Early November: Two weeks after the first trip to the Bennington triangle saw my return, to again hopefully get some activity, and if not, to explore another side trail that I didn’t have time for the last trip. It’s always a good thing to have a plan B, should our elusive quarry see fit to not be around, which is annoyingly often. One interesting observation is how much difference two weeks can make in the autumn. The weather was 20 degrees colder and there had been the first covering of snow which yielded the chance to do some potential tracking as well. Some don’t like doing field work in the winter, but snow levels the playing field, revealing tracks that might otherwise go unnoticed. On this outing, I did see a combination of rabbit, deer and other tracks you would expect to normally see in this area, but again, the monkey man wasn’t around so this was another chance to explore.

The trail I had in mind like the one from the last trip ended up going for quite a ways and along the ways revealed a few good potential bush camping spots, if you don’t mind hiking in a few miles. I suspect I found the spot where the trail from the last trip and this one intersect, and allows access to the backside of a large beaver pond which could easily provide cover in the form of thick pine growth. The other goal that I take away from this trip in addition to the intention to do an overnight trip minimally, is to find a second point of entry to facilitate even deeper entry into the National forest but having access from the far side of it as well. It’s always a good thing to set a goal for the next trip.