Category: Journal

This will be my last entry for this hike. I got a good night’s sleep in the motel. I woke up this morning at 5:30 – no alarm necessary. I got up, consolidated my gear and packed up for the journey home. I then put on my boots and started walking for a local bagel shop about 3/4 mile away. This was first time I had done some walking WITHOUT my pack – how liberating. I feel like I could fly without the weight. I think my body is probably substantially lighter as well. I feel great. My feet are beginning to heal.

After having a lazy breakfast at the bagel store, I walked to Walmart – about another 1.5 miles – no problem. I picked up a pair of shoes, a shirt, a razor, some deodorant, and a lemon. I then went to the the Total Wine and Spirits across the road and picked up a small bottle of gin and some tonic. I hiked back to the hotel, gave myself a haircut and beard-cut (don’t tell Allyson), arranged for transportation to the bus terminal in the morning, and then mixed myself a few gin and tonics. I then retired to the motel lobby to write these journal entries with my third gin and tonic of the day – it’s great to be retired.

After I finish here, my plan is to walk about to a Japanese restaurant close to the Walmart to have an early dinner and then back to the motel for one last sleep before coming home. In the morning, I’ll take the Martz Bus into Manhattan, an Uber to LaGuardia, and the flight home.

I don’t have anything earth-shattering to say other than the experience met all of my expectations. My mind, body and spirit feel reset and refreshed. I have some bruises and bug-bites but am whole. I feel with a few more days of rest, I could go another month. But I miss my family. Today is my anniversary and so I called Allyson for a long talk. Hopefully, this weekend we’ll get to do something to celebrate.

Thank you for all of your thoughts and prayers. If you have followed my blog, bless you for your perseverance. Thank you. I’ll see you soon.

Woke up at the artesian water camp, ate breakfast, filtered some more of that beautiful water, packed up, and headed out. It was bittersweet packing up for the last time. I expected some rain today. The trail out was just as rocky as the previous days, but at this point, I didn’t care. Coming up were Wolf Rocks. There was a bypass trail marked on the map. The description said that “If you’re not sure of your abilities, you should take the bypass trail around Wolf Rocks because there are several steep four-point climbs.” At this point, I’m not skipping anything – I’ve come this far, I’ll figure it out. Just in case, I took my bear rope and attached it to the outside of my pack – something Allyson will tell you I never do. I don’t like anything hanging on the outside of my pack, but I thought I may need to get the rope quickly if I needed to lower my pack down a steep climb, or something like that.

The first mile of the trail was rocky leading up to Wolf Rocks which was a knife edge of rock very similar to what I encountered coming out of Duncannon, only not as bad. As usual, the reality of the situation was not a scary as the imagined. I was able to manage very well through several steep boulder descents and get down safely from Wolf Rocks.

Once down, the path notably softened to clear 100% path, level, peaceful, and green. It’s as if the mountain had finally given up trying to kill me. This pleasant trail lasted for about a mile, then some rocks returned, but nothing like the last week’s trail. I was able to complete the first 5 miles quickly. I bumped into Accountant whom I had met about a week earlier. There were several good vistas for the last half of the day. At least two miles were along an old logging road – level and smooth – thank you Jesus.

Once I began the descent into the Delaware Water Gap, the trail was very pleasant, steep in several places, but overall very pleasant hiking. There was a beautiful creek at about 500 ft. elevation with a waterfall tracing down into the Delaware river below. I encountered some young (20-something) Indian kids hiking up the trail in jeans and tennis shoes, each holding a bottle of PowerAid. “How old are you?” they asked. “57” I said. “Wow, we got to hand it to you for doing this at your age.” I didn’t have the heart to tell them that I had met half-a-dozen through-hikers twenty years older than me.

I finally made it down to the Delaware Water Gap, which is the name of a place and a town. I was shouted down by Dreamsicle and Lucky, who had somehow gotten behind me. We met up, and decided to go to a restaurant on Main Street in town. We were joined by Masters. We had a delightful lunch, and I learned that my first impression of Lucky was wrong. She had a Master’s degree in Parasitology and had worked in several specialty bars for some time. She was deeply knowledgeable about spirits and had a specialty in Absinthe. I took note of some spirits that she recommended. After lunch, I said my goodbyes and got an Uber to my motel which was located in Stroudsburg.

And so ends my hike. I’m ready to be home. I have tomorrow to here in Stroudsburg to rest, recover, repack, and get ready to travel. Friday, I’m taking the Martz Bus to Manhattan (Port Authority Bus Terminal) and then an Uber to LaGuardia for the flight home.

Today’s Mileage: 9.3

Total Trail Miles: 271.4

I’ll be honest. I’m noting this journal entry 2 days after the fact and I don’t remember the details of this day. I’ve learned over many years that if you don’t make an entry immediately at the end of the day, the details and lessons are lost. Perhaps this was meant to serve as a reminder to me to act quickly in the moment.

I do remember that the Leroy Smith Shelter turned out to be perfect. I arrived about 5pm. No one was there and I began to setup to stay in the shelter. About 5:30, a mother and daughter rolled in. They had come from Delaware Water Gap and were bragging that they had done 20 miles that day. They were also complaining about the rocky trail. I didn’t have the heart to tell him that the entire journey south was worse than what they had probably come over. I asked them if they were planning on staying at the shelter and warned them that I snore. The mother responded that she snored as well and that they were so tired that it wouldn’t matter. One useful piece of information she gave me was that there was no water at the next shelter. This changed my plan for the next day, and I’m glad that she mentioned that otherwise I wouldn’t have had water the next day.

I consolidated my gear into a corner of the shelter to make room for them then got into my bag to give them some peace to get settled. I dozed and woke up about 45 minutes later. The mother and daughter were gone – I guess they thought spending the night in the shelter with a grizzled old man was too much of a risk.

I saw one more through-hiker come through about 7:30, but he decided to setup in tent nearby, so I had the shelter all to myself. I remember that this night was the best sleep I had over the entire trip. I had pleasant dreams and woke to the sound of the morning birds at 5:30. I got up and visited the privy for the first time. I was well maintained, no smell, and a pleasant experience in the cool morning air. I don’t mean to be graphic, but a well-maintained privy is a delight.

I got up and headed for the seasonal spring about 2 miles south of the next shelter. Reports were that water here was good. The day relatively uneventful. The trail was 90% rocky, 10% soft. But at this point, my feet were beyond sore – I moved slowly and made steady progress. By the time I got to the spring, it was about 4:30. There was one other through-hiker in a tent nearby. I setup my hammock and went to check out the water.

This water supply was the best of the entire trip – a two-foot deep pool about 6 meters in diameter with truly artesian water bubbling up from the bottom, then running down the mountain in a stream for as far as I could see. This was a real artesian source, cool, clear, absolutely sweet. I took some to filter and headed back to my camp about 50 meters uphill. By the time I got back, Fizz, the erstwhile through hiker that I first encountered at the Rausch Gap shelter was pulling in. I remarked that I thought he would be far ahead of me by now. He noted that he was having “foot and ass” problems and took a zero day in Palmerton.

So it seems that the tortoise always catches the hare. Perhaps I’m not as slow as I thought.

Today’s Mileage: 11.0

Total Trail Miles: 262.1

Today was relatively unremarkable. After getting a late start from the nudist colony because they don’t get up until about 830, I was able to finally get a ride up to the trail. Rather than try to climb out of Lehigh Gap on a short day, which I had been told was extremely rocky with no cover, I had my Shuttle Driver put me in at Little Gap, which was just over the top. Once on top of the ridge, the trail was relatively easy and straight. But the distance to the shelter made it a long day.

I met several hikers along the way, Splat and Just Try It. They were through hikers that were headed for Wind Gap, another 3 1/2 miles on the trail. At one point, when we pulled out on a road, Splat’s husband was there with trail magic. Since the water at the shelter was a little iffy tonight, I did pick up a gallon of drinking water and attach it to my bag just in case the springs were dry.

Once I got to the shelter, the first spring was dry, but the second spring was beautiful, and I was able to not only filter enough water for the next day, but also take a good cold bath and soak my feet.

Tomorrow is the next to last day of this adventure. It’s a 14-mile day, the longest day during the entire month. I’m a little trepidatious, but I think I can make it.

Today’s Mileage: 11.6

Total Trail Miles: 251.1

Today was full of surprises. But the story starts with last night’s storm. When I arrived at the shelter, I checked the weather and noted that there was a severe storm barreling down on us. It was the end of the day and Palmerton was still another 9 1/2 miles away, so I knew there was no way that I could make it before it got dark. There was nothing to do but set up and ride the storm out.

Now there was a note in the shelter, saying that it was home to yet another porcupine. There was even a stick that was used to ward off the porcupine. I didn’t really want to deal with a porcupine in the middle of the night, so I decided to set up my hammock a little down the slope in the trees.

While I was setting up, a group of about six through-hikers including Dreamsickle and Lucky were at the shelter discussing their options. Being young and daring, they decided to go ahead and hike through to Palmerton. They departed, leaving me alone in the shelter. I got my gear set up and waterproofed as best I could. I then went up to the shelter to eat dinner. About that time Intrepid came in. She was staying at the shelter as well and decided that the storm warranted her risking the porcupine in the shelter.

The weather forecast called for rain all night and 100% chance the next day. Since my plan was already to stay in Palmerton, I contacted a shuttle driver and arranged for her to pick me up at a takeout point 2 1/2 miles away from the shelter. Originally, I told her to pick me up around 10 o’clock, but then I noticed that the next day was Sunday. Since I hadn’t been to Mass in three weeks, I checked for a Catholic church in Palmerton and found Sacred Heart. It had a Mass at 9:30 AM. I contacted my driver and asked her if she could pick me up by 8:30 AM, to which she said yes.

My next order of business was to find a place to stay in Palmerton. I checked the FarOut app and noticed that there was a recommendation for a place called the Sunny Rest Resort. I called them and made a reservation for the next night.

It started raining about 7 PM, but the real storm didn’t come through until about midnight. We found out today that the storm dumped 2 inches of rain in one hour. Surprisingly, my hammock set up worked perfectly, and I stayed dry the whole night.

Now, the trail in this section varied between a tip toe through the tulips and the murderous boulder rocks from hell. I decided to get up at 5 AM assuming that it was not still raining, pack up and get out as fast as I could. This I did. I was able to leave the shelter at 6:15 and I arrived at the extraction point at 8:15. Just as I arrived I heard some clicking behind me. Intrepid had decided that she didn’t want to hike in the rain either, and so she asked if she could ride my shuttle with me. Of course, I said yes and so we both rode into town, about a 15 minute ride. Jo Anne, our shuttle driver dropped me off at the church.

It was still an hour before the start of Mass. Not surprisingly, the priest was already in front of the church praying. I interrupted his prayers and asked if there was someplace that I could put some dry clothes on. He not only directed me to the bathroom but told me where I could put my pack and poles in the sacristy during the mass so that nobody will bother them. I made an offhand remark to him that I had not been to Mass in three weeks because I’d been on the trail. He responded by saying, “We’ll, the confessional is right there.” So I had my second confession in three weeks.

The Mass was a typical one, it being the 15^th Sunday in ordinary time. The gospel reading was the parable of the sower from Matthew. Afterwards, I called the hotel and arranged for them to come and pick me up, which they did. When I got to the check-in, the first thing I noticed was that one of the clerks was a black transgender person with a shaved head, lipstick and low-cut dress. I thought this was somewhat peculiar. Then, while I was paying and signing forms, an elderly gentleman walked up beside me. I know I must’ve done a double take because he was butt-naked with his junk hanging out in front. It was then that I noticed that everyone at the pool was also naked, as well as several people walking up and down the streets. Somehow, I had stumbled upon a nudist colony. It must’ve given them a good laugh to pick up a hiker coming from church to stay with them.

I’ve never been in a nudist colony before. I wouldn’t say that I was scandalized, but perhaps embarrassed. This place was not just a hotel, but essentially an entire colony of small houses and manufactured bungalows. And everyone drives golf carts. It’s very strange to see naked people driving golf carts. After spending a day here, my observation is that anyone who feels the need to takeoff their clothes in public shouldn’t.

I ate some breakfast in the restaurant and met a lovely woman named Jill, who used to be a principal at a public school. (Don’t worry, Allyson, she was fully clothed.) Since I was the only person in the restaurant, we talked for a while. It was a normal interaction, which seemed very out of place in this place. Throughout the day, I was able to wash up, do my laundry, consolidate my gear, plan the next four days, and basically prepare for tomorrow’s hike. In the evening, I went back to the restaurant and had some Chicken Parmesan. It was interesting, because there was a band playing by the pool, and even the members of the band were naked.

Tomorrow, I will start the last leg of my hike. I should arrive in Stroudsburg on Wednesday. But I’ve planned for a layover day just in case the rocks are bad. More to come.

Today’s Mileage: 2.5

Total Trail Miles: 234.9

Today was an interesting day. It started at the St. John’s pavilion where I stayed for a second night. I had arranged for a shuttle driver, Steve, to pick me up at 9 o’clock. So I got up about 6 o’clock, packed my stuff, looked at the clock and still had almost an hour and a half before the pick-up. I called Steve to confirm that he was coming at nine and I asked him if he could pick me up at the 3C café, which is about a 10-minute walk up the hill from the pavilion. He said he could so I started the hike up the hill.

 Now, the 3C restaurant has a reputation for home cooked food and large portions. When I got there, I ordered the 3C special omelette, which is a three-egg omelette with peppers, onions, and ham. It was about the worst omelette I’ve ever eaten. It had white American cheese melted on the top and the eggs were so done that they were brown in places. The orange juice even tasted a little off so overall I was not impressed with the 3C restaurant.

Steve called me at about 8 o’clock and said that he would be up there at about 830, which is 30 minutes earlier than we agreed, but that’s OK because I was ready to go anyway. He said he drove a red Dodge Dart. Now I was thinking of a Dodge Dart like Click and Clack the Tappet Brothers used to talk about, but this was a new Dodge Dart. It didn’t make any difference, because the interior was so bad that it’s hard to describe. Now, when I met Steve yesterday in the barbershop, he had his English bulldog with him who promptly started to lick my leg for five minutes until I finally shewed him away, I guess he liked the salt from the sweat. Well, apparently Steve’s dog lived in the Dodge Dart car because it was covered, ceiling to floor with dog hair and dander. In fact, the front seat looked like it was made out of camel hair, not vinyl. Steve himself is about 83 years old, walks with a gimp, is missing some of his front teeth on the top in the bottom, and smells like Winston cigarettes. Needless to say, it was an interesting shuttle ride up to the ridge. Steve talked about Second Amendment, hunting, girls shooting, and the Second Amendment again. That kind of gives you a taste of where Steve was.

I made it up to the top of the ridge without further incident. This particular portion of the forest was very dense, with much shorter, smaller more numerous trees, but well laid soft path, at least in the first section. It felt almost as if I was inside a room rather than in the forest. As usual, the path started out soft and got progressively rocky as the day went on. After about 2 miles in, there is a section which is called the Knife. It’s literally a diagonal stack of massive rock shelves at the top of the ridge that runs for almost a quarter of a mile. Very difficult to hike over. I was able to get some video and some good shots of the views. Beautiful trail, but very difficult and definitely a four-point climb in some places. At one point I had to sit down and scramble through a narrow defile of rocks and my pack got caught and scraped the fabric off of one of my water bottle holders. I’m definitely going to have to get a new pack next season.

I bumped into Dreamsickle and Lucky somewhere in there. Of course, they were faster than me, but I managed to catch them in about 3 miles at a road where they were sitting with some friends, eating steaks, watermelon, and soda. Definitely trail magic. They invited me to have some of their watermelon, which I eagerly accepted. We chatted for a while, and then I went on.

I was able to make it to Bake Oven Knob Shelter. The water is excellent here, but the shelter is inhabited by yet another porcupine. So I pitched my hammock slightly down the slope toward the spring, and prepared for rain, which is expected tonight around 9 o’clock. It’s supposed to rain most of the night, and I am going to make sure that I am prepared and will not get wet this time.

Tomorrow, I will hike into Palmerton and stay somewhere there. That’s the last town that I’ll hit before I get to Stroudsburg in about four days. The trail is still fairly difficult, but I guess my feet are getting used to it. Overall, this was a great day.

Today’s Mileage: 6.2

Total Trail Miles: 226.8

David promises that when he gets to a place that has enough power to download his videos and pictures he will do so. Until then we will have to imagine him swinging on a rope and dropping into the cold spring fed pond and precariously placing his tiny feet on what the beavers put up as their home so that he could get across the water. I can’t wait.

While hiking days serve the purpose of working the body and fostering profound contemplation, zero days provide an opportunity to rejuvenate the body and organize those thoughts. So today, I’ll give you six thoughts of varying profundity that have surfaced during this hike. Please forgive the length of this post, and perhaps chalk it up to a doddering, old man stumbling down the trail.

Thought one: I’m soft. No matter how much I learn about hiking, civilization always untrained me how to survive. While hiking helps me to remember how to be comfortable in nature, modern living has tricked me into thinking that I could survive without it. I don’t claim to know whether I would survive or not, but at least I would have some idea what to do.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a prepper. I’m not suggesting the end of the world is nigh, and that we should all become Sarah Connors. But it does concern me that 95% of the population of our country is utterly unprepared to be an environment other than a modern one. The lesson is to reconnect with nature, learn about survival, think about what you would do if power, water, food and transportation went away, even for a short time.   

Thought two: Trash. We, as a society, produce huge amounts of garbage, most of it in the name of convenience. Packaging, packaging, packaging. On the trail, we learn to consolidate trash into the smallest volume possible and to waste as little as possible because we don’t want to carry the extra weight. So food is not wasted, but eaten. Whatever wrappings are left over are consolidated into a very small space. I can put a weeks’ worth of trash in a single quart size Ziploc bag. It makes me want to reduce the amount of trash that I make at home. We do recycle, but even so, the amount of trash we produce is quite large. I know we can do better.

Thought three: Silence. Being in a silent environment for 8 to 10 hours a day for days on end transforms one, and you begin to realize just how much we try to fill a minds with noisy bits of distraction; email, music, media, news, entertainment, texts, social media, etc.

When I’m on campus, every student I see between classes has their head buried in their phone, even if they’re walking. In fact, I play a game when I see a student walking toward me with their device in hand. I stand in front of them, stop, and see how long it takes them to realize that somebody is in their way. Many just simply bump into me because they’re so oblivious to what is going on around them. This has become a pet peeve of mine and something that I despise. I think though it’s a case where I despise in others what I most despise in myself. I’m a person who is relatively comfortable in silence, yet I still fill my days with these bits and pieces of distraction. When I’m on the trail, a song gets stuck in my mind and I can’t seem to get rid of it. It is as if I’ve been trained to fill up the silence with stuff. What void is there that we are trying to fill?

Thought four: Hope. Remember the rant I had the other day about the potheads? I really let them get to me and make my mood negative. That affected my whole day. On the flip side, there’s been a couple hiking along with me for the past week or so: trail names-Solar and Latte. Solar could be my brother by another mother. He’s about my age, retired, uses a CPAP machine (on the trail! Hence the name), has high blood pressure, and has many other attributes in common – the whole works. He’s hiking the trail for his health along with his wife. 

Although Solar and Latte have a health and fitness level more like me, and by that I mean they struggle to hike the trail, their attitude is overwhelmingly positive.”They are hopeful. Their positive attitude gives them strength for the trail that I sometimes struggle with. They reminded me just how much hope counts.

You’ve gotta ac-cent-tchu-ate the positive

E-lim-i-nate the negative

And latch on to the affirmative

Don’t mess with Mr. In-between

You got to spread joy up to the maximum

Bring gloom down to the minimum

Otherwise (otherwise), pandemonium

Liable to walk upon the scene

Bing Crosby

Allyson here: I’m not sure why David didn’t put the song lyrics from Life of Brian.

If life seems jolly rotten
There’s something you’ve forgotten
And that’s to laugh and smile and dance and sing
When you’re feeling in the dumps
Don’t be silly chumps
Just purse your lips and whistle, that’s the thing
And

Always look on the bright side of life
(Come on)
Always look on the right side of life

Thought five: RAIN. I love it & I hate it. It refreshes me & it makes my boots squishy. It raises my spirits & it really brings me down. RAIN ‘nuff said.

Thought six: Providence. I’ve commented before that the further I go, the more I realize the less I need. I eat less food, send more supplies home, giveaway stuff. But what I realized is that this is just the beginning stage of true trust in providence. All of the necessities, food, water shelter, at every turn these have been provided, even when I have been anxious about them. But it’s more than just about providence. What it’s really about is living in the moment. That’s a hard thing to do for a lifelong manager/planner, but perhaps is the most important lesson so far.

Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat [or drink], or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds in the sky; they do not sow or reap, they gather nothing into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are not you more important than they? 27 Can any of you by worrying add a single moment to your life-span?[q] 28 Why are you anxious about clothes? Learn from the way the wild flowers grow. They do not work or spin. 29 But I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was clothed like one of them. 30 [r]If God so clothes the grass of the field, which grows today and is thrown into the oven tomorrow, will he not much more provide for you, O you of little faith? 31 So do not worry and say, ‘What are we to eat?’ or ‘What are we to drink?’ or ‘What are we to wear?’ 32 All these things the pagans seek. Your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. 33 But seek first the kingdom [of God] and his righteousness,[s]and all these things will be given you besides. 34 Do not worry about tomorrow; tomorrow will take care of itself. Sufficient for a day is its own evil.

Matthew 6:25

Today’s mileage: 0.0

Total trail miles: 194.2

Today was a better day. While the trail was actually a little bit more difficult, especially with a stiff descent into Port Clinton, my cough from the last several days is almost remediated. I owe it to all your prayers and Mother Mary. Although my feet are still fairly painful, perhaps I’m getting used to walking on the rocks. To pass the time today, I made some example videos of different kinds of rocks that we hike across such as 100% trail that we can go our full pace, 75% trail, 50% trail, and 25% trail, which are essentially boulder fields.

When I got into town, I stopped at the world-famous Port Clinton barbershop. There are really knows words to describe it. I’ll post some pictures tomorrow. Next, I found the Saint John’s pavilion, which is a church pavilion that the parish allows hikers to use to spend the night. I’m gonna spend the next two nights here. It turns out that there is a shuttle that runs three times a day from Hamburg, Pennsylvania, which is home to the largest Cabela’s in the United States. The shuttle comes to the pavilion specifically to pick up AT hikers and take them into town to buy gear at Cabela’s. Since I’m taking a zero day tomorrow, I’m going to ride into Cabela’s in the morning, do some shopping, stuff my face with restaurant food, then come back here to the pavilion one last night. I’m taking a zero day tomorrow for several reasons. First my feet are killing me, they need to rest. Second, it’s supposed to rain tomorrow, and that makes for a miserable day.

Even though the trail was harder today, I think my spirits were higher primarily because I had more of a right attitude today. Yesterday was very hard, one of those days that you fantasize dozens of reasons why you should pull off the trail. Hiking is like that, good days and bad days.

Today’s mileage: 9.2

Total trail miles: 194.2

Today was a nondescript day, about 50% rocks, and 50% soft trail. The elevation was relatively flat, but it was both an easy and a hard day. It was easy in that the trail was relatively forgiving, but the rocks were terrible. There were at least four boulder fields to cross. The weather was dry and cool. When I got to the shelter, which was Eagles Nest Shelter, it was full of mosquitoes, so I set up my hammock in a nearby cleared space. A number of through hikers have either been here and left or are staying the night.

 The reason the day was terrible was because I spent most of it trying to figure out why I am here. I briefly spoke to Allyson earlier today to make arrangements to stay in Port Clinton tomorrow, and I asked her why I was here. She replied, “Because you love it, and because you spent a lot of money to get there.“ That’s not a “why” – that’s a “how.”

I can think of two reasons why I’m here. The first is because I wanted to discern whether or not I want to become a deacon. So far, I haven’t gotten an answer, and I don’t think I’ll get an answer until maybe next year. In fact, my buddy in Harrisburg gave me several reasons for not becoming a deacon so maybe that’s the answer. Unless something happens in the next week, I don’t know that I’ll be able to figure this one out yet, and that’s probably the way it ought to be.

The second reason is that I wanted to put a period at the end of this phase in my life. I wanted to definitively end my IT career, hit pause for a month, and then start to do something new in August. I think I’ve accomplished this one. It’s not that I wanted to just leave everybody, the break was more for me than anybody else.

I heard those 30- somethings several days ago talking about “finding themselves” on the AT. i’m not trying to find myself, I know who I am. I don’t believe the AT can help you find yourself. What the trail does is it magnifies those things that you don’t have time to think about in the real world. So anything you “find“ on the trail you already brought with you.

My cough has gotten worse, and my feet are killing me on these rocks. I’m not ready to quit, but I’m taking it one day at a time. Please pray for me.

Today’s mileage: 9.8

Total trail miles: 185.6

I want to start this post by giving a shout out to eBunny, who is on the trail starting tomorrow at Harper’s Ferry going north. She’s leading a crew of three women to complete Maryland, and parts of southern Pennsylvania. When eBunny first met me, she was not a hiker, but I soon changed that. Not only is she a hiker now, but she’s a crew leader and I’m very proud of what she’s learned. Follow her crew here.

Last night was very weird. The evening sky was clear and the air was crisp, so I walked across to the Wendy’s to get a burger and some chili. The sales person was having trouble with one of those multi soda machines, you know the kind that’s got a screen with 100 different flavors and you select your flavor and it pours it. She said she just got it and it just wasn’t working right. We had a little conversation about the woes of IT.

On my way back over to the hotel, there was an ambulance in the porticache of the hotel. Apparently one of the hotel visitors was leaving, got in his car, and promptly expired. His wife, of course, was very upset. She said that he had cancer, and that it was not unexpected. But it’s a little unsettling to come back to your hotel to see a dead body on the ground. My first thought was that he was probably a hiker, and he was just sick of hiking.

Even though I was in the hotel, I didn’t sleep very well. I woke up this morning with a slight cough, and I hope that it’s just a temporary tickle in my throat. My shuttle driver Manipedi was right on time. He had hiked the entire Pennsylvania section before and was a local. I got a ride back up to the trail for $20. He also gave me knowledge of the trail going forward and put my mind at ease that the rocks didn’t get really bad until a little bit later on.

The trail this morning was beautiful, gentle ups and downs with soft tread. It quickly turned rocky. It began to run the ridge I would say 60% of the trail today was rocky and 40% was soft.

2 miles in, I came across the famous 501 shelter. This is more like a cabin than a shelter. It’s enclosed on all sides with a roof and two doors. It’s large with bunks for 12 people, shelves with books and games, a large central table and an octagonal skylight centered in the ceiling. Nobody was there, but I could see how this could be a party central to some kinds of hikers. Pizza boxes were stacked in the corner. Apparently, the shelter is so close to the road that you can call and get a pizza delivery to the shelter. I got some video of it.

It was a short day, only seven miles or so. When I got to Hertlein campsite, it was everything they said it would be. At the top of the ridge are three separate mountain streams that converge into one larger stream further down, and settle in a large pond that is held by a cement dam with a waterfall. I set my hammock up right next to the waterfall. When chores were done, I used a rope swing to swing out into the pond, which is essentially a large swimming hole. I got it all on video so if you wanna watch something funny. I’ll post it in a few days. Needless to say the water was pretty cold. I didn’t stay in very long.

It’s still pretty early in the day and I’m laying in my hammock composing this note. I’ve been thinking a lot about Allyson today on the trail. Our 32nd anniversary is next week. It’ll be the first one that we’ve celebrated apart. Today I was thinking that on the first Sunday of July, I’m sure she went up to the front of the church during Mass and received an anniversary blessing without me. That hurt my heart a little bit. You see, Allyson and I have the most blessed marriage on the planet. My marriage has convinced me to a certainty that there is a God and he loves me because that is the only explanation for how blessed we are. I miss her and I’m tempted to come home now. The only thing that keeps me from doing that is knowing that she would want me to stay and finish what I started. That’s how much she loves me.          

Today’s mileage: 7.5

Total trail miles: 176.3

Wow, these two days are a blur. At the end of day 15, I was able to make it to the spring at 141.6 miles. The shelter before that Was Peter’s Mountain Shelter and I had heard that the water at that shelter was essentially all the way down the mountain, and then a trickle – definitely not worth it. I arrived at the spring after a day of fairly easy trails and setup my hammock. I got to wash my feet and take a sponge bath, I was by myself. At 10:30pm, I was awaken by a hiker about 30 yards from my spot, obviously filtering water, but taking his good sweet time about it. He kept flashing (perhaps unintentionally) his light in my direction which was annoying. Most AT hikers are in the bag by 7pm. I turned my high-powered black diamond headlight on him and he got the message. I found out the next day that this hiker’s trail name was City Dog, and he was night hiking when he ran across me. I found him sleeping in the next shelter so his night hike didn’t by him much mileage. Total mileage this day was 13.1.

The next day was cool and overcast. I started hiking with a goal of getting to Rausch Gap Shelter (11.6 mi). Well, it started raining at 10:30am and didn’t stop until 7:30pm. Needless to say, I was soaked and my boots were sloshing. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but hiking in the rain takes it toll. My toll was that I developed a wet rash on both of my hips. Since I started hiking, my butt has gotten a little smaller and my pack belt is a little loose now – this causes some friction. I also had some pain in my right foot on the outside edge, I think I must’ve bruised it. These are routine injuries, nothing too serious, but it makes for a long day.

When I got to the shelter, there were eight hikers piled up in a space for six. Several cleared out over the course of the afternoon (including City Dog) leaving 6 thirty-somethings and me – a mismatch made in heaven. Of their trail names, I remember Fizz, Pony, and Captain America. Did I mention that a couple of them had a dog – IN THE SHELTER! Of the six, all of them were “thru-hikers”, five were unemployed or had quit their jobs, one was a student hiking for the summer. All of them spoke in that slang “valley talk” mode that so many young hikers do and all of them smoked pot. They offered me “a bowl” but I demurred. “I have five kids. I have all the highs could ever want.” The night was restless with all seven of us sleeping shoulder to shoulder. This is part of the AT experience, but an overcrowded shelter can be very unrestful. I would’ve set up my hammock if it hadn’t been raining and been a lot more comfortable.

I woke up the next morning, and my head was aching – simply a bad night’s sleep. My foot was a little better, but still tender and certainly not ready for any serious rocks, which I knew would be coming up in a few days. That morning, the AT path diverged (a rare occurrence). There was basically a “dry path” around a famous beaver dam coming up. This dam has been around a long time and is almost a mile long. I didn’t know if I had to get wet crossing it, but it sounded fun so I took the risk.

When I got there, it was a little daunting. About 100 yards of “dam” to cross – some of it 4 inches deep, some of it 4 feet deep, with a loose trail of floating logs to walk across. I took some video of this and will post when I get a chance. I tried to walk across some big logs, but the water was deep and my poles wouldn’t reach. I fell astraddle the log with my 40 pound pack dragging me from side to side. I managed to only get one boot in the water, but now I was stuck, sitting there on the log in the middle of beaver dam, and no easy way to get up and walk out. I was able to finally throw my feet up on the log behind me, kind of like a gymnast stands up on a balance beam over being astraddle. I made the rest of the way without incident – a big risk for simply falling in the water, but a lot of fun.

After my close encounter, with my head aching, my sides burning, my foot throbbing, and my boot squishing (do I sound pitiable enough?), I decided in was time to pull off for a day, rest, wash up, and recuperate. I hiked an additional 2.2 down from Swatara Gap into a little town called Jonestown, PA. Nobody picked me up – I guess I look shady with a three-week old beard. And here I sit at the Holiday Inn Express lobby computer typing this missive.

A shuttle will pick me up in the morning and return me to the AT.

Two-Day mileage: 18.8

Total Trail miles: 159.3

Today was a long day. It started with yet another porcupine. This one, however, was under the privy at the shelter, and so needless to say, I did not use the privvy this morning.

There was no water between Clark’s Ferry shelter and the spring that I camped at tonight, resulting in a 13 mile day. The trail was moderate, mostly running along the ridge. Not much change in elevation, but about 50% rocks, and 50% soft path. This kind of path is hard on your feet

When I got to this location, the spring was beautiful, piped, cold, and swarming with mosquitoes. For the first time I had to use my mosquito repellent wipes, but now they’re not bothering me. I was able to take a sponge bath since I’m the only one here.

Tomorrow is going to be a long day as well. I need to make it to Roush gap shelter, which will result in another 13 mile day, and there’s a big descent, and ascent  in front of me.

This is definitely a hard part of the trail. Not much water, lots of rocks, and long distances between shelters. Pray for me.

Today’s mileage: 13.1

Total trail miles: 141.6

While I was still at Pine Mountain shelter, about 1 AM, the resident porcupine decided to scratch the wall next to my bunk in the shelter. Porcupines are prolific diggers, and this one was no exception. I chased him away with a lighter rock only to hear him begin scratching at the privy a few minutes later. So I went over there and chased him away as well. He was large, but not very threatening.

The descent into Duncannon was rough. Duncan itself is a relatively poor town. I was able to pick up my resupply box and get a sandwich at mama Pat’s. The climb out of Duncannon was rough, lots of rocks. The trail was not well-maintained with lots of obstacles. It was switchback, a large tree had fallen across both the lower and the upper tracks walking to parts of the trail with a single tree. What’s up on the ridge, the trail follows the actual ridge, which is quite rocky and rough, not well marked.

After several retracts, I was able to arrive at Clarks ferry shelter. Shortly after I arrived, we had a pretty good rain storm. It cool things off and it was nice. Water here is good, but water for the next 40 miles or so. It’s going to be very sparse. Be careful to make sure we don’t run out. I will get up early in the morning and make a long day to see if we can make it to the second shelter.

Not a nice day today.

Today’s mileage: 9.2

Total trail miles: 128.5

Back on the trail between PA 944 and cove Mountain shelter. Approach trail to Darlington shelter is magnificent. Long level switchbacks, soft trail well-maintained. The first half of the day was very very pleasant. The last half of the day was pretty rocky. Coming up to the shelter to get to the shelter, there’s almost a 500 foot dissent. The water here is not good. It is another 400 feet dissent down the mountain, it was adequate, but is not running very well.

Tomorrow I plan to hike into Duncannon and resupply, but not stay there. I will hike up to either Clark’s Ferry Shelter, or Peter’s mountain shelter, I don’t know which. Overall, a pleasant day, I’ll be interested to see Duncannon tomorrow.

Today’s mileage: 9.6

Total trail miles: 120.2

Today was spent at the hotel, cleaning, curating, consolidating, packing and repacking, until I was happy with the results. As the day wore on, two thoughts filled my mind. 

Thought One: Less is More 

The further north I go, the less I need or want. My pack is terribly heavy. I looked at every single piece of gear today, thinking of all the miles I’ve schlepped them, and realizing that I don’t really need some of them. Things like my flint/steel, compass, paper maps, the AT data book, extra bug wipes, extra food, extra clothes and socks. When I mail it, I’ll check the weight, but I bet I cut 5 pounds of gear that I simply don’t need. 

The point is that doing with less is the path of getting older. My kids ask me what I want for Christmas, and I truly don’t want anything other than to be with them, to cook some family meals, and share time with them. I think not needing more also goes hand in hand with understanding that time is getting shorter as well. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not despairing about death, and I don’t feel old yet, but I’m not a spring chicken anymore either. This hike has me hyper focused – HYPER FOCUSED – on making every moment count. 

Though Two: Identity 

I’ve spent most of my life cultivating different identities based upon roles. I’ve been a husband, father, student, professional, teacher, mentor, manager, etc. It seems that we move in life, whether from day to day or even moment to moment, between these identities. When the kids left yesterday, I was sad because I love them and knew I’d miss them, but I had a deeper insight. I also missed them because when they left, I had no object on which to exercise my “father” identity. You see, the trail doesn’t allow you to put on an identity. Hikers don’t care that I have a PhD, or that I was a CIO of a state agency – it doesn’t even come up. The trail forces you to live in the moment. When you’re out here, the thing that matters – the only thing that really matters – is that you’re a child of God finding your way. Maybe that’s the attraction. 

The Canticle of Daniel comes up frequently in the morning Lauds and has this passage: 

Sun and moon, bless the Lord;   
Stars of heaven, bless the Lord;   
Every shower and dew, bless the Lord;  
All you winds, bless the Lord;  
Fire and heat, bless the Lord;  
Cold and chill, bless the Lord;  
Dew and rain, bless the Lord;  
Frost and chill, bless the Lord;  
Hoarfrost and snow, bless the Lord;  
Nights and days, bless the Lord;  
Light and darkness, bless the Lord;  
Lightnings and clouds, bless the Lord;  
Let the earth bless the Lord, praise and exalt him above all forever.  

Mountains and hills, bless the Lord;  
Everything growing on earth, bless the Lord;  
You springs, bless the Lord;  
Seas and rivers, bless the Lord;  
You sea monsters and all water creatures, bless the Lord;  
All you birds of the air, bless the Lord;  
All you beasts, wild and tame, bless the Lord;  
All you mortals, bless the Lord;  
O Israel, bless the Lord; praise and exalt him above all forever. 

Sounds like Daniel was a hiker. 

The plan for tomorrow is for Jim to drop me off at the northern ridge to make the ascent. I’m skipping all of the flat farmland between the lower and upper ranges. I should be in Duncannon, PA in two days. 

Today’s mileage: 0 

Total trail miles: 76.8 

Last night, I had a little problem with the rain. My fly was not set correctly and so my bag and hammock got a little wet. It wasn’t a disaster, but it was inconvenient and made my bag heavier today with all the wetness. I had to pull another pair of clothes out and now I have two sets of wet clothes that need to be dried. 

I got a late start this morning. We didn’t get out of camp until almost 10:30 because of all the rain and packing up. Wet gear makes it harder to pack, but we were happily on our way. We had a medium day today on soft trail mostly downhill to a shelter named Tom’s Run Shelter 

We ran into Rambo again and his companion who were coming the opposite way on the trail. Apparently, they had left their car keys somewhere and had to get transported back to where they started at Caledonia State Park, a long hike. I told him the next time I saw him, it would be to give him a beer at the brewery. 

The day was marked by blueberries. They were blueberries for almost the entire trail at our feet, most of them unripe, but some of them ready to eat. Seth really enjoyed picking blueberries and feeding them to John Robert who loves them. When we got to the shelter there was a slight shower again, but we were able to weather through that and now it’s clear and the birds are chirping as I lay in my hammock. We have to get an early start in the morning in order to catch the shuttle that will take Seth, Kathryn and John back to Harpers Ferry. Mike, the shuttle driver will also give me a ride to Pine Grove. I will get picked up there by my friend Jim and go into Harrisburg for the Fourth of July celebration. I intend on staying at a motel for a couple of days to rest, resupply and dry everything out. 

Another stellar day. The blessings just keep coming with the kids being with me. I don’t know how I’m going to make it when they leave. 

Today’s mileage: 6.2 

Total trail miles: 75.7 

Last night at Quarry Gap Shelter there was a massive thunderstorm at about 2 AM. I can’t tell you how good it is to be in the shelter in your bag nice and toasty warm without getting wet. It’s one of the best things about hiking the AT-sleeping in a thunderstorm and staying dry.

Starting from Quarry Gap Shelter, we hiked through some pretty soft trail to Birch Run Shelter which was our stop for today. Two things of note: we saw a bright orange salamander on the trail which was uncommon. We also saw unripe blueberries. We went under some big electrical hummers and I can tell you that in the middle of a rain storm those hammers hum more than they normally do. It’s a little scary and intimidating to walk under them thinking of all the electricity and power passing through them. Somewhere along the trail today, we will also pass the actual halfway point of the AT. There was supposed to be a plaque, but we didn’t see one. 

When we got to our shelter, we found a beautiful campsite right next to a clear running stream. John was very dirty from playing in the dirt so he got to swim a little bit in the stream to clean off. We got some good video that including some underwater footage. 

The collection of hikers at the shelter tonight was very eclectic. We had one hiker, Shades, who is hiking solo, vision impaired, and using a guide dog. We saw Rambo again today, but he and his partner decided to go to the next shelter. There was a group of about six or seven hikers around smoking fire, not really even a campfire, more a smoking pile of sticks. 

We have no cell service today and so we were unable to call Mattie on her birthday which also happens to be the anniversary of the battle of Gettysburg, We just passed by Gettysburg yesterday. The kids had a lot of fun tonight. Seth is very impressed with this campsite and the beauty of the woods. I think that he’s happy that he came. 

Overall, a soft day of hiking, beautiful trail, a mid-day, shower to cool us off, and a glorious evening to sleep under the stars. 

Today’s mileage: 7.4 

Total trail miles: 69.5 

Today was a glorious day. we spent some time in the morning taking our time packing up. We finally got out of Rocky Mountain shelter at about 915. We spent the morning mainly going down to Caledonia state park which was about 4.6 miles from the shelter.

In the park we came across some extreme trail magic. Hiker named Rambo was serving up salads, sandwiches, beer, fruit to any hikers coming down off the mountain, it being Saturday morning. He had through-hiked  the trail some years earlier, and just wanted to do something nice for all of the travelers that were going on. We spent about an hour in the park eating wonderful sandwiches with tomatoes and lettuce and mushrooms. Got rid of all of our trash and filled up our water and then we started to hike up to Quarry gap shelter.

Quarry, gap shelter is a fairytale. It looks like something straight out of Snow White. When you enter the shelter grounds, there is a picket fence with flowers planted on both sides. Just inside the compound is a stump with a gnome. The shelter itself is two, modest well kept rooms with a picnic table in the middle. Everything looks like it’s out of a fairytale. This is the finest shelter I’ve ever stayed in.

For dinner we had our regular food dehydrated, but we also had crème brûlée, which was a treat. I think John ate half the package. The kid ate so much food I think he’s going to pop.

Just a few minutes ago. A gentle rain shower started and we can hear the drops on the tin roof above us. We’re dry sleepy, and in the perfect place to spend the night in a summer shower. I think the kids had fun today. I know John did.

I’m so thankful that they are with me on the trail. I have two nights with them left, and then they pull off and go home. It’ll be a lonely, two weeks after that, but I’m sure there are further ventures waiting me.

Today’s mileage: 5.6

Total trail miles 62.1

Today was a long but good day. Started off from tumbling run shelter which again is a very nice shelter with excellent water. There is a 1000 foot ascent out of tumbling run shelters which was very challenging for me. My target was South Mountain Pennsylvania where I picked up Kathryn, Seth and John Robert.

John, so far is doing great. He likes to see everything in the woods and play with rocks. I think it’s good that he’s getting this kind of exposure to nature this early. He sleeps a lot while his mother carries him. We don’t have to worry much about food for him because his mother is his food, plus he eats whatever we happen to be eating as well.

The only challenging part about the day was the hike into South Mountain along Pennsylvania Highway 233. It’s about a mile and a half very hot with the heat from the road coming up. Hiking along road is not very nice. But I was able to make it to the post office, resupply with food, drop some other food that I didn’t need and gear off and mail it back home to Allyson. Then we had to hike back up from the post office to get to the trail which was about another 1.5. That added 3 miles for the day, which, for me, was already starting to turn into a long day.

We were able to get those chores done, and make it to the trail, which was an ascent, but not a very challenging one up to the ridge another 2 miles to the shelter. According to the notebook, the shelter has “the best smelling privy since Georgia.“ I don’t know if that’s true, but it is nice. I’ll talk about privies another day.

Overall an excellent day. I’m glad to be with my kids and to hear about everything that’s going on at home. Having them here is a joy and blessing.  

Today’s mileage: 8.6

Total trail miles 56.5

My good friend Wally gave me a little booklet detailing trip notes from Wally. In it, he quotes Arnold Bennett, “ The chief beauty about time is that you cannot waste it in advance. The next year, the next day, the next hour are lying, ready for you, as perfect, as unspoiled, as if you had never wasted or misapplied a single moment in all your life. You can turn over a new leaf every hour if you choose. “ Thanks, Wally. I needed that.

Today marks the end of the first section of my hike. I have finished the Maryland section and begin the Pennsylvania section today. So, it really is the end of one phase in the beginning of the next. Your prayers and thoughts that you wrote me before I left, all of you, have greatly moved me. I appreciate what you’ve done. You give me the strength to continue.

Today was a perfect hiking day. For starters, it was the first day that I haven’t felt like I’ve been dragging my backside. I decided to take a little bit longer step for ups and downs, this is made all the difference. I think also, my body is getting used the exercise and routine. The trail north of PenMar is beautiful. The trees have changed to pine trees mixed with hardwoods whereas in Maryland it’s all hardwood. Although there are some rocks, certainly not what I was expecting. I think mentally I was prepared for Rock Hell, but the reality of the situation was much gentler.

Relatively short day today. I stopped at tumbling run shelters, which are beautiful. There is a crystal, clear, spring, piped, running out of the rock. This is the kind of water that you want on the AT. Two nicely built shelters, one for snorers,but I set up my hammock anyway, because it’s more comfortable than sleeping on a pad. I met a father and daughter who were hiking in for the day. They were from upstate Pennsylvania, and were delightful, they’re hiking out tomorrow

Kathryn, Seth and John Robert will meet me tomorrow during the day and we will hike up to a shelter. It’s another short day so that Kathryn can get used to carrying the baby. I’m so looking forward to seeing them.

Today’s mileage: 9.5

Total trail miles 49.9

Got up fairly early at 6 o’clock because I knew that today would be a long day. I packed up my gear fairly quickly, skipped breakfast, and got on the trail at about 720. Today would be two ascents including an ascent to the highest peak on the Maryland trail with a significant down into PenMar.

The day was relatively uneventful. The largest up to the top of high rock was difficult. About a mile out from the turn off to the high rock overlook, I began seeing graffiti with spray paint over some of the rocks in the trail, that’s peculiar because I’ve never seen graffiti on rocks before. As I got to high rock, I understood why. High rock, which is a promontory of rocks that looks out over the east was literally covered every square inch in painted graffiti. It was the ugliest thing I’ve ever seen in my life. North the graffiti continued on the rocks for about a mile. What is someone thinking that does that?

The down into Penmar was hard there were several large rock fields to traverse that took about 20 to 30 minutes apiece, this is the kind of terrain that is extremely hard on your body and feet. By the time I got down to the regular elevation, there were some good trail into PenMar itself. I saw numerous deer along the way. I had made a reservation at a PenMar hikers hostel named Zero Day. It’s a new place and I highly recommend it. The owner is very conscientious and the place is spotlessly clean. You can do laundry, eat,  take a shower have a private room very nice accommodations. I feel rejuvenated and ready for the next day.

Today’s mileage: 10.0

Total trail miles 41.4

Got a really late start from Pogo campground and decided that I would take a short day and end up at my scheduled stop, which is Ensign Cowell shelter. I arrive there around 5 o’clock, and there were a few slack packers in the shelter, who are not very friendly. So I decided to set my hammock up away from the shelter, ostensibly, so my snoring would not bother them, but really because it would seem to be a better option to be by myself.

About 530, a crew of about 17 Outward Bound kiddos, probably about 14 to 15 years old, marched into the camp. I found out from their leader that this was their first hike, indeed many of them the first time they had been in the woods. They set up their tarp tents all over the place, including across the paths. this was bad enough, but as they got in the sack, a tent next to me, literally 15 feet away from my hammock, was a tent with seven adolescent boys, who proceeded to scream, like little girls at the spiders on the ground. Their leader came over several times, and told them to calm down, but this was to no avail, they didn’t actually quiet down until almost 1030.

The next morning, their leader gave them a fairly stern lecture about camp etiquette, and how to be respectful to others around them. We’ll see if it sinks in. My main thought over the whole thing was, “how can I do the most good with these kids without complaining about them?“ so I didn’t blow my top. I didn’t fuss at them or yell at them. I showed several of them had a tie knots and offered beef jerky which they refused. I can vaguely remember the first time I went backpacking. While I wasn’t as noisy, I probably knew less than they did.

Today’s mileage: 4.4

Total trail miles 31.8

Left the Dahlgren campground early at 7:23 AM. My destination was the Pogo campground. I had heard that there was good  water there and indeed, that was true. The day was relatively uneventful. The first part consisted of a number of moderate ascents. I ate lunch at Pine knob shelter, which is a terrible shelter without much water, but I was able to get a 45 minute night nap in.

The rest of the day was ridge running and so was relatively easy and pleasant. The ground was soft and relatively level straight north.

Met a lot of people on the trail today, but not as many as over the weekend now that the weekdays are here, the people are starting to sit out.  You basically have section and through hikers on the trail during the week and this makes the camps a little less crowded. As I lay in my hammock here in pogo camp site, I can only see one other couple in the entire camp and it’s large.

I’m about half a day ahead of my schedule, but now I have a quandary. Do I take a short day tomorrow? If so, I’ll be back on my schedule or do I take a long day tomorrow do a 10 miler and make it to the next shelter that would put me about 3/4 of a day ahead. I haven’t decided what I’m gonna do yet. I got some blisters that could use a rest. I guess I’ll decide in the morning

Today’s mileage: 7.8

Total trail miles 25.7

Since it’s a short day, I slept in kind of late. I stepped off from camp at 9:20 AM, three minutes earlier than yesterday. I guess that’s an improvement.

My destination was the Dahlgren campground, I lovely place maintained by the Maryland state department. There is running water, showers, bare poles, and tent pads. I’m here with about five of the families and a few trail hikers.

Overall, it was a good day. The weather was clear. I began to realize just how slow a hiker I am when a six year old girl – trail name, Viriole – past me, twice. Her mother and her stopped at the White Rock, Cliffs to view the scene, and I was able to get out a little sooner. But they passed me up about an hour later. Later in the day, a section hiker named One Lung passed me up. You know you’re slow when a hiker named One Lung passes you up.

Hiking so slow, I spent a lot of time contemplating rocks. The Appalachian Mountain range is the youngest range in the world. They were formed during the last I e Age about 200,000 years ago. Generously estimating my life expectancy at 80 years, these rocks are already 2500 times older than I’ll ever be. And when I die, I’ll return to dust and be precisely as mobile as these rocks. So they deserve a little respect.

Change of plan: I’m hiking to Pogo Campsite tomorrow instead of Pine Knob. It’ll make a shorter day after.

Today’s mileage: 7.1

Total trail miles: 17.9

The day didn’t start out well. I walked down to the post office, only to find out that it doesn’t open until 9 AM. So I walked back to the bolivar  bread, bakery to get a roll, only to find out, they didn’t open until 8 AM. So here I sit waiting for them to open the door. I’ll hang out here for an hour until the post office opens and then mail my back home box. I don’t regret it. Time spent in Harpers Ferry is never wasted.

Finally stepped off on the trail at 9:23 AM. The first part of the hike along the canal and river was pretty uneventful, the path is flat and well tended. The ascent to the Weverton Cliffs was uneventful, although it took me a while to get there. I had 7 miles to the first shelter, stopped and ate lunch. I decided I was going to try for the second shelter which is the Crampton gap shelter. I read the sign I incorrectly and ended up about a mile past the shelter. Since it was already after 7 PM, I decided to pull off on the side, pitch camp and spend the night.

The interesting thing about this campsite is that there is a town to the west of the ridge. Either Def Leppard or a Def Leppard copycat is playing a concert down in the town. I can hear all of the top tunes of Def Leppard down there. It’s almost 930 and they’re starting to wind down. I guess it’s Saturday night 

I’m posting this journal entry without any corrections. I’m dictating it with my voice. My reading glasses are in my backpack, and I don’t wanna get out of my Hamic to get them. Tomorrow night I will remember to put them in the hammock. So sorry about the mistakes total distance hike today 13.2 miles including side trails. Not a bad day one.

Lesson for the day: slow down

For those of you who have hiked the AT before, you know that the southern terminus of the trail officially starts at the top of Springer Mountain in Georgia. Springer Mountain is a tall mountain, and somewhat difficult to get to. Most hard-core AT hikers will start at Amicalola Falls, which is a hard days hike from Springer, all of it up. Some slack packers will hire a shuttle to take them up to the top of Springer, but I think this is cheating. I’ve always found it interesting that you have to hike a hard day to get to the beginning of the AT, but that’s fitting considering the breadth and depth of the trail.

Getting from the Brazos Valley to Harpers Ferry today was my approach trail, and a very interesting day. The two flights up to DC were uneventful. After 3 subway rides, I made it to Union Station, which is a massive building beautifully designed. I had several hours to kill so I bought a half a sub sandwich and sat down on the lower level to people watch.

I didn’t have to wait long, because a man ran up to the subway counter, stole some money and ran off. Several seconds later four cops passed by running to go catch him.

When I finally got on the train, the real fun began. If you’ve never read the book A Walk in the Woods, by Bill Bryson, you really should pick it up. You’ll laugh so hard your sides will hurt. Anyway, there’s a character in the book named Mary Ellen. The guy I sat next to, let’s just call him James, was a male Mary Ellen. He was obviously a train spotter, and launched into a detailed description of the trains that he had when he was a kid, how he worked at a hobby store and bartered for trains rather than take money, and how he used to steal coils of wire from houses to wire up the trains that he collected. He peppered me with a little known facts, such as Roger Clemens went to his high school, but because he never went to class they were disqualified from winning any games. He was also a Scoutmaster, and so that was something we had in common. He told me detailed descriptions of at least five different trips that they took with the scouts. A real boor. After 30 minutes of this, I politely excused myself to go to the restroom. When I got back he was leaning over the seats in front of us and talking with those folks whom I’m sure he had never met before. He remained in that position for at least 20 minutes talking to them, about what I don’t know, his butt-crack just visible over the top of his waistband. That was the longest hour and 15 minutes I’ve ever had in my life.

Getting to Harpers Ferry, I was picked up by my Airbnb hostess Rei, who is a delightful woman with NOWLS experience. Her bed and bed breakfast is well worth visiting if you’re ever in Harpers Ferry. I’ve unpacked my pack, redistributed, everything to be more efficient, packed my go-home box for tomorrow, and I’m sitting here on the porch of the house looking at the overcast sky to Maryland Heights across the river. In the morning, I’ll start day one. Yes, today was an eventful approach trail.

I posted my first trail package this morning. Using the “hold for pickup” service, you can post a package to a U.S. post office which will keep it for you until you get there. In this way, you can stage boxes of consumables to be picked up during your hike. It’s a bit of a balancing act. You have to allow for variations in your hiking schedule, delivery time, and even the hours the post office is open. You don’t want to show up at 10 am to a post office that doesn’t open until noon. Arriving late could mean that you have to spend the night close by and essentially waste a day hanging around when you should be moving.

Mama Bear will post the next three boxes when the dates get a little closer. She will add tortillas just before mailing – they are a great luxury on the trail. Knowing that she is back home, holding down the “fort” and thinking of me is a great comfort, a connection to the real world. I can imagine getting the boxes she sends, perhaps with a little note in them. My father taught me the greatest thing you can give to another person is to wait for them. My boxes will be waiting for me somewhere up ahead. Mama Bear will waiting for my return somewhere behind.

As the time draws near for me to step-off, the reality of being gone for a month is beginning to sink in. Routine things like paying bills, adding chlorine to the septic tanks, bathing the dog, and checking the mail have to be addressed. Of course it helps to have a family that will take care of things while I’m gone. The minutiae of daily life reminds me of the story of Martha and Mary in the New Testament. You see, I’m more prone to be a Martha, distracted by the preparations of the day with my head turned down to the things of the world, rather than looking up to God, to the one thing that really matters. This is why I’m looking so much forward to this trip. I will have an extended period of time, really the longest in my life, to step out of the details of the world and concentrate on my mental, physical, and spiritual health without the worry of the day-to-day.

It also makes me consider time. The last 30 years of work haven’t seemed that long. I’ve gotten married, raised five kids, earned two advanced degrees, and held leadership positions with half a dozen organizations. I’ve accomplished everything I set out to do professionally . Yet, I don’t feel that old. For the first time since graduating from college, I won’t have a full-time “nine to five” job. My situation has changed. I’ll have more time to do other things. But my mind always seems to turn back to the trail.

When you’re out there, your mind, body, and soul reset. I always notice it after about a week when I start to get emotional. I’ve described it to my wife as “my heart learning to beat again.” Little things and memories feel much deeper. I think about people I love and those I’ve lost. I sense the world around me differently – the smell of the earth after a sudden shower, the warmth of a sunbeam on my arm stabbing through the dense canopy. It feels like my spirit is a bottle being uncorked.

Don’t get me wrong – hiking is hard. Hiking is “deprivation,” which is why new hikers almost always have one of two reactions to long-distance backpacking. Some “embrace the suck” and get what it’s all about. They’ll be back. Others, when you ask them about their experience reply, “It’s not what I expected.” Well, what did you expect? Here’s hiking in a nutshell: you wake up, walk, eat, walk some more, eat, sleep, wake up and walk some more – simplicity itself. But when you return to the real world, you see things differently, and long to get back to it.