Category: 2018 Appalachian Trail

First off, Happy Fathers Day to our dads, Hal and Bill. They are both in their 80s and going strong. 

It was great to be able to sleep in.  Bunny woke me up and told me it was 7:15. I ignored her hoping she would go back to sleep. It worked. An hour later I checked the clock and it was only 6:20. I asked her what the hell she was talking about. She claimed ignorance and claimed I had been dreaming if I heard her say anything earlier. Apparently, Bunny has taken up sleep talking in attempt to mess with me. 

When we did get up and get ready, we went across the street to Goodies for breakfast. As soon as we sat down, Ed came in and joined us.  After his fall yesterday, he has decided to get off the trail. Bunny and I disagree with what we heard him say he was going to do. I thought he was going to hike some less hilly/rocky trail, but she heard him say he was jumping ahead and skipping the rest of PA.

Ed did tell us he is a bit of a historian. He has reviewed the original journals of Earle Schaffer and has concluded that Earle didn’t actually hike the entire trail in ‘47 which is his claim to fame as being the first thru-hiker. This was collaborated by other researchers. (I don’t think Ed developed this theory, just collaborated other research.). There were actually 6 Boy Scouts that hiked the trail in the late ‘30s trying to raise interest in Boy Scouts. They weren’t in it for the personal glory so they didn’t push their accomplishments at the time. This was almost an entire decade before Earle claimed to have done his first hike. 

When we had crossed the street to go eat, it was perfect hiking weather—cool and overcast. We decided that if we took our time getting out of town, we could avoid the great weather and get the high heat and humidity we had been promised for today. We started hiking at 11; mission accomplished. 

Duncannon was a much bigger dying town than we had realized. It seemed to never end as we walked through town. We had to cross two rivers to get out of town. The bridge across the Susquehanna River was covered in huge spiders. I’ll bet there must have been close to a ton of spiders, webs, and caught bugs hanging on the rails. I started touching webs as I passed to agitate the spiders. I hope they don’t have a great communication network or I’m going to be overrun tonight.  

We only had around 1000’ of climbing to get up on the ridge, but it took its toll on us.  I thought we had slept fairly well last night, had 3 town meals, and gotten rehydrated. The only explanation must be that a) Bunny is putting rocks in my pack to try and slow me down, or b) the heat was having an effect on us.

The original plan had been to get in 18 miles today but we quickly decided to shoot for the second shelter instead. Once we were up on the ridge, the walking wasn’t bad. There were a few rocks in the trail, but not the nightmare scenario that PA has been painted to be. Just like the Doyle wasn’t as bad as the stories of it have grown to be. 

We stopped at the first shelter to rehydrate. I drank 2 liters of water which I used to mark my territory all the way to the next shelter. It’s always a good idea to let bears know who is in the area.  There were a few views of the river valleys on either side of the trail. I would like to understand a little more of the forces that created these long, narrow mountains we are walking on.  We are walking on a pretty level ridge about 50’ wide on top. The mountains in this area are nothing like the individual peaks we encountered in GA and NC. 

The shelter already had 3 tents set up beside it by the time we arrived at 6:30. For once, we were able to get everything done while it was still light. The only bad thing about this shelter is the water source. There’s a sign in front of the shelter saying 300 steps to the spring. I interpreted that to mean 150 paces. They meant steps as in stair steps.  I carried 7 liters of water up and counted the steps. I got 294.  Close enough because anything more than 50 sucks. 

EFG

We heard everyone across the creek up and moving a few minutes after 6, but neither one of us was feeling it after almost 40 miles in the last two days.  With our late starts, we’ve been too late getting in to stay up to date on all of our nightly chores that we need to get done. Add in the fact that BOTH of our Big Agnes sleeping pads now have micro leaks (and this is a new pad I just got from them and have only slept on less than 10 nights) so we keep waking up sleeping directly on the ground. Our sleep has not been long enough or restful enough. Bunny is getting meaner than usual no matter how saccharine sweet I get. 

We did get up about 7:10—still a respectable time for us. I only mention this so I can pat ourselves on the back. We ate, got water, dried out the tent, and packed up in just an hour and twenty minutes—a full 10 minutes faster than our usual time. Now that I put it down in print, it doesn’t seem as impressive because neither one of us took a morning constitutional which will catch up with us down the trail. 

Bunny is much tougher than she thinks or claims to be. I give her a little crap because she is slow as hell at doing things, but consider what she is going through and what she has done. Her hips are constantly in pain. We have tried everything and been to numerous specialists with almost no improvements. The one thing that seemed to help, physical therapy with a chiropractor fell through because of insurance (quickly followed by Bunny’s belief that it really wasn’t helping anyway). 

She has hiked the GR10 which is probably the toughest trail we will ever hike. That’s why it bothers me so much when she says “I can’t do this” or “It looks steep on Guthook.”  She psyches herself out. I wish she’d say things like “I’m tired but I know I can do this, after all, I’ve done the GR10 which is much harder.”  She tends to have a negative voice which irritates me which makes me say something which is never helpful or a good thing. 

Most afternoons, Bunny hikes my ass into the ground. Most mornings, it would be much easier for me to pull a donkey up a mountain, so it evens out in the long run. I hate mornings that start with a climb when Bunny hasn’t slept well, her hips are hurting, and she’s looked at Guthook. Today, we had the trifecta of slowdowns.  We only averaged 1.5 mph for the first 2 hours, much less than our normal rate of almost 2.25 mph we have been hiking for the last 300 miles. I was getting irritated, the donkey dug in her heels. A storm was brewing. 

As we started our descent into town, we found the relief valve we needed. Just Ed had fallen when he started down. We didn’t see it happen, but we caught up to him 114 steps later (Ed counts things when he’s hiking to keep his mind occupied). He had a big knot on his forehead and needed a bandaid. We pulled one out for him and noticed he was shaking a bit. No doubt, he had an adrenaline rush from the fall and was still shook up. We followed him down through the rest of the steps (316 when we left him). We made sure he sat down, got some food and water in him, and saw that he was calm again.  Ed is an older guy, has hiked over 60,000 miles in his lifetime, and is currently undergoing cancer treatment. He is an inspiration and legend. Please include him in your prayers if you pray. 

We got to Duncannon by noon and headed straight to the Doyle Hotel.  The Doyle is legendary for how bad the building is yet how good the food is. We decided to have lunch before checking out trail days. There were about 10 other hikers already inside eating when we walked in.  

The owner goes by QB for Queen Bitch but she is the furthest thing from one.  Her and her husband bought the place 17 years ago. They are former hippies and still have dreams that they can fix the place up.  They are both in their 60s and very much still in love after 39 years of marriage. Bunny and I talked with them for quite a while. When they look at the building, they see it as they hope to make it. Vicki (QB) is quick with a hug, wave, smile, and a laugh. They are a sweet couple.

Our friend, Chad the Dad, texted us that the Doyle is just one less overdose above a ghetto. The building is in bad shape and has a questionable future, just like the town it sits in. He said you’d have to be an idiot to stay here. He spent two nights. 

The building is over 110 years old. It used to be a Budweiser Hotel. It is the biggest structure in town and it is in serious need of help. From stories I hear of the ‘80s and ‘90s, it has definitely improved, but there’s still a long way to go. There are some serious issues with the electricity and plumbing. Also, a few structural problems that I can see where the plaster has fallen off the walls and ceilings.  I just don’t know if the hiker traffic would be enough to sustain the capital investment needed to save the building. I do know that Vicki and her husband have a dream and vision for the building.  I wish them the best. She’s the sweetest “bitch” I’ve ever met—Queen Vicki.

Our room only cost $35 for the night. It is comfortable and safe. There are only hikers staying here. The bed is great and has clean linens on it. We got fresh clean towels for us in the room.  We even have a fan (anyone that knows me knows that was a huge plus for me).  The bathrooms are in need of work but the water temperature and pressure were fantastic. The building was condemned in the ‘90s but they are bringing it back. To everyone passing through here, give it a chance. It doesn’t live up to the horror stories told about it. If you were old and locked up in a home with people telling you that you aren’t going to make it, wouldn’t you like some visitors to cheer you up?

We went to the Appalachian Trails festival. There were a few food trucks, a couple blocks of craft booths, some trail organizations trying to get people out on walks. No one recognized us as through hikers (and we still hadn’t showered or done laundry).  Damn these merino wool clothes.  If only we wore polyester, people would be able to smell us 100 yards out. We need to get a merino wool sponsor so we can clean up this trail and the thru-hikers’ image. 

Vicki actually snuck out and walked around the festival. We joined her at her bar a little later for some more conversation. The bar and restaurant are thriving. We had a couple of beers and talked with other people in the bar until closing…at 8p. This is a hiker friendly, hiker safe place. We took too long to make up our minds about food and had to go somewhere else after close. We may not get to bed until after 10 tonight. As hikers go, we’re rebels.

EFG

I woke up early, several times. We were staying in a former chicken coop.  There is a newer one behind the house. I had a craving for chicken for breakfast and I knew which one I was willing to kill and eat. I’d even do it Ozzie style and bite his head off.  I now understand why Dan and Sue have July 4th parties and fire a canon. When that canon fires, their neighbor’s rooster shuts up for days. I wanted a canon at 4. 

Lisa dropped us off at Cafe 101 a little after 8. In spite of the rooster, we did have a pleasant night’s sleep. It was our own fault for staying up so late talking to her son and his friends around the fire. They were all very polite and friendly. We talked about the area, the Civil War, hiking, and how great the copperheads were doing this year. There’s a big population explosion this year. (Yay). It was one friend’s birthday and he had a bottle of Maker’s Mark Whiskey which he was willing to share. I think this is decent sipping whiskey while everyone else, more or less, held their noses and downed shots trying not to taste it. 

There were several other thru-hikers we knew having breakfast. We chose to be nice to the other patrons and sit outside.  One guy started talking to me about hiking and I discovered he had just gotten back from hiking the Annapurna Circuit in Nepal. I hiked this in 2009 so I enjoyed hearing about the changes that have happened there. After others saw he could safely talk to us and not be consumed by our smell, several people started talking to us and offering congratulations for being so old and hiking the trail (they didn’t actually use those words).  They also wanted us to check out the spring which is the source of the town name and the cause for the high school team being called the “bubblers.” With a name like Smuckers, it’s gotta be good. 

After the spring, we stopped by the Post Office and sent Bunny’s boots to my college buddy, Raj.  We are going to take a couple days off and visit him and his family. After the P.O. we stopped by the outfitter who was very glad to see us leave because we caused a bit of a problem with trying to get replacement parts.  In the end, we walked out with a new pair of hiking poles for Bunny and a replacement pair of socks for me.  (Yes, I buy socks with a lifetime guarantee and hold them to it.) We topped off our abbreviated town visit by stopping by the ATC office for water and an opinion. After much local input, we have decided to skip Hershey and head to Yuengling. 

Not only was this another gorgeous hiking day making our first double great day, it was actually 14 miles easy walking like we had been promised all through Virginia. Maybe this is a result of global warming. Think about it, birds have to fly further north in summers now. Polar bears have gone so far north there’s no north left for them. Undoubtedly, the flat sections of trail have also migrated further north. With any luck, the rumored tough sections in New Hampshire have moved so far north that there won’t be any tough hiking left between here and Katahdin. Thanks, Obama!

The only rough part of the day was the end. After 14 miles of actual level hiking, we had to end with our only climbs. We had been going so fast that we spent more energy than usual. Even though it was only 1000’ max, the climb up to our site was much harder than it should have been. When we got to the spot we had picked, we found Gray Squirrel, Wallaby, ET & her boyfriend, Grant already set up and getting ready for bed. 

This was a relatively long day of hiking for us.  We hiked 18 miles in 8 hours and 45 minutes (including breaks). I’d like to think that if we started hiking at a reasonable hour (say 8a instead of 11:15), we might be able to put in a few 20 mile days. We would like to make up some time for all the lolly gagging we did in the south.  Peter and Marcia have told us they will hike with us wherever we are in New England when Marcia has her vacation scheduled. However, we would like to be to the point where we can summit Katahdin with them since they are our oldest hiking friends (no age reference meant here) and, before this trip, were the only people we knew who have hiked the trail. It would be a great memory for our old friends (maybe a little age knock that time).

EFG

I don’t know why, but everyone was in a mad rush to head out of the Mansion this morning.  There were only three of us signed up for breakfast (I’ll never pass up a $5 breakfast on the trail). Snow Angel, from the Netherlands, who we met in Waynesboro, joined us.  She is going about the same pace as we are and has decided that a 6 month visa will not be long enough to finish. 

To train for the Appalachian Trail, Snow Angel decided to do some section hikes of the GR10. It’s coming up on the 1 year anniversary of us starting the GR10 so we had lots to talk about. We have not met a lot of people that even know about the GR10 yet alone hike it. We all agreed that it would have been wiser to hike the AT as a training hiker for the GR10 rather than the other way around, like we all did.

We had to be out of the Mansion by 9 so we finished up getting ready on the porch. Pilgrim came up as we were finishing up and told us that he, Thumper, and Skywalker are going to take a zero day at Duncannon to go to Hershey, PA for the amusement park.  They had gone to Gettysburg the day before yesterday and loved it. We said we might consider Hershey. He was waiting for Thumper and Skywalker to show up to do their half gallon challenges. Pilgrim bet $20 that he can finish under 20 minutes. 

We had to walk through Pine Grove Furnace Park as part of the trail.  This is a great little park with the original iron furnace still standing. There’s a lake with a beach, concession stand, bathrooms (yes, the presence of porcelain excites me), and several picnic areas. It’s a beautiful little state park. 

One thing that I’m noticing already in the north is that the trail runs much closer to private property. We often find ourselves walking between houses or along the backside of houses. In the south, the trail ran mostly on national forests or state lands. In PA, so far, we hear much more sounds of civilization (lawn mowers, cars, gun shooting, etc). We hear gunfire on a daily basis now. I didn’t realize PA had so many schools.

As we were climbing out of the park, we met a sobo section hiker, Hoot Owl.  When I found out he was a local, I had lots of questions for him about what we should make time to do in PA. He gave us lots of great info including directions to Green Mountain Grocery & Deli. He wasn’t real big on Hershey.  We talked to him for almost 20 minutes before we discovered that we might be able to eat three city meals today and still hike almost 20 miles. 

Green Mountain Grocery was less than a quarter mile off trail and well worth the side trip.  We got huge subs (which the latest member of the Glutton Club, Bunny, could not finish). We also ran into Smiles and Honey Badger again.  It was just such perfect weather that I sat on a shady bench outside of the grocery store for a while after lunch until Bunny started pushing for us to get going. We still have another 10 miles. 

But it was an easy 10 miles of walking.  We got into Boiling Springs around 8.  We saw Wallaby sitting with Stoic on a bench next to the lake. They gave us a lay of the land and caught us up with what everyone was up to. ET’s fiancé picked her up and they are spending the night in a hotel.  Gray Squirrel went over to an old friend’s house for some wine.  Wallaby and Stoic were both camping outside of town. 

We headed to the ATC regional office to get the number of a hostel Hoot Owl had told us about this morning. We made arrangements to get picked up after we ate. We then went to the restaurant Hoot Owl told us about for a late supper. Mission accomplished, 3 town meals and almost 20 miles in a single day. 

Lisa picked us up at 9:30. I had misunderstood her when we talked. She told us her son was having a small party out where we would be staying so I thought that meant we should take our time. She wanted us to hurry because they were going to another party. We had 3 missed calls on the phone asking us when we were going to be done.

The hostel was actually an old chicken coop which had been converted to a sleeping quarters. It was really kind of cute. She got us a couple of beers, showed us around, and then headed to her party.  I heard her son say something about having to share his bathroom with strangers. I though a 24 year old living at home should be able to recognize when his parents want him to leave by renting out his space, but, in an unusual moment of self restraint, I kept my mouth shut. Instead, I opened my beer and joined the party around the fire waiting for my opportunity to be the second stranger to dirty his toilet that night. 

EFG

Our trail has become much simpler.  There’s only one thing we need to do, now.  All the effort and energy we have expended to get here, we just need to do that one more time and we’ll be done. It’s not nearly as intimidating as it was at the one hundred mile point—do it all 21 more times.  Now that we are a mile past the half way point, it truly is all downhill from here (effortwise). 

Gray Squirrel said he kept hearing strange animals noises all night.  A bear growling coming from the direction of our tent (I keep telling Bunny she snores, now maybe she’ll believe me).  He also said he was hearing squishing noises from all around.  Both ET and us own Big Agnes sleeping pads which come with an integrated noise amplifier to wake everyone up whenever you move.

Since we were stealth camping (just not camping at a shelter, it only becomes stealth camping up north in AMC country which charges for the privilege of camping—to save money, hikers will set up late and get up early to not be charged) we all decided to hold on for the mere 3 miles to the next privy at “Toms got the runs” shelter (aka Toms Run Shelter). I was last in line. After three women and an old guy unloaded ahead of me, the smell was so strong that my window of opportunity got slammed shut. I learned to hold it for up to a week when I went to summer camp in Boy Scouts—I’ll be fine. 

We hit a major milestone after leaving the shelter…we crossed the 1100 mile point of the trail. Now we can look at a map of the entire trail and not be intimidated by how far we have to go. We’ve already gone 10 miles further than the amount we have left to go (1100 done vs 1090 remaining). For the first time in my life, I like the double entry accounting method (I still think accountants are assholes, though. All engineers do and rightly so).

Just a few hundred yards later, we came to the halfway mark from 2011. They got a big sign with flags and all we got was a printed piece of paper saying “this is close enough to halfway for the scum of 2017 & 2018”.  I wonder who hiked the trail in 2011 to get such recognition. The mileage to the north is still right and it is a good looking sign, so we took pictures next to it. 

Milestones aside, we had one of the most important activities to complete today. An event I have spent my whole life training for (even before I knew it existed)—“the half gallon challenge.”  To mark the half way point of the trail, every hiker worth their salt eats a half gallon of ice cream. I decided to throw a little twist into my challenge to prove my worth. I started off with a half pound bacon cheeseburger and a large order of fries. 

Bunny Tracks surprised herself by completing the challenge in 42 minutes. She is her father’s daughter when it comes to ice cream. I would like to be the first to officially welcome her to the Glutton Club.  She downed 3 pints of Neapolitan and 1 pint of mint moose tracks to complete the final requirement for her invitation to overeaters anonymous. 

As a charter member of the Glutton Club and Overeaters Anonymous, there was never a moments doubt for my completion.  What was surprising was that Gray Squirrel and Wallaby both completed the challenge as they are both so small. Wallaby completed hers in a little over 30 minutes. ET did not even attempt the challenge since a half gallon of ice cream represents almost 10% of her body weight.

Bunny and I have been planning on staying at Iron Masters Mansion for quite some time. Since it doesn’t open until 5, we had plenty of time to waddle on down to the AT museum and have a look around.  We have it so much easier hiking the trail today. We have lightweight gear, backpacking food, and over 200 shelters. The first thru-hikers had to carry canned goods and canvas tents (if they bothered with tents). Granny Gatewood barely carried anything and walked in tennis shoes. 

The Mansion opened at 5 and we were on the porch waiting. There’s a woman’s dorm and a men’s dorm. Each sleeps 14. Originally, Gray Squirrel, ET, and Wallaby were going to hike on another 7 miles but severe rain storms with hail were predicted for tonight, so they decided to stay. Every hiker should try to stay here. You get run of the entire place. I didn’t check into the history of the place because I just didn’t have time with all the chores we had to get done, but I’m sure this was the owner of the iron furnace which still exists in the park.

For years now, I have been working to become a minimalist. I’ve often considered lower expectations to be the secret to having a happier life. I’ve gotten rid of most of my possessions reducing the overhead required to keep me going. I’ve accepted living in a tent and sleeping on the ground to be an integral part of my existence. Pretty much, the only goal I have left is not to sit in my own bodily wastes. As I smelled myself stepping into shower, I’m clearly still aiming too high. 

EFG

We all started moving around 7. The bartender told us the owner would cook us breakfast around 8. We waited, and waited, and waited, but no one showed up until 9.  Pilgrim decided to leave because Wizard had agreed to pick him up in Caledonia State Park at noon 🕛 and take him to a grocery store. The rest of us wanted coffee, so we decided to wait it out.

They don’t actually have a coffee pot. He could only make one cup at a time which he did while trying to open up. Gray Squirrel and I were the only ones that really like the taste of coffee, so we drank it black. All three of the women added milk and sugar. I realized they all like their coffee like they like their men—strong, sweet, and white. We didn’t head out until after 10. 

We tried to hitch a ride back to the trail to save 2 miles of road walking. The PA drivers were much less enthusiastic this morning than they had been last evening.  One truck driver even flipped me off when he ground his gears trying to speed up around us.  Thanks to the generosity of the local folk, we will be able to get a 20 in today.

We started walking with Gray Squirrel, ET, Wallaby. Gray Squirrel had heard there was magic at US 30 a little over 5 trail miles ahead. When we got there, we found a cooler with drinks and bars. A little further up, we had a bag of candy.  Most promising, though, was a sign indicating a full meal today and breakfast in the morning if we chose to stay—no strings attached. Only Wallaby was willing to walk the 1/2 mile to the magic.  The rest of us decided to stay on trail since Caledonia State Park was less than a mile ahead with a swimming pool, showers, and snack bar.

Caledonia State Park disappointed us in a big way.  There was a huge, gorgeous, blue pool…that was closed. Right next to it was a snack bar with hours posted “open daily from 11a to 7p” but was locked up tight. We saw the stoplight in the distance that had advertised magic with no strings attached, so we headed there. There was one string…they didn’t serve it until 6p and it was only 1. In the end, Bunny and I grabbed a picnic table to eat some lunch we had been carrying. Gray Squirrel, ET, and Wallaby all went ahead. We agreed to catch up to them at a campground later this evening. 

On the bright side of things, we met Laverne and her dog, Penny.  Laverne moved here from Washington DC when she retired. She met her first thru-hiker last year and let him sleep in a spare bedroom and took him for groceries. They have kept in touch ever since.  This year, she wants to try more magic and asked us what kinds of things do hikers need at this point. She is going to get a bunch of stuff we told her that might be needed and sit at the table right next to the trail to give out magic when the April bubble comes through in a couple of weeks. She was a very sweet lady. 

It was getting past 2 and we still had almost 13 miles to go to meet everyone. We had been procrastinating because Guthook makes the climb out of Caledonia seem straight up. In reality, it wasn’t that bad.  We wanted to stop at Quarry Gap Shelters because we’ve heard it is one of the nicest shelters on the trail. 

It was amazing. Two shelters share a common roof creating a breezeway between them. A creek has been diverted to flow in front of the shelter. There are great tent platforms all around. There is a swing and a magnificent fire pit. But what gives it the homey touch is all the flowers. The caretaker lives nearby and comes up almost daily to keep things neat and orderly. He’s been maintaining this shelter for over 40 years. We read the log and a couple got married in Caledonia last year and honeymooned here. It’s now there anniversary spot. We’d like to come back someday as well.

Bunny knew this was, indeed, a special place. As we were getting ready to leave, she hushed me and told me not to move.  A bunny had appeared in front of her as we were heading toward the trail. God has ordained this a Bunny haven. 

We still had 12 miles to go with only 4.5 hours of sunlight left.  I wanted to pull up short, but Bunny was energized by the bunny.  The spirit of the bunny had taken possession of her legs and we were off.  It’s not unusual for Bunny to be stronger in the afternoon, but we were averaging almost 3mph. I didn’t even see the snake I stepped over.  It wasn’t until I heard a small screech behind me that I knew something was up. I’m still not sure if what I heard was Bunny muffling a scream or hitting the breaks.  She wanted to chase it out of the trail but I made her leave it alone. It was just a little innocent guy trying to chill in a sunny spot. 

I was afraid the snake had broken the bunny spell on Bunny.  It did the opposite. I couldn’t keep up with her once she got the lead.  It wasn’t until we stopped at the next shelter that she even showed a hint of tiring out. We took a short break until tackling the final 3 miles. 

We had actually looked at where we were going today and knew that we had to stop to get water before we reached our camp. We came to the spring to fill up and the speed spell had worn off both of us.  The only thing that kept us going is that we knew we were near the actual half-way point of the entire trail. At Dead Woman’s Hollow we found a very unimpressive sign informing us of our fete. 

I do believe this hollow was named to honor the wives of every married couple that has attempted the trail. No doubt, we will be crossing Mystified Man Notch sometime soon.

We had less than a mile to get to camp and we still had light.  We might be able to make it without using our headlamps. The area we were passing had a controlled burn done on it last year. It was really kind of eerie, but the undergrowth was flourishing. Bunny didn’t want to camp in a burnt out section of woods named Dead Woman. I gave her the option of 3 more miles to the next shelter or camping.  Her fears dissipated quickly.

Gray Squirrel, ET, and Wallaby were hanging their bear bags when we arrived. We quickly set up camp, ate supper in the trail, hung our bear bags, and went to bed. We were like a fine oiled hiking/camping machine. It’s only taken us 4 months and half of the AT to become so.

EFG

I was woken up by a light shining in my face.  Oh, crap, the caretaker came back and he’s going to kick us out into the rain.  Then I heard “Oh, dude, I’m sorry.  Do you want some weed?”  I was pretty sure this wasn’t the caretaker.  Pilgrim got up and talked to the guy for a bit to smooth things over.  He was just a local stoner out riding his motorcycle in the rain looking for a bathroom (or so we figured out when we found a big pile of crap in the adjacent pavilion).

We were woken up again at 7, but this time by lawn mowers.  Government jobs are devoid of logic—mow the park at 7a every Monday, rain, snow, or shine.  We went ahead and started packing up.  Bunny and I always roll up our sleeping gear first thing, so when we saw a man walking briskly towards us, I was able to don my pack and say that we had just stopped to dry out (gallantly throwing Thumper, Skywalker, and Pilgrim under the bus—it’s a dog eat dog world and they looked like they were wearing milkbone underwaer). 

The guy wasn’t the caretaker, but was a neighbor of the park.  He told us some of the history of Penn Mar Park.  Prior to the depression and WWI, Penn Mar was an amusement park that regularly drew in up to 20,000 patrons a day.  The pavilion we were sleeping in was a replica of the old train station that brought people up.  He also told us he hiked the entire trail in 1974 and 75.  One year he went to GA and hiked back to Maryland.  The next, he went to Katahdin.  He was always hiking home.

We said our goodbyes to everyone and headed north.  We were only a couple hundred yards from the Mason/Dixon line.  It was almost 10, but we were the first to leave.  A few other hikers had come in, but they were drying out before continuing on.  Our ‘early’ start was rewarded by us running into a deer right off the side of the trail.

The Mason Dixon line held many surprises for us.  First off, we were back in the north.  Secondly, there was someone camped just past it indicating that whoever was in the tent, more than likely did the four state challenge (VA, WV, MD, PA…45 miles).  Third, was a box holding 2 cases of cold beer.  We were the first here today so we had our choice.  Bunny and I were contemplating how many we could carry and decided on two each. (Maybe it’s me that can conjure beer and not Gnome…we’ll have to devise a test).

The guy we originally thought might have been the caretaker came strolling down the trail.  I asked, and he confirmed, that this was his magic.  He has been coming out to the park almost every day to meet and great hikers and give them magic.  He remembers how great it would have been to have a cold beer when he was hiking. 

The next surprise was finding money on the trail. This is the second time. This time, we found a dime, but last time was a real haul—$0.37. We are almost an entire half dollar on our way to a million.  From the acorn grows the mighty oak.

Things seemed to be going our way today. Bunny spotted (actually, I did too, but I let her lead today so she gets credit for the find) a plastic bag sitting on a sign for a spring.  It contained 2 mini snickers bars and a carved spoon.  Bunny likened it to finding an immunity idol on Survivor.  There is a guy carving these spoons and hiding them on the trail.  They are numbered and ours is #25 dated 6/18. Our chances of finishing the trail just went up. 

We were able to get on Facebook a little last night and saw everyone’s comments about winning the Triple Crown. We thank you for the encouragement, but, as I’m constantly telling myself, it’s not a competition. We are HIKING the Triple Crown and completing it is the glory in itself. Thank you all, but please tone it down, but yes, it will be history when we complete it. We have no need to “Justify” our journey. 

We couldn’t decide where we were going for the day. We had already walked 7 miles.  By that point, I knew I couldn’t make it to the shelter Bunny wanted to make because it was another 13 miles. We stopped at a shelter for Bunny to do a little brown blazing while I worked on my feet which were getting rubbed raw from leaves because my gators were falling apart. ET (Emergency Tuna) stopped in and told us about a bar ahead that offers free showers and camping for thru-hikers as long as you patronize them.  This sounded like a great compromise. 

We stopped again in a mile and a half at Tumbling Run Shelters.  There was a ridge runner, Wizard, there and he helped seal the deal by telling us he didn’t recommend the alternative shelter we were considering. If we were going to a tavern with town food, we might as well eat the pizza and beer now. Bunny couldn’t finish all of hers, so we gave a piece to a sobo section hiker. We shared the magic.

With a new plan firmly in place, we were, once again, food motivated. We flew (if you have a very loose definition for flying that equates to a little over 2 mph) the 4 miles to the road crossing where the tavern was located. We had Bunny’s hitchhiking sign that she made with Bunny to stand on the road and get us a ride. PA drivers are not very compassionate or friendly.  Not only would they switch sides of the road to indicate “hell no,” they even sped up around us to let us know what they thought of hikers. I wanted to give up and go on, but we had agreed to meet Pilgrim there. 

I sat down on the shoulder to get out of my wet boots and socks before walking into town.  This might be the future trick we need. A nice guy saw me writhing in agony and stopped to ask Bunny if she needed a ride to get away from me.  She didn’t ditch me when she had her chance.  Instead, she got him to give us a ride for the 2 miles to the tavern.

We set up our tent where everyone else’s was before heading in for food.  When we went inside, we saw Gray Squirrel, Pilgrim, ET, and Wallaby. In retrospect, it probably wasn’t a great idea for me to have 5 glasses of iced tea before I had a beer.  By the time we returned to our tents, it was too cold to have showers so we didn’t accomplish the one act we needed the most.  It’s only been 4 days since our last shower, we’ve got 3 more days until it becomes mission critical.

EFG

I had a dream last night that I was with Cindy Crawford in her house. She looked me in the eyes and said “I’m the only one in the house for the next hour.  I’m all yours. I will do a-n-y-thing you want.” I got up, walked to her, kissed her on the cheek and yelled over my shoulder “Come on Bunny, Cindy is going to cook for us.”  Bunny and I are never more than 50’ apart, even in my dreams. Plus, it’s Cindy Crawford, so you know she’s going to have tons of fresh, organic, healthy food.  Food is the number one motivator for thru-hikers. 

It was with my food dream fresh in mind that I headed to the Annapolis Rocks overlook to catch the morning view.  There was a family from Annapolis up there just staring out into the mist.  We started talking about trips that Bunny and I have been on because they were looking for a longer hike to go on this summer.  As a parting gift, they offered me some extra food they had with them.  The youngest son balked when they offered me the granola bars so we ended up with just some cinnamon graham crackers,  it free food is always magical.

We tried to be optimistic and not use our pack covers when heading out assuring that the chance rain would be 100%.  Even with the rain we made great time because we had such a nice trail.  The AT crosses Maryland in a very narrow neck that is full of history (Civil War Battlefields), state parks, and scenic overlooks.  This means that the trail is maintained in near highway fashion.

Our goal for today was to get to the end of the state.  Upon arriving at the last shelter in Maryland, we found it full of people from Indianapolis.  I was not going to be thrown off again today, I immediately began the 6 degrees of Steve Johnson.  This was an epic fail.  One guy did know A Steve Johnson, but when he started to describe him with “long flowing hair” I conceded defeat.  Next to Steve, I look like a long haired hippy.

Maryland has just 40 miles of AT, but after 37 miles they just ran out of desire to build and maintain the final 3 miles.  “37 is all we have, screw em, give them a taste of Pennsylvania.”  The trail just ran across boulder fields with an occasional white blaze painted on a tree or rock.  We lost the trail a couple of times and had to resort to using Guthook to find our way.

If we had hiked Maryland at the same 17.5 hour/mile rate as we hiked West Virginia, it would have taken us 700 hours (or just over 29 days).  By us covering the state in just 3 days, we have cut over 3 weeks off of our slow travel time.  This means we are very likely going to be able to complete the AT in under a year.

We ended the day at Penn Mar with Pilgrim, Skywalker, and Thumper.  Lady Bug and Stickers had written a Review which included a phone number for pizza.  Stickers practically challenged me to eat a large pizza.  I’m a sucker for a challenge.  I was beaten.  On the bright side, we have left over pizza for tomorrow.  What I wouldn’t give to have Gnome and his beer conjuring ability with us. It was raining steadily so we decided to be outlaws and stay in a pavilion.  Before the caretaker had left, he told Thumper and Skywalker they had to be out before dark (wink, wink) but he wouldn’t be back until the park opens tomorrow. 

I have a friend living in St Louis, let’s call him Dave.  Dave’s dad, Curt (for the sake of argument), noticed that his oldest son had stopped dating and become a sort of hermit. He asked his beloved eldest son what was happening.  Dave replied that he had just gotten a new dog and that his new best friend liked to lick peanut butter off of his body wherever he spread it.  Curt said that this was not a healthy relationship for Dave and he could see Dave had no incentive to meet women when he had a dog like this.  Curt took the dog from Dave.

Within a short period of time, Dave managed to develop a healthy relationship with a woman and life was looking good for him.  The story for Curt turned out quite differently.  Curt, more or less, disappeared from his business.  For four months, no one saw or heard from Curt (other than the Skippy peanut butter deliveries he got from Amazon, no one even knew if he was still alive).  One day, Curt showed up back at his office.  All he would say is “the dog died from diabetes.”

I only mention this because I miss my dog (and no, she doesn’t even like peanut butter).

EFG

First off, I need to do some housekeeping. Yesterday was Bunny’s Aunt Linda’s birthday and today is Bunny’s sister, Kim’s birthday.  Happy birthday wishes to both of them. If I ever go swimming in the ocean, I definitely want to go with Kim so the sharks will leave us alone.  Professional courtesy, Kim is a lawyer. I also need to mention a couple of anniversaries that I didn’t call out. Bunny’s parents celebrated their 60th anniversary on June 5. And, last but not least, my parents celebrated their 66th anniversary on May 17. Between both sets of parents, that represents almost 100 years of happy marriage. 

Bunny snored in a new frequency last night. I woke up and thought something was sleeping outside the tent. It took me quite a while to figure out that it was Bunny because she was ventriloquist snoring. I’m pretty sure I know how this new frequency came about; Bunny was farting so much walking down the trail yesterday that she has actually changed the internal pressure of her body. Lower internal pressure equals lower frequency emissions. Isn’t science grand?

We each woke up a little before 6 but decided to play a game of chicken to see who would get up first. I won because Bunny did eventually give in and get up at ten after eight.  As usual, it took us an hour and a half to get ready. We hit the trail at 9:40. Surprisingly, we were not the last ones to break camp. Since it’s a weekend, there are plenty of day hikers there to make us feel good about our timely beginning. We were the last thru-hikers out, though.

As soon as we hit the trail, we met a man from DC out for the weekend. He got into Harpers Ferry on the 6p train last night and made it to the shelter where all the Boy Scouts were that we passed up. He got there in 2.5 hours and it had taken us over 4 hours. He told us we made the right decision to not stay there last night. Every adult in the group had severe sleep apnea. I had noticed that the adults were on the large side of life. He didn’t get much sleep.

We are loving Maryland. The high point in the state is less than 2000’ above sea level. That means Maryland is exactly what was promised in Virginia. This state is providing a walking recovery for us. 

Bunny decided to skip Rocky Run Shelter and head straight to Dahlgren Back Packer Campground (and Showers).  I would have liked to see the new shelter, but sweat was pouring out of me. The state of Maryland provides a free shower house exclusively for backpacker use. Porcelain, tp, and hot water…for free. One of the first things we shipped home was our towels and camp soap. There was hand soap at the sinks and I still have a bandanna because of my rescue mission yesterday.  I’m not above air drying on a nice day.

Bunny opted out of the shower. She didn’t want to get her hair wet (since it is only 80 deg F out).  I believe her exact words were “I had a shower just two days ago and I don’t want to take my boots off.”  In the words of Neil Diamond 🎶 She’s a lady, woa woa woa, she’s a lady 🎶. I didn’t feel out of place sitting in my underwear while people walked by.  After all, we are no where near a school. 

We had another Decatur connection on the trail today. We passed some section hikers going in the opposite direction and stopped to talk. It always comes up “where are you from?”  I said Cape Girardeau, MO but I’m originally from central Illinois. Charlotte and Steve are from Indianapolis, but Charlotte said she was from central Illinois. Neither one of us wanted to say Decatur in case the other had driven through it and said “that place stinks” (cooked soybeans).  I broke down and she said she was, too. In fact, she lived in Decatur for a short time before and after living in Niantic, IL. That’s where my grandparents lived. I’m sure my brother has arrested some of her extended family over the years he was a deputy.  I was so shocked by the Decatur connection that I forgot to play the “six degrees of Steve Johnson” with them. 

Washington Monument State Park is directly on the trail. This monument was built in 1827 to honor the only President named George that I truly have respect for. Twice he was offered the crown to create a monarchy and twice he said “you f#$@ing idiots, we had a revolution to get away from being a monarchy” (maybe not those exact words, but he didn’t just fight a revolution against the crown to become a king.  He voluntarily quit after 2 terms even though everyone wanted him to have a third term. He showed them, he went home and died in just two years. 

The monument has the feel of a medieval turret inside.  It was used as a signal tower in the Civil War before being let go into disrepair. Luckily, the people of Maryland recognized the significance of this monument and restored it to its original glory in the early 20th century. I don’t believe most Americans really understand what a great person George Washington really was. Would anyone reading this have the will to turn down being a king? (Peasants! I love the peasants. Pull…..waaaa.  It’s good to be the king!—History of the World, Part 1 for those of you who don’t know movies). 

There were still a little over 5 miles of trail between us and Bunny’s revised itinerary stopping point for today. When we could hear the sound of the interstate ahead, we knew we were getting close.  What surprised me more than the noise was that people started popping up on the trail. I have no idea why or where they were coming from.  I know they were not going to hike all the way back to the Washington Monument and there weren’t any parking lots behind us. I wonder if they were just being drawn to the interstate. We’ll never know. 

When we turned onto the trail leading to Annapolis Rock, we saw a sign for the caretaker. Apparently, the PATC maintains the Annapolis Campground.  We talked to Kiki a bit and found out he alternates weeks here. Every other week, he hikes from PennMar to Harpers Ferry and back while another caretaker is here. There is always a runner on the trail here in Maryland. I don’t understand why people do the “Maryland Challenge” or the “Four State Challenge” and not spend more time here. Maryland really rolls out the red carpet for AT hikers. More people need to slow down and appreciate it. 

EFG

Bunny was ready to go before 10, but since we had paid for a hotel, I wanted my full money’s worth.  Checkout was at 11; I turned in the keycards at 10:59. We had almost a mile of trail skirting the edge of town over the Shenandoah River to get to the historic district. 

I had ulterior motives for leaving late. I wanted one last town meal and some iced tea.  I convinced Bunny to go for a drink at a place we had seen a couple days ago. Why here?  They sell gyros and I’ve been craving one ever since I saw the sign. Bunny claimed to be full but managed to eat half of one. 

Crossing the Potomac on a railroad bridge brought us out of our fifth state (West Virginia) and into our sixth state (Maryland).  WV has been our slowest state. It took us 70 hours to go 4 miles. If we were to maintain this rate the entire trail, it would take 4 years and 5 months to finish the AT. However, if we were to average 20 miles a day, it would only take us 3 months and two weeks to finish. These two sample points represent the outer limits of our trip.  Everyone asks us when we’re going to be finished. I’m going to start saying “Sometime between 3.5 months and 4.5 years.”

Maryland gave us our first, truly level section of trail. We walked along the old C & O canal path for about 2.5 miles. Parts of this path had been under water just last week. Debris was on the edge of the path. We saw on the news that the flood is pushing down river and should be making it to DC in a few days. It’s kind of hard to drain the swamp when the river next to it is at flood stage. 

Alas, the trail turned off the canal and we had to climb up.  It was only 1000’ elevation gain, but to a couple of hotel dwellers, it felt like a lot.  We have managed to spend the last 5 nights sleeping inside on beds. We’ve become soft. We’ve lost cardio.  We’ve put on weight. We’ve aged. We’ve gotten used to AC. We felt the climb.  We were rewarded with views of the Potomac River valley from the top. 

Bunny has tried a new folly.  She has set an itinerary for us for the next 10 days. She’s about to find out what it’s like to plan for someone else that doesn’t buy into the plan. I’ve just gotten to the point that I am willing to hike without a daily plan. I know I’ve always been pretty laid back about details and going with the flow, but now I’m not even looking ahead.  If we make Bunny’s plan today, we won’t stay on the plan more than two days. 

We stopped at the first shelter we came to for a break.  The Ed Garvey Shelter is a two story one with an actual stairway leading up to the loft.  It was filled with a Boy Scout Troop from Ohio on a training hike for Philmont. We stopped and talked with them before pushing on.  Bunny saw a baby owl on the side of the trail to the privy that was less than 3” tall. 

When we left the shelter, Bunny let me in on her plan for the day.  She wants to make it to Dahlgren Back Pack Campground which is another 11 miles past where we just stopped meaning we have to hike 18 miles today.  This is not an unreasonable amount in a day, but we didn’t leave town until noon.  Sadly, Bunny’s itinerary is not even going to survive day 1. 

I didn’t do it intentionally, but about 1/2 mile past the shelter, I reached down for my bandanna and it wasn’t there. I have not left anything behind on this trip or lost anything and I, sure as hell, was not going to start with my $1 bandanna that I’ve carried over 1000 miles (that I plan to retire in another 60 miles when we make it to the half way point). I dropped my pack and ran back to get it. We’ve been through a lot together—we both suffered mouse damage the first night on the trail (I had a mouse on my head while the bandanna got holes chewed in it), we’ve hung many a bear bag together (my bandanna wrapped around a rock, tied to the rope, and thrown over a limb).  I was not ready to abandon my trusted friend to a bunch of Boy Scouts from Ohio. I didn’t want it to feel unloved, unwanted, and left behind. I know how bad Kirk Cameron felt when he was left behind and my blue friend was not going to experience that loss. In short, screw Bunny’s itinerary. 

After we were reunited, my bandanna was so thankful, that it became super absorbent and kept my brow extra dry all the way to the next shelter where we decided to call it a day. Truth of the matter, all three of us were dragging. Bunny’s hips and feet were hurting, and I had no energy left.  I am carrying the most weight I have on this trip. I’ve easily got almost 20# of for making my pack almost 55# total. We have got to start carrying less food.

We walked all the way down to the shelter only to discover it was full. Bunny actually prefers tenting to the shelters, but I like the 10 minutes I save having to put up the tent. Also, I like seats. Tonight, we both won.  We found a camping spot above the shelter that is close to water and has a bench in it. I’m not so worried about a privy because Dahlgren (Bunny’s first choice for tonight) has hot showers and flushing toilets. I know what I’m doing for lunch tomorrow. 

EFG