott, Connecticut. April 27, 2020, 5:13 PM. #hiking #forest #fog #footbridge

Hoodoos in the evening. Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah. April 1984. #hiking #Southwest #canyon #rocks

🧵1/7 May 13, 1983: Heading north from Springer Mountain, the tiny unincorporated community of Wesser, North Carolina is the first trail town through which the Appalachian Trail physically passes. #backpacking #hiking #AppalachianTrail

Deep blue twilight late winter sunset. Scoville Reservoir, Wolcott, Connecticut. February 24, 2020, 5:56 PM. #sunset #hiking #forest #lake

Slab caves, Mattatuck Trail, Wolcott, Connecticut. August 17, 2017, 7:41 PM. #hiking #monochrome #caves

🧵1/7 September 15, 1983: When I finally attained that summit, I checked my watch and discovered that it was almost 9:00. I had consumed two hours in hiking two-and-a-half miles. #hiking #backpacking #AppalachianTrail

Early morning sun raises a mist above Tirrell Pond, slightly ghosting Tirrell Mountain, Northville-Placid Trail, Blue Mountain Wild Forest, Adirondack Preserve, New York. September 11, 2024, 7:48 AM. #hiking #forest #mountains #lake

Tough climb. Rocky trail ascending alongside old abandoned quarry, Sleeping Giant State Park, Hamden, Connecticut. July 1, 2024, 1:53 PM. #hiking #forest #mountains #cliffs

🧵1/6 August 22, 1983: About halfway through the hike, high up on the slope of Glastenbury Mountain, I arrived at Glastenbury Mountain Shelter. #backpacking #hiking #AppalachianTrail

Lady slipper, Sleeping Giant State Park, Hamden, Connecticut. May 24, 2024, 5:10 PM. #hiking #forest #springtime #wildflowers

Little Painted Desert near Winslow, Arizona, looking west towards the San Francisco Mountains. April 1984. #hiking #mountains #Southwest #desert

🧵1/5 June 11, 1983: I hiked thirteen book miles of the AT the previous day over Mount Rogers and the Grayson Highlands. I had intended for that to be an easy day as I savored those last giants and prepared myself for the upcoming big mileage push. #backpacking #hiking #AppalachianTrail

After the ice storm. Scoville Reservoir, Wolcott, Connecticut. February 6, 2021, 4:31 PM. #hiking #winter #lake

Fire and smoke. Gray and orange early spring sunset, Scoville Reservoir, Wolcott, Connecticut. April 13, 2021, 7:30 PM. #sunset #hiking #forest #lake

🧵1/4 July 5, 1983: The next mountain was Bearfence. The Appalachian Trail skirted its rough, rocky crest, but a loop trail ran over it. #backpacking #hiking #AppalachianTrail

Fire on the mountain sunset, Sleeping Giant State Park, Hamden, Connecticut. December 19, 2024, 4:37 PM. #sunset #hiking #forest #mountains

Mountain laurel blossoms and buds, Sleeping Giant State Park, Hamden, Connecticut. June 1, 2023, 4:15 PM. #hiking #forest #wildflowers #springtime

🧵1/7 May 10, 1983: We had already covered almost ten miles when we stopped for lunch in a clearing at Beech Gap, three miles past the summit. The next portion of the hike was every bit as scenic as the morning’s had been. #backpacking #hiking #AppalachianTrail

The upper Quinnipiac River Valley and I-91 from Mount Higby, Mattabesett Trail, Middletown, Connecticut, June 3, 2024, 2:27 PM. #hiking #forest #mountains

It's an orangey sky (h/t to The Cars). Scoville Reservoir, Wolcott, Connecticut. May 18, 2021, 7:53 PM. #sunset #hiking #forest #lake

🧵1/10 September 14, 1983: Last night was wintry, topping even Monday night for cold. Today was a perfect backpacking day: about fifty degrees and sunny, with another invigorating breeze. #backpacking #hiking #AppalachianTrail

A rocky climb along a razorback ridge beneath a deep blue October sky, Sleeping Giant State Park, Hamden, Connecticut. October 10, 2024, 12:54 PM. #hiking #autumn #forest #mountains

Macedonia Brook on a sparkling early spring morning, Macedonia Brook State Park, Kent, Connecticut. March 14, 2024, 11:09 AM. #hiking #spring #forest #stream

🧵1/3 August 14, 1983: I dropped my backpack and carried my camera five hundred feet down a side trail to Rands View, a spot at the top of a high, sloping pasture. #backpacking #hiking #AppalachianTrail

Early morning in early Spring at Scoville Reservoir, Wolcott, Connecticut. April 6, 2021, 7:15 AM. #hiking #forest #lake #springtime

Pink and blue summer sunset at Woodtick Recreation Area, Scoville Reservoir, Wolcott, Connecticut. July 26, 2020, 8:31 PM. #sunset #hiking #forest #lake

🧵1/9 June 30, 1983: In the Virginia Blue Ridge, high atop a shoulder of a mountain called The Priest, not far from the 4063-foot summit, a spur ridge makes a perpendicular intersection with the main crest. #backpacking #hiking #AppalachianTrail

Coming out onto the cliff walk, Giant's Right Knee, Sleeping Giant State Park, Hamden, Connecticut. October 16, 2024, 2:52 PM. #hiking #autumn #forest #mountains

Peaceful easy feeling sunset (h/t Jack Tempchin, Glenn Frey). New Britain Reservoir, Southington, Connecticut. April 15, 2020, 6:54 PM. #sunset #hiking #forest #lake

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🧵1/6 July 4, 1983: The first half-mile from the hut this morning climbed along the crest of the ridge forming the western rim of the ravine. This led to an interesting summit called Blackrock. #backpacking #hiking #AppalachianTrail

Snowdrops at the graveyard of an old country church. Spring is on the way. #EastCoastKin #photography #scape #nature #flowers #bloomscrolling #flowerscape #PhotographersOfBlueSky

Alliums in bloom in early June guess summer's coming soon sunset, Scoville Reservoir, Wolcott, Connecticut. June 8, 2020, 8:22 PM. #sunset #hiking #forest #lake

Some days you don't mind getting wet. Rainy October evening at Scoville Reservoir, Wolcott, Connecticut. October 29, 2019, 6:04 PM. #hiking #autumn #forest #rain #footbridge #lake

🧵1/7 May 29, 1983: I began hiking exactly at 11:00 beneath a heavy overcast, but no rain. My first three miles were the climb up Big Bald. #backpacking #hiking #AppalachianTrail

Sunset daisies, Scoville Reservoir, Wolcott, Connecticut. June 21, 2020, 8:50 PM. #sunset #hiking #lake #wildflowers

The big field beneath a big sky. Mattatuck State Forest, Plymouth, Connecticut. June 11, 2021, 6:17 PM. #hiking #forest #meadow

🧵1/8 September 22, 1983: The ascent of Little Bigelow was gradual and the new trail well laid-out. The AT reached the ridgeline of the mountain and traversed a series of rocky knobs, several of which had open ledges. The sun had finally broken through. #hiking #AppalachianTrail

Another sunset on the trail, Sleeping Giant State Park, Hamden, Connecticut. November 7, 2023, 4:29 PM. #sunset #hiking #forest #autumn #mountains

Autumn maples stealing the show, New Britain Reservoir, Southington, Connecticut. October 12, 2019, 4:32 PM. #hiking #hiking #forest #lake

🧵1/5 August 18, 1983: The highlight of my day occurred when I brilliantly attempted to cross a bog bridge at full speed in the rain. #backpacking #hiking #AppalachianTrail

Autumn lakeshore, Scoville Reservoir, Wolcott, Connecticut. October 11, 2024, 2:58 PM. #hiking #autumn #forest #lake

Rising sun greets a beautiful spring day at Scoville Reservoir, Wolcott, Connecticut. April 6, 2021, 7:29 AM. #hiking #spring #forest #lake

🧵1/9 June 26, 1983: By the time I finished nursing my shins down the long descent to Jennings Creek, Alan had been there for about an hour. #backpacking #hiking #AppalachianTrail

Evening descends upon the lake. Scoville Reservoir, Wolcott, Connecticut. July 19, 2021, 8:10 PM. #sunset #hiking #forest #lake