The road to Zoar (30.2) turns right a short distance east of the Whitcomb Summit (30.6), where lookout towers at an elevation of 2,240 feet enhance the excellence of the view westward across other straths to Mount Greylock, the highest point in Massachusetts. From these same vantage points, one may survey the deceptively smooth slope of the New England upland eastward down the course of the Deerfield towards the Atlantic coast.
Pl. 10. View of the Deerfield gorge from the east summit of the Mohawk Trail.
The high level flat to the extreme right and extreme left is the New England peneplain. The terrace bordering the steep walls of the gorge is a strath.
The road crosses a series of strath heads, which drain into the Cold River, and ascends to the west summit (33.2). At first it seems possible to throw a stone into North Adams, so abrupt is the western slope. The city lies deep in a limestone valley, and beyond it the Taconic ranges rise steeply west of Williamstown, over six miles away.
On the long descent into the valley, the roadway is cut into albite-biotite schists with horizontal cleavage. Above and below the sharp hairpin turn (35.2), there is a beautiful view to the south along the strike of the limestone trench and along the route (State Highway 8) which is to be followed from North Adams (37.8) to Adams. Not far south of North Adams the road passes the west portal of the Hoosac Tunnel (39.4). Boulders on the mountainside east of the highway are glacial erratics which were left above the level of the valley trains and above the surface of glacial Lake Bascom. The limestone which outcrops on the slopes of Mount Greylock west of the road is used for lime (41.6), and the quarries provide ideal exposures for a study of the rock. The burning plant (42.2) is at the roadside. The road branches in the center of Adams (43.6), one route (State Highway 116) continuing ahead to Savoy and Plainfield, the other veering right to Mount Greylock, Dalton, and Pittsfield.
The Savoy road follows a broad valley eastward into the hills. A perceptible steepening of the slope occurs where it crosses from the dolomitic limestone below, to the albite-biotite schist above, at a thrust fault (47.5). Hard white Cheshire quartzite (48.2) and arenaceous limestone (49.0 to 49.6) overlie the schist and outcrop by the roadside, and in places the arenaceous limestone has weathered to a white glistening sand.
The road soon drops into a wide and open valley (50.1) which seems to slope interminably southeastward; this is the head of the Westfield drainage, and it has occupied this position in the Westfield system far back in geologic time (see [p. 14]). The little village of Savoy (51.8) nestles near the eastern edge of the valley, and once beyond the settlement, the highway tops a divide (52.7) comprised of rolling hills. It skirts Plainfield Pond (56.0 to 56.4) and then comes out upon a panorama of the upland which embraces the entire Westfield basin (57.5). This section is underlain by the Savoy schist, which is characterized by its many large red garnets. At the hilltop (59.7) in Plainfield the road forks, the route to the right descending to the Berkshire Trail and the road ahead proceeding to Ashfield. This portion of the New England upland lies so far back from the main streams that the small tributaries have not yet cut deeply into its gently rolling surface, and no hint of hidden valleys can be detected in the peaceful landscape.
The Ashfield road traverses woodland country that is almost flat. The stream valleys are broad and are rarely more than a hundred feet below divides. Even Swift River (63.9), which crosses the road about two miles above the end of its entrenched gorge, has not deepened its valley, despite the long span of years since New England was raised to its present elevation (see [p. 47]). Past the alternate road to Cummington (64.0), the route continues across the flat country above Ashfield; but where the road to Goshen turns south (66.4), deep dissection of the New England upland begins. An opening in the trees (66.6 to 67.1) discloses the valleys along the South River in the vicinity of South Ashfield, as well as the level skyline in the highlands east of the Connecticut Valley. The road drops into the South River valley at Ashfield (68.2), where a choice of routes to Greenfield is presented. The road that follows the South River to Conway (75.4) is the more interesting.
The river is joined by a tributary from the north at South Ashfield (69.9), and the streams occupy deep but open valleys. Kame terraces flank the rivers and are a source of gravel for road ballast. The old dam (73.9) near Conway is a picturesque spot, and the deep, shady pool below is not neglected by anglers. Glacial erratics (see pp. [8]-9) dot the hill slopes, but ledges are rare and consist of the locally named Conway schist where the rock does appear at the surface. The road branches again at Conway: the left fork goes north along the dissected brink of the Deerfield gorge to Shelburne Falls, but our choice falls upon the eastward route to South Deerfield.