Hi Everyone
Just a quick post from Vernon NJ. We are staying at a church hostel at the St. Thomas Episcopal Church tonight after a 20 mile day and a big Deli Sandwich that we had for lunch.
We left Delaware Water Gap on on Friday June 27 after listening to some great blues music at the Deer Head Inn, (see last post).
We had breakfast and only hiked 10 mile to the Mohican Outdoor Center. I had to rescue Patty a couple of times as she was grazing in the blue berry patch along with a black bear that she failed to notice. Once I told her there was a bear nearby, she caught up with me rather quickly.
NJ is very proud of their bears and they seem to have quite a few.
Since we did not have a day off in DWG and were still pretty tired from all the ROCKS in PA we rented a cabin at the Mohican Center and just lounged around after our 10 mile day that seemed to include quite a few rocks. It was a very modest cabin and tucked away in the woods. We had a deer walk by the front door and when Patty walked out the cabin door on Saturday Morning she had two very LARGE Black Bears walking by. She didn't even scream. We saw these same two bears about an hour or so later when we hiked back up the ridge to the A.T. and the biggest one was almost on the trail, (400 pound plus). We just told him to get off the trail and he did. We finished our 17 mile day of NJ rocks and camped near a shelter. We made sure to put our food in the bear box that was provided.
On Sunday we did a very tough 20 mile day with plenty of rocks and up's and downs. After passing the second Washington Monument we have seen on the trail at High Point State Park, (this one is an actual replica of the DC one) we tented near a shelter. It has been hot and muggy for the past few days and we were rained on while hiking and the sky really opened up last nite and pounded our tent. We stayed dry.
Today we planned a 20 mile hike and I think we are finally done with the rocks for a while. We had some good ups and downs of 500-1000 feet, but the rocks have diminished greatly.
We are going to try to set something up with a friend to hike and then visit with him later this week.
I am sure I will be able to post some photo's from his computer.
Happy 21st Birthday to Chris tomorrow, and Happy 54th wedding anniversary to Mom and Dad today.
Take care
Red Dog and Lucky dog
Monday, June 30, 2008
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Delaware Water Gap PA. 1279 done and 895 to go
Hi from DWG.
I am posting this from the Deer Head Inn www.deerheadinn.com It is just next to the church hostel that we are staying at for the night so we hope to get back and take in a little jazz later on.
We are extremely glad to be done with PA and all the rocks that came with it. Our feet feel like someone beat on them with a hammer. I am on another computer where we can not find the usb port soI will try to find one where I can post some rockin pictures.
We have had pretty good weather since we left the Doyl hotel in Duncannon. We hiked through some old mining areas and over lot of rock. The scenery has not been too much to speak of and the trail has been full of rocks, soIwould rate this as the worst state we have walked in yet.
We hiked into Port Clinton PA after a short 18mile day on the ROCKS and stayed at the Port Clinton Hotel. They hadsome great food. We hiked out after a good breakfast and hiked 15miles to shelter where we were blessed by a neighbor going on vacation who brought over all of his fresh fruit and vegetables for us.
On June 23 we did as much boldering as we did hiking and hadthe toughest 18 mile day we have done yet. If that was not bad enough I had to walk 20 minutes and about300 feet to get water.
We hiked over more rocks on the 24th and had quite the scramble out of Lehigh Gap. I will try to post some pictures of the hill and the climb. We did find the first blueberries of the season and it was hard keep from grazing as we walked. I also had over an hour round trip to get water and half of it was down hill. Water has been tough in PA. The trail is on the ridge and the water is all down at lower elevations.
Yesterdays hike was also very ROCKY, but stopped for pizza at lunch and had enough for supper. That was a day brightener. We camped near a shelter about 6 miles out from DWG and were visited by a father and son who we had met on the trail earlier in the day. They even brought treats. Thanks Guys. They have posted a comment on my last blog about a web cam at the top of Mt. Washington in NH. We should be there in towards the end of July, but if you want to see what it is like at the windiest place in the U.S. check out www.mountwashington.org/weather/cam/deck
Today we are doing "town things", laundry, shopping, clean up, posting on the blog, etc.
We have to look at the maps and are going to try and meet up with friend who lives in NY. I think NJ only has about 70 miles of trail and we should be done with that by the middle of next week and then a short stretch in NY before going through Conn. and Mass.
If I am unable to find a computer to post our pictures you will just have to believe me when I say PA ROCKS
Also please be advised that Patty and I did not partake in the National Hike Naked Day on the first day of summer, however, we are aware and aquainted with at least one hiker who did.
I also have a picture to post of a doe and a fawn that walked right up to us yesterday. We think we have been in the woods so long that we don't smell human. Patty shot some great pictures of that along with a hen and her brood of turkey chicks. Other then that all I can say is there sure are a lot of ROCKS in PA
Take care until we can post again.
Red Dog and LuckyDog.
I am posting this from the Deer Head Inn www.deerheadinn.com It is just next to the church hostel that we are staying at for the night so we hope to get back and take in a little jazz later on.
We are extremely glad to be done with PA and all the rocks that came with it. Our feet feel like someone beat on them with a hammer. I am on another computer where we can not find the usb port soI will try to find one where I can post some rockin pictures.
We have had pretty good weather since we left the Doyl hotel in Duncannon. We hiked through some old mining areas and over lot of rock. The scenery has not been too much to speak of and the trail has been full of rocks, soIwould rate this as the worst state we have walked in yet.
We hiked into Port Clinton PA after a short 18mile day on the ROCKS and stayed at the Port Clinton Hotel. They hadsome great food. We hiked out after a good breakfast and hiked 15miles to shelter where we were blessed by a neighbor going on vacation who brought over all of his fresh fruit and vegetables for us.
On June 23 we did as much boldering as we did hiking and hadthe toughest 18 mile day we have done yet. If that was not bad enough I had to walk 20 minutes and about300 feet to get water.
We hiked over more rocks on the 24th and had quite the scramble out of Lehigh Gap. I will try to post some pictures of the hill and the climb. We did find the first blueberries of the season and it was hard keep from grazing as we walked. I also had over an hour round trip to get water and half of it was down hill. Water has been tough in PA. The trail is on the ridge and the water is all down at lower elevations.
Yesterdays hike was also very ROCKY, but stopped for pizza at lunch and had enough for supper. That was a day brightener. We camped near a shelter about 6 miles out from DWG and were visited by a father and son who we had met on the trail earlier in the day. They even brought treats. Thanks Guys. They have posted a comment on my last blog about a web cam at the top of Mt. Washington in NH. We should be there in towards the end of July, but if you want to see what it is like at the windiest place in the U.S. check out www.mountwashington.org/weather/cam/deck
Today we are doing "town things", laundry, shopping, clean up, posting on the blog, etc.
We have to look at the maps and are going to try and meet up with friend who lives in NY. I think NJ only has about 70 miles of trail and we should be done with that by the middle of next week and then a short stretch in NY before going through Conn. and Mass.
If I am unable to find a computer to post our pictures you will just have to believe me when I say PA ROCKS
Also please be advised that Patty and I did not partake in the National Hike Naked Day on the first day of summer, however, we are aware and aquainted with at least one hiker who did.
I also have a picture to post of a doe and a fawn that walked right up to us yesterday. We think we have been in the woods so long that we don't smell human. Patty shot some great pictures of that along with a hen and her brood of turkey chicks. Other then that all I can say is there sure are a lot of ROCKS in PA
Take care until we can post again.
Red Dog and LuckyDog.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Duncannon PA, 1133 miles done, 1041 to go
Hi Everyone
I know I just posted two days ago, but Patty and I hiked into one of the classic trail towns today when we hiked into Duncannon.
We left Boiling Springs yesterday morning after a stop at the Mid Atlantic Office of the A.T.C. We had big plans of doing 22 miles, but the heat and humidity were still turned on high and we did not start hiking until around 8 am. It was a good hike and we experienced walking through some of the farmlands of PA. We hiked 11 miles and then took a break for lunch at a Diner located off of PA 11. We had to walk about a 1/4 mile, but it was worth it. After lunch it warmed up even more and we had all we could do to hike the last 4 miles to the shelter where we camped. We did all of our chores and had supper just in time, because at 7 pm we had just crawled into the tent when we experienced the strongest winds of the trip. We heard later that they were up to 60 mph. There was a little rain after that and then it calmed down until around 11:00 pm when it hit again. I thik I slept through most of that. We woke up this morning to 55 degrees and hiked the 12 miles into town by 11:30 am.
We are staying at the legendary Doyle Hotel. I am sure this was a classic in its day when it was built by Annehauser Busch. Today it is a classic hiker hotel with rooms at $ 30.00 and shared bathrooms. I have attached a picture. Imagine the Buckman Hotel in LF. We had some great food for lunch and the beer was very cold. The rooms are not quite 5 * more like a quarter moon. Anyway, Patty and I don't plan on getting too roudy tonight with the rest of the hikers, as we want to get an early start. We are on the 4th floor and 3 floors above the bar, so we should be safe. This trip is full of experiences.
I will try to post pictures of the Doyle along with Patty at the halfway point marker, the first Washington Monument, a good picture of the Mountain Laurel with me in it (we walk through miles of this stuff), and a picture of the cabin we stayed at with me and the owner.
Until next time.
Red Dog and Lucky Dog
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Boilings Springs PA 1107
Hi Everyone
Since I last posted from Harpers Ferry we have crossed the 40+ miles the state of Maryland had to offer the A.T. It has been a tough week of hiking with temps in the 90's and humidity at 100% for most days. We finally got a break today when the humidity dropped. I will try to give a recap of the past week.
June 9 was our planned day off in Harpers Ferry and it was a good one to be off on with temps at 95+. We walked around the old town a little and then just tried to stay cool and do a little reading at the hotel. We did stop in the the ATC Headquarters to have our picture taken for this years class of thru hikers. We were the 252nd and 253rd thru hikers that stopped into the office this year. They also told us that the latest report only had 1100 people starting from GA this year. Since almost half of the people drop out by this point we feel very lucky to still be on the trail and hope to be part of the 10% who finish the entire trail in one year.
June 10 we left the hotel after breakfast and hiked 18.2 miles in very hot humid weaher with thunderstorms in the late PM. We stopped at Garthland State Park for some gatoraid and a short break and took a look at a Civil War museum there. A volunteer guide told us that the valley just below where we were was the scene of a batte where 1000 Confederate soldiers were killed in less than 10 minutes while being overrun by over 12,000 Union soldiers. We camped at a hiker campgound that had hot showers free of charge, thank Maryland Parks. We had a mad dash to get the tent set up before the t storms hit, but we made it.
June 11 started hiking early to try and beat the heat. We ran into an old friend from early on the trail named Pack Animal. He is on trail journals. We hiked with him all day and kept the pace slow. We saw the original Washington Monument and had a great view from the top. I will post a picture. We quit by 2 pm and I just hit the wall. Too much humidity and heat. I could not do much more than crawl into the tent. It is a good thing Patty is tough as nails.
June 12, more of the same heat and humdity. We started by 0630 and did 17 miles with the heat wearing on both of us. We had lunch at the Pen Mar State Park and then crossed the Mason Dixon line into PA
June 13, more hot weather and it got me again. We stopped after 14 miles at 2 pm and I just crawled into a shelter.
June 14, Happy Flag Day. We left at 5:30 am and did an 18 mile hike to get to Pine Grove Furnace State Park at 1:30pm. It was a very beautiful area. The heat was just as bad, but we both survived and our first stop was the Pine Grove Store. We had lunch and some ice cream, but Patty decided against the "half gallons ice cream challenge". It was probably best as we watched a couple of guys almost get sick trying to finish their choice of ice cream. We did have some more great trail magic however. A thru hiker from 1997 had left a note for people to stop by the cabin he was at for supper. It turned out to be a great evening as the cabin was the only one on this small quarry lake in the park. It was a beautiful cabin and close to a nice swimming beach. There were only 6 or 7 other hikers who were there along with some friends of the thru hiker and the owner of the cabin. We had a great evening with good food, a few beers and some great music. All of the friends of the hiker who invited us were musicians and we had some good banjo music.
June 15, After a great breakfast, patty and I left around 8 am for the 20 mile hike to Boiling Springs. The Thru hiker whose trail name was Ismial and real name is Bruce has also hiked the Pacific Crest Trail and the Continental Divide Trail. He told us that he lived in Boiling Springs and he would be glad to put us up again tonight. So that is where I am typing this from. The hike today was of interest because the Cykadia (sp) were so thick and noisy that it was almost dangerous. This was supposed to be group 15 in the 17 year cycle. The other forrest danger was all the falling gypsy moth droppings. If you have not heard of gypsy moths, lets hope they are not in MN soon. They defoliate the tree leaves and drop little specs of black poo as they eat in the catipiller stage. We thought it was raining one night it was so heavy. I will try to post a picture at some point. I was going to post pictures now, but just looked and can not find the usb port on the computer I am using. Sory
I am goint to sign off for now. I have to call and wish our AT Support Staff a happy Fathers Day.
Thanks Dad for all you are doing.
Until next time.
Red Dog and Lucky Dog
Since I last posted from Harpers Ferry we have crossed the 40+ miles the state of Maryland had to offer the A.T. It has been a tough week of hiking with temps in the 90's and humidity at 100% for most days. We finally got a break today when the humidity dropped. I will try to give a recap of the past week.
June 9 was our planned day off in Harpers Ferry and it was a good one to be off on with temps at 95+. We walked around the old town a little and then just tried to stay cool and do a little reading at the hotel. We did stop in the the ATC Headquarters to have our picture taken for this years class of thru hikers. We were the 252nd and 253rd thru hikers that stopped into the office this year. They also told us that the latest report only had 1100 people starting from GA this year. Since almost half of the people drop out by this point we feel very lucky to still be on the trail and hope to be part of the 10% who finish the entire trail in one year.
June 10 we left the hotel after breakfast and hiked 18.2 miles in very hot humid weaher with thunderstorms in the late PM. We stopped at Garthland State Park for some gatoraid and a short break and took a look at a Civil War museum there. A volunteer guide told us that the valley just below where we were was the scene of a batte where 1000 Confederate soldiers were killed in less than 10 minutes while being overrun by over 12,000 Union soldiers. We camped at a hiker campgound that had hot showers free of charge, thank Maryland Parks. We had a mad dash to get the tent set up before the t storms hit, but we made it.
June 11 started hiking early to try and beat the heat. We ran into an old friend from early on the trail named Pack Animal. He is on trail journals. We hiked with him all day and kept the pace slow. We saw the original Washington Monument and had a great view from the top. I will post a picture. We quit by 2 pm and I just hit the wall. Too much humidity and heat. I could not do much more than crawl into the tent. It is a good thing Patty is tough as nails.
June 12, more of the same heat and humdity. We started by 0630 and did 17 miles with the heat wearing on both of us. We had lunch at the Pen Mar State Park and then crossed the Mason Dixon line into PA
June 13, more hot weather and it got me again. We stopped after 14 miles at 2 pm and I just crawled into a shelter.
June 14, Happy Flag Day. We left at 5:30 am and did an 18 mile hike to get to Pine Grove Furnace State Park at 1:30pm. It was a very beautiful area. The heat was just as bad, but we both survived and our first stop was the Pine Grove Store. We had lunch and some ice cream, but Patty decided against the "half gallons ice cream challenge". It was probably best as we watched a couple of guys almost get sick trying to finish their choice of ice cream. We did have some more great trail magic however. A thru hiker from 1997 had left a note for people to stop by the cabin he was at for supper. It turned out to be a great evening as the cabin was the only one on this small quarry lake in the park. It was a beautiful cabin and close to a nice swimming beach. There were only 6 or 7 other hikers who were there along with some friends of the thru hiker and the owner of the cabin. We had a great evening with good food, a few beers and some great music. All of the friends of the hiker who invited us were musicians and we had some good banjo music.
June 15, After a great breakfast, patty and I left around 8 am for the 20 mile hike to Boiling Springs. The Thru hiker whose trail name was Ismial and real name is Bruce has also hiked the Pacific Crest Trail and the Continental Divide Trail. He told us that he lived in Boiling Springs and he would be glad to put us up again tonight. So that is where I am typing this from. The hike today was of interest because the Cykadia (sp) were so thick and noisy that it was almost dangerous. This was supposed to be group 15 in the 17 year cycle. The other forrest danger was all the falling gypsy moth droppings. If you have not heard of gypsy moths, lets hope they are not in MN soon. They defoliate the tree leaves and drop little specs of black poo as they eat in the catipiller stage. We thought it was raining one night it was so heavy. I will try to post a picture at some point. I was going to post pictures now, but just looked and can not find the usb port on the computer I am using. Sory
I am goint to sign off for now. I have to call and wish our AT Support Staff a happy Fathers Day.
Thanks Dad for all you are doing.
Until next time.
Red Dog and Lucky Dog
Monday, June 9, 2008
Harpers Ferry West Virginia, 1009
Hi Everyone from the unofficial halfway point of the A.T. I am writing this from the Appalachian Trail Conference Office in Harpers Ferry. Click on the ATC link I have on the Blog if you want to learn more about the ATC. The office has all kinds of ammenities for hikers one of which is a computer to use.
All I can say at this point is Patty and I are glad to be done with the 550 + miles of Virginia. The past two days have really been tough with temps in the 90's and high humidity. We made the trip from Front Royal in three days of hiking with hikes of 18 miles, and then two 20 mile days. The 20 mile days were a little tough with the hot weather but we started early and drank lots of water.
We stayed in a shelter called Dicks Dome the first night. We had it all to ourselves and with threats of sever thunder storms we thought it was a good choice. We met an interesting section hiker at this shelter. He was an attorney from DC and a law school classmate of Hillery Clinton. He knew both of the Clintons and we had an interesting conversation.
The second nite after hiking 20 miles we stayed at the Bear's Den Hostel. It was just off the trail and a great treat after hiking in the heat. The building was a huge stone house built by a Doctor for his opera singing wife in the 1930's. It was really a neat place.
We left the Hostel Sunday morning at 6:30 am on June 5 to try and beat the heat and did the 20 miles into Harpers Ferry. We stopped at another hostel called the Blackburn 11 miles down the trail from the Bears Den and ran into Phil and Val Rogosheshke from St Cloud. Rogo was not feeling well and was going to get a ride into Harpers Ferry. We checked on him this morning and he had just gone into the ER at the hospital to get checked out.
We also weighed our packs at Blackburn after we both loaded up with water. Patty's was at 35 pounds and I was at 40. We had just loaded up with 4 liters of water, 8 pounds, but our food was just about gone, but this is a lot lighter than when we started.
After leaving the Blackburn Trail Center and hostel we continued on our way to Harpers Ferry. With six miles to go and temps reaching the mid 90's we crossed a road and met the parents of a hiker we knew. They gave us some cold drinks and told us they were staying at the Comfort Inn. We were also planning on staying and asked if they would be willing to take a little weight off our backs. They said sure, so Patty gave them her pack and I pretty much emptied mine and then carried our water and some other essentials the last 6 miles. I know that our packs may seem light, but no pack or a 15 pound pack over a lot of rock on the trail is really nice. Patty was almost flying over the trail.
We came into Harpers Ferry and down almost 2000 feet before crossing the Shendoah River. We are staying at the Comfort Inn which is just off the trail. The air conditioning is really appreciated. We went out for supper last night at a place called "The Pub" and had a beverage and supper. We also ran into some friends we have met along the trail.
We are taking the day off today and doing a little touring in Harpers Ferry. The entire old town of Harpers Ferry is a National Parksite and there really is a lot of history here. Does everyone know the significance of Harpers Ferry and John Brown?? History lesson of the day. Look it up!
It is supposed to be hot again tomorrow, so we may take another day off. Some people are planning a trip into Washington DC for the day, but if temps are hot, I don't think I want to do any touring since both Patty and I have already been there.
I have posted a few of the friends we have seen along the trail to date since the scenery and views have been lacking a little.
I will try to post after we walk across Maryland (40 miles) and we are into PA. Hopefully in the next week or so.
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Front Royal VA 950 miles
Hi Everyone
Just a quick post to let you know we survived Shenendoah National Park. We saw two more rattle snakes and 6 plus bears. I say plus bears because we saw a sow about 10 yards off the trail and after she grunted a few times I saw at least one cub go up a tree, but, she was too close to get a good picture, she may have been grunting at me.
We were not as impressed with this park as we were with the Smokey Mtn National Park. We have really lost the views and the scenery just was not that great. We had one day where we walked a ridge that was pretty good, but, other then that it was just so, so. We also followed the Blue Ridge Parkway a little more than I wanted to. You never actually walk on the road, but, we the trail follows the park a little too closely for our liking. And of course you still go up and down and there were plenty of rocks.
We did not zero in Waynesboro and spent 6 nights in the park. By not taking a day off in town we caught up with a huge group of hikers and had a good time each night with these folks. We camped or stayed at shelters and camped each night and even drank a few beers together at one of the campgrounds.
When we came out of the woods yesterday we walked up on the road and were going to hitch into town about 4 miles. We had waited almost 2 minutes when a car pulled that was coming from town and asked if we would like to stay with them. A couple we had met got out of the car and told us they had stayed with Tom and Sharon Johnson the night before. Tom is a past president of Potomic Mtn Hiking Club and very active with hiking in the area. They live in a gated community and have turned the upstairs of their garage into a place for hikers to stay. It is complet with TV couch, and bath. It is very new and very nice. They have a beautiful home and are very well traveled.
Anyway they picked us up and first stop was the grocery to resupply and they home to shower, and eat lunch. While we were eating lunch we got blasted with a storm that knocked out the power. Power is still out this morning so I am posting this from an Outfitters store downtown.
We had decided to take the day off anyway and it sure is relaxing to have someone drive you around. We are going to run over to Thomas Jefferson's Home in Montichello as soon as I am done here.
We will be in Harpers Ferry Sunday night or monday and may take another day off to do a little touring. Hopefully I can post a few more pictures then.
Take care for now.
Red Dog and Lucky Dog
Just a quick post to let you know we survived Shenendoah National Park. We saw two more rattle snakes and 6 plus bears. I say plus bears because we saw a sow about 10 yards off the trail and after she grunted a few times I saw at least one cub go up a tree, but, she was too close to get a good picture, she may have been grunting at me.
We were not as impressed with this park as we were with the Smokey Mtn National Park. We have really lost the views and the scenery just was not that great. We had one day where we walked a ridge that was pretty good, but, other then that it was just so, so. We also followed the Blue Ridge Parkway a little more than I wanted to. You never actually walk on the road, but, we the trail follows the park a little too closely for our liking. And of course you still go up and down and there were plenty of rocks.
We did not zero in Waynesboro and spent 6 nights in the park. By not taking a day off in town we caught up with a huge group of hikers and had a good time each night with these folks. We camped or stayed at shelters and camped each night and even drank a few beers together at one of the campgrounds.
When we came out of the woods yesterday we walked up on the road and were going to hitch into town about 4 miles. We had waited almost 2 minutes when a car pulled that was coming from town and asked if we would like to stay with them. A couple we had met got out of the car and told us they had stayed with Tom and Sharon Johnson the night before. Tom is a past president of Potomic Mtn Hiking Club and very active with hiking in the area. They live in a gated community and have turned the upstairs of their garage into a place for hikers to stay. It is complet with TV couch, and bath. It is very new and very nice. They have a beautiful home and are very well traveled.
Anyway they picked us up and first stop was the grocery to resupply and they home to shower, and eat lunch. While we were eating lunch we got blasted with a storm that knocked out the power. Power is still out this morning so I am posting this from an Outfitters store downtown.
We had decided to take the day off anyway and it sure is relaxing to have someone drive you around. We are going to run over to Thomas Jefferson's Home in Montichello as soon as I am done here.
We will be in Harpers Ferry Sunday night or monday and may take another day off to do a little touring. Hopefully I can post a few more pictures then.
Take care for now.
Red Dog and Lucky Dog
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