When I wrote "there's a mt out my front door," it reminded me of something that had similar phrasing but which was funny though I couldn't recall what. Then I realized it was a Far Side cartoon showing a family of earthworms sitting down to dinner. One of the kids is complaining "there's a hair in my dirt." Which is funny. That there is a mt out my front door is not funny, but is fortuitous. So here are directions...go out my front (and only) door and follow the well trodden snow packed footpath several hundred yards to the Hangtown Road which at this time of year is a snowmobile trail. Go left and continue about 1/2 mile to the AT and head north, left. In about 3 miles is the summit of Pleasant Pond Mt, 2480' w/open views. I had already made 2 trips along this route breaking trail through the several feet of snow we've had and today I'd be pushing for the top. I like to keep the trail open so I can make frequent trips during the winter...always a nice workout and always beautiful. The area is called Hangtown because the story goes that once when a community existed here there was a lynching and, of all people, the school teacher. Clearly education wasn't all that valued. Also, according to the story, there was a community here during the Civil war but so many men went to war and presumably didn't return, that the community was abandoned and the women and children left. It would have been a remote place then, especially in winter, as would Caratunk and The Forks, when travel would have been foot or horse. Then around the turn of the last century, early 1900's, a logging community was here and as was typical for remote logging operations at the time, was completely self sufficient w/a large farm for feeding workers and their families and fields to grow hay for horses and other livestock. I can show you where the cellar hole is for the one room schoolhouse of that period. Now the area is many tens of thousands of acres of paper company land w/the AT cutting through and surrounding 100 acres of privately owned land of which I have 28. A unique place. The trail up is basically level until the last 1.5 miles, then a moderate ascent for 1/2 mile, then quite steep. The last steep part was where I had to break trail on this day and it was slow going because it was hard to get traction in the soft snow on such a steep incline, but me and ever loyal and game Gandhi dog slowly made it. The one major stream crossing was frozen over. It was beautiful and sunny and only harshly windy at the top. Only 3 miles but I was ecstatic, just so pumped to be there. Then a pretty fast descent. I knew Gandhi must be getting tired because we didn't stop walking for 5 continuous hours, but he was ever his joyous self, maintaining till the last his pleasure at finding, digging up, and eating shit. We could all learn a lesson there. And then I was walking back up my little trail to the little clearing w/the little cabin and w/tired legs marvelled at my good fortune to live such a life.