Appalachian Trail Day 22

William Brien Memorial Shelter to Graymoor Spiritual Life Center – 16.5 miles Friday, September 19th, 2014 More ups and downs! At least my shoulders are holding up nicely. This new pack is wonderful. Today included playing Frogger across the Palisades Parkway, observing the New York City Skyline from approximately fifty miles away, Bear Mountain, theContinue reading “Appalachian Trail Day 22”

Appalachian Trail Day 21

Allis Trail to William Brien Memorial Shelter – 17 miles Thursday, September 18th 2014 This was a ROUGH day! The profile doesn’t look terrible in the guidebook but boy did I underestimate these ups and downs. I guess that’s one of the big differences between a section hiker and a thru-hiker… my legs are definitelyContinue reading “Appalachian Trail Day 21”

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 frontContinue reading “Appalachian Trail Day 19”

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 wereContinue reading “Appalachian Trail Day 17”

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 forContinue reading “Appalachian Trail Day 16”

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. WeContinue reading “Appalachian Trail Day 15”

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 NewContinue reading “Appalachian Trail Day 13”

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.Continue reading “Appalachian Trail Day 12”

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 PointContinue reading “Appalachian Trail Day 11”