Easter Weekend on October Mountain

For Easter weekend, I took Mutti and her bouncing black poodle up October Mountain in Western Massachusetts. To climb a Berkshire peak guarantees a closer reach to the heavens than sitting listless in a church pew.

Reportedly, the name of “October Mountain” is attributed to writer Herman Melville, whose view from his home in Pittsfield (Arrowhead) impressed him during the Autumn months.

Mutti and I stopped at the ranger station for the essential maps. Bears and boulders don’t scare us but getting lost in the woods… that’s worrisome.

Many of the trails crisscross or follow the Appalachian Trail but with 16,500 acres of thick forest to explore we didn’t quite make it beyond the yellow Ledge Loop Trail.

In the summer, a 50-site campground is open to the public.