December 5th 2015: Hiking to Exhaustion in Amherst

I started out this morning with breakfast at E.B. Flatts, a restaurant in East Brookfield which was definitely more cosy than Rise N Shine Diner close by.

I got a Hot Chocolate

and the Biscuit n Gravy n Eggs (one biscuit with our sausage gravy and 2 poached eggs).

Nothing special, really.

From here, I went on my first hike at the Holyoke Range State Park, going up Harris Hill in Belchertown by taking the route below in pink from ~739 Bay Road.

The very first part involved climbing up an extremely steep hill which even had ropes to assist hikers up. At the top, I was already feeling a little tired, but at least there were views here from behind the houses,

There were no views to be had at the top of the hill itself, but at least the views from the power lines were pretty good.

Thankfully, I found my way back to my car via the Robert Frost Trail.

I went immediately on to my next hike at the park in Amherst, the path I took from Bay Road near Chapel Road being shown below in pink.

I first reached the water tower,

then found my way to the top of Rattlesnake Knob, where the views were amazing.

Next, I made my way to the Long Mountain range, where there was one partial view at best.

I got lost a few times, but somehow made it all the way to Harris Mountain Road. Strangely, it was the walk back to the car that really tired me out, the weight of my backpack heavy on my shoulders. I had to stop a few times before finally getting back to my car. Sadly the damage was already done. My hands were shaking constantly as I made my way to the White Hut, a small place in the town center with hot dogs, burgers and shakes, of which I got a Hot Dog

and a Strawberry Shake.

Okay stuff, but not good enough to replenish my strength.

I succeeded in checking out the Amherst History Museum

before finally deciding to call it a day in my current state. I somehow made it all the way back to Worcester, driving really slowly and even stopping when my legs started cramping up. Thankfully, I was able to reach my other half safely, who drove me all the way home, and even got me Healthy Fried Rice (peas, corn, carrots, onions, ginger, bean sprouts, soy protein, cabbage)

from Loving Hut. Truly appreciate her for that.