Western Massachusetts really resembles Vermont a lot more than it does the eastern side of Massachusetts. There are a few cities much larger than anything you would find in Vermont, but in general, the hills of Vermont roll on down through Massachusetts almost as if the state border was a completely arbitrary straight line written on a map on the whim of some British governor-general, or something like that.

The hills do, however, slowly flatten out. So, the occasional mountain stands out from the flatter landscape much more than it would in northern Vermont, where it would be just one more mountain top in a massive range of pine tree covered mountain ranges.

Enter Mt. Tom, one of the largest in Western Mass. It takes about an hour to climb, and the views of the Pioneer Valley are lovely. The blue sky slowly fades into a hazier white as it gets closer to the green horizon line. The pollution might be part of the reason for this, but it also has something to do with just how far out you can look.

Myself and three friends from high school, Steve, Mike, and Keith climbed the mountain when they came out and visited me the summer after university.

Four years of university is generally not very good for your physical health, and we were no exception: Four years prior we would have ran up the thing in about half an hour. After eight semesters wherein reading books is the physically most healthy activity you engage in on a daily basis, a few of us were out of shape after having climbed the mountain in twice that amount of time.

Once we did get to the top, though, the views were astounding, and well worth the trip.