Appalachian Trail Day 19

spring campsite near PA 325 to Shikellamy Trail – 2.9 miles

Sunday, July 13th, 2014

We awoke to a beautiful morning, hiked .3 miles to PA 325 where a trail angel was serving breakfast. Bob and I chose to pass without too much decision and instead opted to start the 700 foot climb in front of us. I was miserable and just wanted to get off the trail and Bob knew it. I felt bad about it because I knew he had a lot more miles in him, and when we got to the Shikellamy trail that led .9 miles back down to PA 325 the look of disappointment on his face hurt just a little less than the pain in my shoulders. I hated letting him down but to continue would’ve been stupid. He called his wife and she and her dad came to pick us up. We waited an hour or two on the side of the road and I was just so relieved to not be carrying my pack anymore. Bob’s amazing wife showed up with ice cold beer for us!! I remember stopping at Wendy’s on the way home and it was quite crowded, but the line seemed to part like the Red Sea when our stench arrived and somehow we were immediately in the front of the line! Sometimes it pays to be odorous.

Needless to say, this would be the last outing for my Jansport backpack. She served me well (sort of) but we just weren’t meant to be together. Sorry… it’s not you… it’s me.

Thank you for the beers Devon!
Most amazing meal ever!!

Appalachian Trail Day 18

Campsite near Swatara Gap to spring near PA 325 – 16.5 miles

Saturday July 12th, 2014

By now I was miserable… my shoulders had gone from sore to painful and I was becoming more vocal about it and I could tell Bob was concerned after having seen the seeping wounds I was complaining about. I did my everything I could to minimize the pain… I loosened the straps, I tightened the straps, I shifted the weight, I moved the straps closer to my neck, I moved the straps to barely hanging onto my shoulders. Bob even went so far as to cut little strips of his sleeping pad off for me to tuck under my shoulder straps to provide a cushion for me. You know you’ve got a good friend when he’s willing to take a knife to his sleeping pad for you!

So there are no photos from this day because I was just too miserable to enjoy any of the day.

Appalachian Trail Day 17

Hertlein Campsite to campsite near Swatara Gap – 17.6 miles

Friday, July 11th, 2014

After happening upon this turtle that I took a picture of, we stopped for lunch today at the 501 Shelter, which is a very nice fully enclosed bunkhouse type shelter with a caretaker (who was not on site when we were there). It’s got a big skylight and a solar shower and picnic tables inside and outside. It appears to sleep at least 8 people and you can even get pizza delivered here. We sat around the picnic table with a young female thru-hiker who looked like she weighed about the same as the pack she was carrying. I pulled out my homemade granola that Sarah had sent with me and Bob picked up the bag and almost fell off the picnic bench… “FEEL HOW HEAVY THAT IS!!!” he shouted at me. I felt slightly embarrassed in front of our female companion because clearly Bob was making fun of me for not being more judicious about the weight of my food. The granola was really good, but he was right… it weighed a ton as far as backpacking snack food goes. Maybe that’s why my shoulders were in such bad shape…😳.

Interstate 81

It hurts as bad as it looks
I still have faint scars almost six years later.

Appalachian Trail Day 16

Pipeline clearing campsite to Hertline Campsite – 17 miles

Thursday July 10th, 2014

My shoulders continued to deteriorate and were now open and oozing. I enjoyed spending time with Bob, but often we’d hike alone, separated by a few steps to a few hundred yards, depending on the pace we were keeping. We’d stop for water together and take breaks and snack. My shoulders were killing me but I did my best to keep my mouth shut because I didn’t want to disappoint or annoy him. More rocks, not very many views… chugging along through the green tunnel. We descended the steep hill to the Hertlein Campsite which is right next to a lake and a dam. There’s a rope swing and evidence that this place is pretty popular with the locals. There were tent pads here but I couldn’t make use of them because the biggest (perhaps the only) downfall of my tent is that is not freestanding and requires stakes and the tent pads were wooden or something else that you can’t drive a stake into.

Appalachian Trail Day 15

Windsor Furnace Shelter to Pipeline clearing – 7 miles

Wednesday July 9th, 2014

I woke up this morning to discover that my shoulders were ecchymotic. Having not ever been fitted for a pack, I was learning the hard way that most of your pack weight should be carried by your hips, not your shoulders.

We continued our southbound hike with more ups and downs than I’d anticipated. We stopped for water and Cody proudly used the Katadyn water filter to pump us out some clean water (this is before everyone was carrying the Sawyer Squeeze filters… at least as far as I knew…) The descent into Port Clinton was a long and steep… about 800 feet. Cody handled it well but was very relieved to be done by the time we got to Route 61. We spent some time at Cabela’s in Hamburg. I think I bought a sleeping pad. Bob and I returned to the trail while Cody went home with Sarah and Gideon. The southbound climb out of Port Clinton was brutal. It’s a long rock stairway to the clouds. We were both spent by the time we got to the top and found a decent campsite and called it a day.

Morning at Windsor Furnace Shelter
I can’t believe we carried all those water bottles! I guess this was before I discovered hydration packs.
The beginnings of my “pack rash”

Appalachian Trail Day 14

Campsite near Hawk Mountain Road to Windsor Furnace Shelter – 9.6 miles

Tuesday, July 8, 2014

This was the first day of a southbound hike from where Bob and I had previously left off at Hawk Mountain Road. We were joined for the first two days of this hike by Cody, who had agreed without much convincing to come along. He was now three months shy of his 6th birthday. We got dropped off the evening before and pitched our tent near a stream about a half mile from the road. Tuesday morning we hiked to the Pinnacle, which is always a great time and I was so excited for Cody to witness it. We saw our first rattlesnake on the trail on this day. We enjoyed awesome views from Pulpit Rocks, and Cody got to use his binoculars. We finished the day at Windsor Furnace Shelter just as a storm rolled in. I believe Bob slept in the shelter while Cody and I opted for our tent. There was thunder and lightning for the last mile or so of our hike, and after we set our tent up we were eating dinner in the shelter when a large tree branch fell to the ground right next to the tent. Surprisingly, we were the only ones at this site on this particular night. Today was the day I realized how important it is to have a properly fitting backpack, and the importance of wearing it properly. My shoulders were starting to complain… and it was about to get much worse.

Granola break
Cody an Uncle Bob at the Pinnacle
Pulpit Rock
Pulpit Rock
Our first rattlesnake experience

Appalachian Trail Day 13

Wayawanda Shelter to NY 17A – 10 miles

April 19th 2014

Final day in New Jersey! I got a decent rest and slept much later than Bruce, my shelter partner. The previous day had taken so much out of me and I was very excited to leave NJ behind. Little did I know that New York would be much more difficult. Today was a difficult day as well, spending much of the day on top of the ridge, climbing large rocks. The NJ/NY border is at about 1400 feet which is the highest point on the AT in New York.

I look very homeless in some of these videos!!

Appalachian Trail Day 12

Murray Property to Wayawanda Shelter – 18.5 miles

Another pretty long day for me. I was determined to maximize my time even though by now I was feeling pretty sore. I got a slow start from the warmth of the Murray Cabin, enjoyed the Wallkill Preserve and Pochuck Creek suspension footbridge after crossing Pochuck Mountain. The climb up the rocks of Wayawanda Mountain was very difficult for me, and once reaching the top I debated whether i had it in me to go the last 3.6 miles to the shelter. I pressed on, reaching the shelter after dark and a bit delirious and out of water. I remember being afraid I’d miss the shelter in the dark so I started yelling as I approached it, hoping someone there would come and guide me in, which didn’t happen but there was a very friendly older man named Bruce there who’s company I did not mind.

The approach to Wayawanda Mountain

Appalachian Trail Day 11

Gren Anderson Shelter to “the Secret Shelter” on the Murray Property – 18.4 miles

4/17/2014

My water was frozen when I woke up! I panicked a little bit because I couldn’t feel my fingers but the temperature quickly rose and I thawed. I got a lot of miles in today, which felt great. High Point State Park was definitely a highlight. Highest point in New Jersey is only about 1600 feet. I took quite a few videos on this day… I guess because it was my birthday and I was in pretty good spirits. Jim Murray’s shelter was a wonderful place to spend the night. Watching these videos reminds me how horrible that mustache was!