Day 102 (7/31) - Within a Mile of Home

Day 102 - 9.3 mi/1569.8 mi tot
Dalton MA to Cheshire MA

Well not exactly a mile, but home did come closer these last two days. So let me expand some more on my visit with my parents these last two days first. It was a great visit and started out with my dad hiking in about a mile on the trail to meet me and walk down to the car together. It was pretty cool to be able to share part of my experience with him, even if just for a mile. From there we headed to a local restaurant/pub for my second lunch of the day and met up with Katie there too. She thought I smelled bad and looked bad with the beard and the week's worth of stink on me. Oh well, some people can't appreciate a good hard-earned beard.

After that we made our way to Albany where we checked into the hote and I got a shower and laundry done. While we were doing that I also did some gear modifications/cleaning (with help from both mom and dad) from the supplies they brought along with them. Only ome thimg to do now...dinner. But on the way we decided to check out EMS for shoes for me since I was starting to blow through some seam on my current pair after more than 500 miles in them. I found a pair I liked and was informed that my birthday present was just taken care of. Sounds like a plan to me. Had a lot of food at Friday's and back to the hotel for sleep.

Then this morning I got pictured uploaded onto my dad's computer (should be posted to the website shortly) and then we got out of there and found a great little breakfast place on the way back to Dalton. Stopped along the way to grab some groceries and a sandwich, then back on the tral. We did leave a cooler full of drinks by the trailhead going into Dalton as some trail magic to contribute to this community.

A nice easy hike over the hill into Cheshire and a spot in the parish hall at the local Catholic church hostel for the night. Erik and I are set to go over Mt. Greylock tomorrow and then into VT on Monday.

Don't turn your back on me don't ever let me down

- Snowfox

Sent on the go from my Peek

Day 101 (7/30) - Interstate Love Song

Day 101 - 20.6 mi tot/1560.5 mi tot
Upper Goose Pond Cabin to Dalton, MA

The big excitement for the day was crossing the Mass Pike on the footbridge I have driven under for years. All those times I drove under the bridge I was saying "someday" and that day was Day 101 for me. I got a picture of me in front the bridge with all the signs right behind me. I never knew that the trail went right next to the Pike, only off the road by a few feet.

Did the rest of my hike fast to get into Dalton to meet up with my parents and sister and spent the rest of the day with them in Dalton then off to Albay to spend the night and get a new pair of shoes. A short day tomorrow into Cheshire the over Mt Greylock Sunday with my friend Erik.

Promises of what I seemed to be only watched the time go by, all of those things you said to me.

- Snowfox

Sent on the go from my Peek

Day 100 (7/29) - Land of Confusion

Day 100 - 21.1 mi/1539.9 mi tot
Tom Leonard Lean-to to Upper Goose Pond Cabin

Not so much confusion today as a bunch of random events. Lets start with last night...

A porcupine woke up the entire shelter by attempting to eat the picnic table. It was hard to tell how big it was but it made a ton of noise.

Then as I got started this morning the skies really opend up. It was as much rain as I have hiked in for quite a while. I made it to the next shelter and got out of the rain for a little bit and got some cothes wrung out before moving on.

Shortly after that, I ran into El Flacco. He started the same day as we did but we haven't crossed paths since the first night at Hawk Mtn Shelter. It was good to see him and catch up on the previous 99 days.

Then we ended up at the cabin and it is a realy cool place with a big pond, a bunch of nice bunks and some reported great pancakes for breakfast. Should be a good way to start my 20 mile trek into Dalton to meet up with the family crew for a little while.

it is actually nice to be heading to bed with the sound of I90, the Mass Pike, in the background. My parents, a bunch of the rest of my family and my wife are all also going to be sleeping not too far from the same road from coast to coast.

I can hear the marching feet moving into the street.

Theres too many men, too many people making too many problems, and theres not much love to go around, can't you see this is the land of confusion..

- Snowfox

Sent on the go from my Peek

Day 99 (7/28) - The End of the Line

Day 99 - 23.2 mi/1518.8 mi tot
Brassie Brook Lean-to to Tom Leonard Lean-to

No...not the end of the line for me, but definitely the end of the line for easy, flat-ish walking. The three peaks I mentioned yesterday took a lot of work, all before 10 am. The decents were also tough with a bunch of steep rocky sections that took a lot of concentration. Add to that some extreme hunger today for some reason and a reasonably hot day and you get a rough day. Overall it was probably a good warm up for Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine.

At US 7, I got some nice trail magic from a resident there who let me use her hose to fill up my water and she even brought around a chair for me to sit in under her tree. A nice relaxing time spent there in the middle of the day before finishing up my last 6.5 miles for the day. Also found a stash of cans of Coke right near there also, and carried one with me to the shelter to have with dinner.

This shelter is really nice, but lacking any good tent sites so I am sleeping in the shelter tonight and good thing the bugs aren't bad here. Just 2 more days to Dalton. Over 1500 miles down and onto Day 100 tomorrow.

Into the endless fever need more and more.

- Snowfox

Sent on the go from my Peek

Day 98 (7/27) - Streets of Boston

Day 98 - 21.0 mi/1495.6 mi tot
Pine Swap Brook Lean-to to Brassie Brook Lean-to

Well, not quite Boston, but I did spend a fair amount of time on the streets near Salisbury, CT today. Probably close to 4 "trail" miles plus and additional mile going in and out of Salisbury for a resupply to get me through the week. Most of the trail miles were the result of a trail detour due to construction on one of bridges used for the AT to cross the Housatonic River. Oh well, still get to the same place but me feet would have been happier without quite as much time on pavement.

Other than that I got some more climbing in to get re-prepared for hiking as opposed to the walking I have been doing recently. Went up and over Prospect Mountain as well as a nice climb for some great views from Lion's Head. The shelter near the top of Lion's Head, Riga Lean-to, had the best shelter views I have seen so far, but they wouldn't have been nearly as good from the tent sites and given the bug concentrations, I opted to continue on. Also got a good close look at Great Falls near Falls Village, CT. Not Niagara Falls huge but probably a good 60 or 70 foot drop...enough for them to have a hydroelectric plant there (see Dad, some of that electricity stuff did rub off on me).

Tomorrow is a big day...
- 3 big (well big for what I have been over recently) peaks in Bear Mtn, Race Mtn and Mt Everett
- crossing into Mass and completing CT for 10 states down and 4 more to go
- crossing the 1500 mile mark

Still moving north and looking forward to the weekend!

Why don't you brace for impact!

- Snowfox

Sent on the go from my Peek

Day 97 (7/26) - Broken Beat and Scarred

Day 97 - 17.3 mi/1474.6 mi tot
Mt Algo Lean-To to Pine Swamp Brook Lean-To

No need to worry, the lyrics from todays song are the appropriate part, not the title, although some scars will come back from this trip. It was actually chilly this morning and the fact that my clothes were still wet from yesterday's sweat-fest made for a rough wakeup. the trail today was nicely graded with not many rocks, but it was a lot of up and down all day. The temperature was nice and cool and the humidity dropped nicely today.

I started to wak into Cornwall Bridge to check out the thr town but got distracted at thw convenience store and ended up eating lunch there. Right as I was finishing, MacGuyver, her mom and her grandma stopped by to get some snacks and offered a ride back to the trailhead, so I figured it was a good plan not to pass up a ride. Right after I got started, there was pile of sodas in a creek so time for another break there. After that I ran into the trail maintainer who had left them there as he was buildiing some rock steps. Special thanks to all those people for the magic today.

I also ran into my first Southbounders today at the shelter including one guy from Northern VA who I had traded emails with before starting out. It really is a small world.

Into Salisbury tomorrow for a last resupply before meeting up with Mom, Dad and Katie (Adam too ???) on Friday in Daton, MA.

You rise, you fall, you rise and you fall again. What don't kill you makes you more strong. (English grade is a D here, but a good try...sorry James)

- Snowfox

Sent on the go from my Peek

Day 96 (7/25) - Almost Easy

Day 96 - 18.0 mi/1457.3 mi tot
NY 22 to Mt Algo Lean-to (0.3 mi S of Kent, CT)

Had a great start to the day with breakfast ay Big Daddy's with Ryan (he almost got me to ask if there was free refills on my meal, but I couldn't quite bring myself to do it). Picked up a sandwich for lunch after that, said goodbye to Ryan, Scott and Jeff and grabbed a cab for Grand Central. I was there in perfect time to get my ticket and only had to sit on the motionless train for a few minutes before it got going. A nice uneventful ride to the trail and I sat on the (minature) platform and ate my lunch before getting started with the daily hiking.

It was really humid today and I spent most of the day looking like I had been swimming (things will still be wet in the morning too). After I got through the first half hour to 45 minutes of the typical post-zero day leg pains, the hike went well. I passed on my original destination plan at mile 15 due to no water and pushed on to the shelter. It rained on and off today and is still sprinkling now as I sit in my tent writing this. Hopefully this stops tonight and the humidity drops before tomorrow.

Passing by Kent, CT tomorrow and probably making a quick stop into Cornwall Bridge for some snacks sometime in the middle of the day tomorrow. Closing in on 100 days and 1500 miles completed...wow those are crazy numbers to think about, but just over 700 miles to go.

I'm not insane, come back to me its almost easy.

- Snowfox

Sent on the go from my Peek

Day 95 (7/24) - New York, New York

Day 95 - 0.0 mi/1439.3 mi tot
New York City

Nothing exciting from last night. The train ride into the City worked out fine and it was an interesting walk the 21 blocks from Grand Central to Ryan's apartment. There are so many people here and it is a big difference from the trail and there are actually a decent number of women in the City too which is not really the case on the AT, at least not in that quantity. Did laundry and re-treated my clothing to repel ticks while relaxing with Ryan, his brother and his brother's friend. Some chinese food finished out the night nicely.

On Saturday we were set for a fun day of sun and beer at a beer garden in Queens. The place was nice and had a bunch of trees, which were great in the heat. Spent most of the day there with a revolving door of other friends. It was fun to meet all these people and we got to try a bunch of different beers while we were there. Had a bunch of good sausages too. A good relaxing zero day and it is always good to see Ryan again.

These little town blues are melting away.

- Snowfox

Sent on the go from my Peek

Day 94 (7/23) - Mama Said

Day 94 - 19.9 mi/1439.3 mi tot
RPH Sheter to NY 22 (train into NYC)

First things first, HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my Mom today. She gets a special thanks for being half of the tea in charge of getting my maildrops sent out to me on time and to the right place. I am smart enough not to put her age here, but happy __th birthday Mom!

Got a good start to the day today and as moving on the trail by 6 am and right around 830 I ran across the motherload of trail magic near NY52. It must have just been left there recently since the water was still cold and the cooler was still full of ice. Sodas, gatorades and a huge assortment of snacks made for a nice surprise this morning. Special thanks to Ozigal for the magic.

Unfortunately I spent about 30 minutes there and that got me stuck in some pretty good rain about mile 15 or so. I got to a shelter after waking in the heavy stuff for just over a half hour and got somewhat dried out before finishing up my last 3 miles to the road crossing. Other than walking through a bunch of wet grass I was able not to get too much wetter.

Got into Pawling way earlier than originally planned and should get into Grand Central around 445 this afternoon (I am writng this from the train). I will just end my recap of today here and include any fun from tonight in tomorrow's post. Should be a fun zero day.

Mama, she has taught me well, told me when I was young, son your life's an open book don't close it before its done.

- Snowfox

Sent on the go from my Peek

Day 93 (7/22) - Party In The USA

Day 93 - 25.2 mi/1419.4 mi tot
Bear Mountain Bridge to RPH Shelter

I know today's song choice makes this post lose credibility right off the bat, but today is my sister Katie's birthday so this one goes out to you. Happy 25th birthday and party it up in a Boston suburb tonight.

Today was day 1 in my two day quest to get to Pawing NY and get on the train to NYC on Friday. I made it the 25 miles I needed to get and got done right before 4 pm. I love days that are relatively cool and have some breezes going to keep the sweating down. The trail today was a lot less strenuous than the elevation profile made it seem so my total time of just over 9 hours on the trail was almost exactly as expected. It was also nice to see streams running again and I heard word that springs were still flowing in this area too, somewhat alleviating the water concerns that all hikers have been deaing with through PA and NJ.

Another 20 miles tomorrow and that should put me on a train in the mid-afternoon for the 2 hourbride to NYC. Should be a fun little trip.

Noddin' my head like yeah, movin' my hips like yeah. (oh the things I do for my sister)

- Snowfox

Sent on the go from my Peek

Day 92 (7/21) - Down in a Hole

Day 92 - 8.9 mi/1394.2 mi tot
William Brien Memorial Shelter to Bear Mtn Bridge

A short day today with a few steep climbs to get over Bear Mountain and down to the Hudson River. Bear Mtn was pretty neat with a zoo and a bunch of displays at the bottom.. On the way down we walked on aseveral miles of trail that were relatively new and very nicely developed. Nice work by the local volunteers but some other areas of the trail could use some more day to day maintenance, mainly removing and managing blowdowns across the trail. There were more along this section of the trail than most other sections of the trail anywhere else.

At the zoo we went through the lowest elevation on the trail at 124 feet above sea level. Appropriately enough, this point is directly in front of black bear exhibit at the zoo. So unfortunately it is all uphill from here (just another bad joke, sorry).

Ater that we took a cab into Highland Falls NY and got to the Econolodge and then went into town for a good mexican lunch and some resupply at a grocery store across the street from West Point. Back to the motel for pizza and beer dinner and some good quality lying down to get relaxed for tomorrow.

2 days to Pawling then onto the train to NYC for a good rest of Saturday.

Down in a hole and they've put all the stones in their place.

- Snowfox

Sent on the go from my Peek

Day 91 (7/20) - Good Times, Bad Times

Day 91 - 19.6 mi/1385.3 mi tot
Wildcat Shelter to William Brien Memorial Shelter

A few thoughts from yesterday first:
1) 8 states down, 6 to go and no sorrow with being out of NJ
2) saw 2 bears right before leaving NJ bringing my total for the trip to 9 bears.

Today was another tough terrain/lots of ups & downs kind of day and the four of us took it pretty slow all day with our intermediate goal of reaching Arden Valley Road and detouring the 0.3 miles to Lake Tiorati where there are vending machines and public showers. Both of which, as well as the free supply of good water, we al took advantage of. I hiled again today with the same crowd from yesterday and it worked out well to have someone to actually hike with all day. Crossed over the NYS Thruway (I87) today also.

At the shelter for the end of the day I got there and saw another large timber rattlesnake about 5 minutes from there and was greeted by 3 very unafraid deer right at the shelter. They went right on with their business (eating and chasing each other) without caring that I was there cooking and getting set up for the night.

Into Fort Montgomery tomorrow then getting set up for a weekend trip into NYC to see Ryan. Even going to splurge tomorrow night on a hotel room.

No matter how I tried I find my way to the same old jam.

- Snowfox

Sent on the go from my Peek

Day 90 (7/19) - An Empire State of Mind

Day 90 - 17.1 mi/1365.7 mi tot
NJ 94 to Wildcat Shelter

Got a great hitch this morning coming out of the church hostel and Miles, Ugly Tuna and I were all able to get in the car and get driven from Vernon out to the trailhead. The three of us made it up the hill and almost to the first shelter when the rain started. It got really dark right before that and it looked like we were in for a huge storm but it only lasted for a little while and wasn't too intense. Shortly after leaving there we caught up with Master Chief and got over the NJ/NY border to enter the great Empire State.

Some good climbs and views along the way and the trail was not an easy stretch. We made very slow miles today but got to NY 17A and the Bellvale Creamery for some nice afternoon ice cream on a very hot day. While we were there we got interviewed for the local Warwick, NY (?) newspaper so be on the lookout for that coming soon to a newstand near you. we spent a while there to avoid some of the heat before going the last 2 miles to the shelter. We would have liked to go farther but water availability and campsite availability limited us to this relatively short day.

To introduce this group I am hiking with:
- Ugly Tuna from Minneapolis, MN
- Miles from Atlanta, GA
- Master Chief, a retired Navy (you guessed it) Master Chief from South Carolina

I am the youngest in the group by close to 20 years but we get along well and have similar hiking targets.

Moving on tomorrow and unsure of the final destination.

Catch me in the kitchen like Simmons whipping pastry.

- Snowfox

Sent on the go from my Peek

Day 89 (7/18) - Magic Carpet Ride

Day 89 - 18.9 mi/1348.6 mi tot
High Point Shelter to NJ 94

Today was all about trail magic. Coming out of Unionville and a quick resupply, we were greeted 2 miles out by a couple who lived on the trail (a road walk in that specific area) who had a big annual party/picnic yesterday. They take the next day each year to have hikers relax under their tents and help them eat and drink their leftovers from the previous day's party. It was a nice break on a very hot day. After leaving there, the rest of the hike was hot and sticky and the day ended at NJ 94 with Red Lobster's parents and a tent set up in the parking area with beers, sodas, waters and other drinks as well as a bunch of food for any hiker who happened to walk past. They also shuttled about a dozen hikers from the road crossing into Vernon, NJ to stay at the hostel run by the local church. So that is where I ended up tonight. After getting to the church and taking a nice hose shower, a bunch of us walked over to the adjacent VFW post (with a retired Marine) to enjoy the hospitality of their bar after a long day of walking. It was a nice end to the day and it is supposed to be another hot one tomorrow.

Let the sound take you away.

- Snowfox

Day 88 (7/17) - Rock and Roll Aint Noise Pollution

Day 88 - 20.6 mi/1329.7 mi tot
1 mi S of Brink Road Shelter to High Point Shelter

While the music isnt noise pollution, rocks are trail pollution. Supposedly after 200 or so miles of pointy, moving, slippery and jagged rocks, I am done with the worst of them. My shoes are thanking me although the stench of the shoes is as bad as I have smelled it yet. The 90 degree and higher temps here for the last few days aren't helping the issue either.

The only noteworthy item for the day was my ascent of the highest point in NJ, creatively named "High Point". Got a nice tent site here near the shelter and can hear some music from the concert at the state park tonight coming down the hill. A quick resupply in Unionville tomorrow them pressing forward.

Rock and roll is just rock and roll.

- Snowfox

Day 87 (7/16) - Livin On A Prayer

Day 87 - 23.8 mi/1309.1 mi tot
Delaware Water Gap to 1 mi S of Brink Road Shelter

Ok so the only real relevence for todays song is that I entered New Jersey and I do like Bon Jovi. Katie...remember the time Sabrina and I took you to the Bon Jovi concert and we spent the whole show singing along with him...us and the row of cougars right behind us? Ahhhh, great memories.

Oh right, the hiking thing...

Left Delaware Water Gap and the hostel this morning and had a good morning hike to arrive at the Mohican Outdoor Center for my lunch break. A nice outpost here run by the AMC and I got an ice cold soda to have with my lunch, always a good treat. They also had wireless internet set up so I spent some time on my IPod checking the weather and seeing how may emails I was missing.

I tanked up with water there and there was only one water source over the next 13 miles or so and it was hot today. The three liters I carried out with me were exactly what I needed to get to the stream where I planned to spend the night. I would have stayed there but there was a conspicuous lack of flat spots for my tent so I continued north (now carrying nearly a gallon of water to take care of my meal needs for the evening and tomorrow morning) and ended up going about 1.5 miles before anything resembling a flat spot showed up. Strange since I probably passed 2 dozen great tent spots during the day toda and not one when I was looking for a spot to call it a night. Sorry...a little bitterness flashed through there.

Keeping on moving north tomorrow and should be making a quick resupply run over the border (into NY) on Sunday into Unionville NY.

Take my hand and we'll make it I swear. Ohhh ohhhh livin on a prayer.

- Snowfox

Sent on the go from my Peek

Day 86 (7/15) - Get Up

Day 86 -14.4 mi/1285.3 mi tot
1.2 mi N of Wind Gap to Delaware Water Gap

I am very ready to be done with these rocks. After some more sprinkles last night and continuing humidity today, they were slick and not much fun to walk over. Suppoedly just a day or two more of them into NJ then back to normal trail issues. Because of this slipperiness, I managed to lose traction at one point today and go for a nice slide ending up with my backside on the rock and my trekking poles flying through the air to both sides of me. While I was saved from any injury (other than a string of 4-letter words directed at the state and the weather in general) since I landed on my pack, the whole process must have been quite entertaining if anyone had seen it. Luckily for me, there were no witnesses.

So after getting into Delaware Water Gap, I got checked into the free hostel at the Church of the Mountain and took a really nice shower before going to pick up my packages at the post office. The hostel is pretty nice with a good sleeping room, plenty of space in a sitting room and on Thursday nights (tonight...I get somewhere on a good night for once) they have a congregation pot luck dinner for the hikers staying there for the night. It was a really nice meal and I spent the time chatting with a bunch of people and eating a lot of food. After that a trip to the bar next door for beers and open-mike blues/jazz. A really cool half day for me and very relaxing.

We all fall down so get up now! Why don't you get up and get out!

- Snowfox

Sent on the go from my Peek

Day 85 (7/14) - The Road of the Righteous

Day 85 - 22.0 mi/1270.9 mi tot
PA 873 (Palmerton PA) to 1.2 mi N of Wind Gap

Who doesn't like rock climbing? Especially on 90 degree faces on slippery rocks from rain last night after having to walk 2 miles back to the trail when no one would pick up a lone hiker in the drizzling rain. Sorry for that, just needed to get it off my chest from this morning. Seriously though, I had fun climbing the 1000 feet out of Lehigh Gap (some of which was the rock scramble) but would have loved a ride out there.

After that I got a nice walk along the edge of the Palmerton Zinc Superfund site and there were tons of red raspberries there, but I was not about to munch on them since who knows what they had been growing on. Other than that it was a wet, intermittently rainy, sticky day with miles that all seemed to come slow. Oh well, not a big deal and I am still set up well for a short day tomorrow into Delaware Water Gap and another hot shower before moving into the armpit of America on Friday. At least no one will be able to differentiate my smell from the background stench that is NJ.

I've seen a few men go the road of the righteous and just a few have travelled this old lonely path.

- Snowfox

Sent on the go from my Peek

Day 84 (7/13) - Jailhouse Rock

Day 84 - 17.4 mi/1248.9 mi tot
Allentown Shelter to PA873 (Palmerton, PA)

The day started as a very wet (from last nights rain...and it rained all night) and still drizzly morning. Thankfully it kept the temperature down so even in the high humidity it wasn't too miserable. Ran into Dr Rock along the way today and hiked with him for 8 or 9 miles and found out that he was in a similar situation as me. He started the hike with his girlfriend and she was forced off the trail due to injuries and is now back driving along as car support. So when I got down to the road I was able to get a ride into town from her which was a lot better than the 2 mile walk or tough hitch.

When I got into town I went to the town hall and checked into their "Jailhouse Hostel" a hostel in the basement of the old police station. Got a great shower there with nothing even resembling a low flow shower head so it worked well to pressure wash the funk off of me. Did some laundry and spent a bunch of time at the library on the internet checking email and Facebook, a nice relaxing afternoon.

Overall this is a great small trail town with the grocery store giving a free apple to hikers, the library giving a free paperback to hikers and definitely the free hostel is a nice touch too. Everyone here was very friendly and it is avery underrated trail town, definitely a must-visit along the way.

At the hostel I met up with Wayfarer, Rocket and Alano and had a good time eating dinner and hanging out with various combinations of them tonight. Oh yeah...for dinner we hit up Berts Steakhouse and their peach-blueberry pie was a great ending to my meals here in town. Overall a very successful day in my opinion. Two more days to Delaware Water Gap.

The warden said "Hey buddy don't you be no sqaure if you can't find a partner, use a wooden chair". Lets Rock.

- Snowfox

Sent on the go from my Peek

Day 83 (7/12) - Allentown

Day 83 - 22.6 mi/1231.5 mi tot
Port Clinton, PA to Allentown Hiking Club Shelter

Got a real early start today (5:45 am) to try to beat the heat that we were supposed to have today and did 15 miles by 1045. The morning was a great hike with cool temps, non-sore feet, a light-feeling pack and a surprisingly not tired Snowfox after struggling to fall asleep last night. The two climbs weren't that bad this morning and the trail wasn't too rocky. I made it to Eckville Shelter early and took a nice 3 hour break which was good timing for it as the humidity jumped soon after I got there. The break gave me time to take a shower in the solar shower, eat a nice relaxing lunch and hang out with some other hikers for a while.

The afternoon started to get cloudy so I got moving again to try to stay out of the rain, which I was successful at. The afternoon trail, while only 7.4 miles long, had a bunch of really rocky sections that aggravated one blister and slowed me down somewhat. although there were a bunch of sections maintained by the Allentown Hiking Club where there was a visble effort to move some of the worst rocks off the trail and make it more passable for hikers. I made it to the shelter and was able to get a primo spot there for the night so I won't have to pack up a wet tent in the morning.

So I sat in the shelter, ate my dinner and watched the rain start to fall being thankful I am not stuck out in it somewhere. Heading into Palmerton tomorrow afternoon and staying the night there.

Some upcoming estimated arrival dates (subject to change):
- PA/NJ Border: 7/15
- Unionville NY: 7/18
- fully into NY: 7/20
- Fort Montgomery NY: 7/22
- Appalachian Trail Train Station (from Grand Central): 7/24
- Into CT: 7/25
- Kent CT:: 7/26
- Into MA: 7/28

Those all assume that I have no zero days or other low mileage days thrown in there, so the later ones are more likely to slip some. But if anyone is trying to plan a visit to meet up with me somewhere, those should be a good approximation for now.

We're waiting here in Allentown for the Pennsylvania we never found.

- Snowfox

Sent on the go from my Peek

Day 82 (7/11) - Ole Ole Ole Ole

Day 82 - 0.0 mi/1208.9 mi tot
Port Clinton, PA

So my short day turned into a zero day as the soccer game went into double OT and to nearly 530 pm. Oh well, gives Bird and Twiggzy more time to catch up (I hear they left Duncannon sometime today). Other than that I just hitched into Hamburg to get to the grocery store then was lucky enough to have gotten a ride from someone who was going there too and waited to bring me back to Port Clinton (a nice surprise after about 100 cars blew by me on the road).

Spent the day with Salty and Tiny Dancer at the bar watching the game and eating multiple meals there. They also scrapped plans to head out today and did a zero day also. The true power of the World Cup. Back at the town pavillion tonight with a different crew of hikers but a good group so it was a good day.

Moving on tomorrow with plans for a 22 mile day over a bunch of rocks. Still on track for Palmerton on Tuesday.

Bouncing Souls no one can beat us we drink beer and wear Adidas.

- Snowfox

Sent on the go from my Peek

Day 81 (7/10) - The Memory Remains

Day 81 - 23.7 mi/1208.9 mi tot
501 Shelter to Port Clinton, PA

Wow, good thimg I was at the shelter last night or I would have gotten hit with some serious rain on my tent. And it has been a long time since I have had to hike in the rain, not that I forgot wha it was like but I didn't miss it all that much, which I did the entire morning. Overall it wasn't too bad since it kept the temperatures down but the wet feet made me end up with some hot spots and a blister or two. I have a bunch of good blister first aid supplies and should be good to go tomorrow when I leave out of here.

Port Clinton is a tiny town whose economy appears to center on the hotel which is also the only restaurant and bar that I have seen. There is also a candy store which has really good fudge. That's about it so I plan to hitch into Hamburg tomorrow to hit the grocery store and the library, then probably back to Port Clinton for lunch at the hotel restaurant and the soccer game before moving on.

Oh yeah, yesterday I saw a red tailed hawk take off from the bushes right next to me on the trail. That was a huge bird and a really cool looking one with the red colored tail feathers.

Palmerton on Tuesday, and maybe a night in the Jailhouse Hostel.

And can't the band play on just listen to me play my song, ash to ash, dust to dust, fade to black

- Snowfox

Sent on the go from my Peek

Day 80 (7/9) - Simple Man

Day 80 - 25.3 mi/1185.2 mi tot
Stony Mtn to 501 Shelter
The rain last night made for a significantly cooler day today and a goos day for the big miles I had planned. Overall, nothing spectacular, just a number of instances of trail magic in the form of water jugs mostly, which were a big help given the number of dry springs and streams.
Ended up at the 501 shelter, a converted potters building sharing a lot with some local residents who also serve as caretakers for the shelter. It is almost more like a hostel than a shelter with a bunch of bunks, running water and a solar shower. Not a bad place to spend the night especially with more thundershowers predicted for the evening.
A nice simple all in one end to a simple day. There is something nice about being out here living with what is on my back and what I carry. A neat reminder of how complicated "real life" can be.
Into Port Clinton tomorrow and a very short day planned for Sunday as I try to find a place to watch some of the World Cup finals in the afternoon.
Don't you worry, you'll find yourself, follow your heart and nothing else (except white blazes).
- Snowfox
Sent on the go from my Peek

Day 79 (7/8) - The Rocky Road to Dublin

Day 79 - 21.3 mi/1159.9 mi tot
Duncannon, PA to Stony Mountain

A great start to the morning today...I woke up in air conditioning. Followed that up with a big plate of scrambled eggs and toast (special thanks, again, to Uncle Paul for all his hospitality) and I was ready to go, loaded up with 4 days of food and 3 liters of water. Wait...but you only carry a 2L bladder in your pack, why carry an extra liter? Turns out that the lack of rain is finally catching up with the springs around here and many are aready dry. That made the start of today a 14 mile stretch with no water sources and in 90 degree (and higher) heat. But it turned out that a local trail maintainer/trail angel also knew about the lack of water and happened to be at a parking area at noontime as I passed through. He had severa jugs of water for hikers as well as fresh fruit and other snacks. I sat there and had lunch with him and chatted for a while before moving on. I apologise to this generous guy but I did not get his name to properly thank him here (I did give him the blog address), but thank you again and enjoy your "cyber hiking".

Today was also my crossing of the Susquehanna River and the beginning of the infamous Pennsylvania rocks. They weren't too bad today, but supposedly that changes as I keep moving through the state. Should be interesting to see how these shoes hold up to the rocks...I am not optimisitic.

I took it kind of slow the rest of the day and tried not to exert myself in the heat too much. I was eating dinner near Clarks Creek when I ran into another hiker named Josh who was also thinking aout pushing forward for another hour or so from there so we hiked up Stony Mtn together having a nice talk as we did and ended up finding a campsite near what appears to be the site of an old firetower on top of the hill. And bonus, I have signal from the Peek so you can all enjoy this post right away.

On tap for tomorrow, a 25 mile day to 501 Shelter which is supposedly the start of a 23 mile dry stretch of trail leading into Port Clinton so I need to end a day there and do the 23 miles in one shot in a single day to have water for meals etc... A little bigger day than I would have preferred but it can't really be helped with the water situation. Also I will cross I81 for the fourth and final time this trip.

For anyone who happens to be reading this from the Lehigh Valley, I should be coming through Lehigh Gap at PA 248 sometime during the day on Tuesday the 13th. Probably planning to head into Palmerton from there to do some resupply on my way to Delaware Water Gap.

Brand new pair of brouges, rattlin oer the bogs, frigtening all of the dogs on the rocky road to Dublin...1...2...3...4...5

Sent on the go from my Peek

Day 78 (7/7) - we are family

Day 78 - 7.7 mi/1138.6 mi tot
Stream 3.6 mi S of Cove Mtn Shelter to Duncannon, PA

A nice short, easy day this morning to get into Duncannon. One minor climb, and mostly done in the "cool hourns" of the morning. Had a second breakfast in town after stopping to wring out my t-shirt in the parking lot of a gas station. Spent a few hours there killing time until the Doyle Hotel opened and I could get my box that was waiting there. By thay time my Uncle Paul was there and we headed to his house innearby Harrisburg for the day. Did normal town day activities including a shower (first in 7 days), laundry, groceries and the outfitter. The outfitter in this case was a Bass Pro Shop, which I had never been into one before. Holy crap, this place was enormous with all kinds of stuff in it. It was like the Walmart of outftters stores. It worked out fine but I think I like my smaller outfitters better.

Spent the rest of the day catching up with my Uncle and had a really great dinner with him and his girlfriend Linda. It was great to see them both again and I had a really good time.

Back at it tomorrow, with probably a shorter day after a later than normal start.

You won't go wrong this is our family jewel

- Snowfox

Sent on the go from my Peek

Day 77 (7/6) - People of the Sun

Day 77 - 22.0 mi/1130.9 mi tot
Little Dogwood Run to Stream 3.7 mi S of Cove Mtn Shelter
This will be short since I am sweating while I write this. This heat is miserable and the walk today through a bunch of open fields in the Cumberland Valley was something less than fun. Right now this ranks as the least fun day on the trail so far.
A few saving graces for the day:
1) getting through most of the field walking by 10 am helped (had to be walking by 5:45 am to make that happen)
2) municipal water sources along the way so I didn't have to pump
3) a cooler full of beers at one of the road crossings
4) the knowledge that I only have 7.7 miles to go in the morning to get into Duncannon
Ugh, still sweating, who knew typing was an exertion sport?
Its coming back around again this is for the people of the sun.
- Snowfox (snow...there's a nice thought)
Sent on the go from my Peek

Day 76 (7/5) - The Struggle Within

Day 76 -18.9 mi/1108.9 mi tot
Toms Run Shelters to Little Dogwood Run (0.1 mi S of Alec Kennedy Shelter)

I started the day with one struggle (do I eat the ice cream or not) then was prepared for another struggle within after eating the much ice cream.

I am officially halfway through the mileage on the trail and celebrated at 9:00 this morning with the half gallon challenge at the Pine Furnace Grove Camp Store. I opted for the peach ice cream (Breyers Naturals) and ate it in 28 minutes. Just to note, there are very few maufacturers that still offer a "true" half gallon but in fact have 1.5 quart containers (a half gallon would be 2 quarts). So techically I didn't eat a full half gallon, but since that is what was offered...good enough. There is no prize for this feat other than the "pride" that comes along with the accomplishment.

Since I knew that it was a shortish day, I hung around the store for a while and digested then had a Coke and moved on. I don't know if it was the sugar or the caffiene but I was flying after that and made great time the rest of the morning. Stopped at a small local store (special thanks to the guy who drove me up the hill) and got some Powerade after lunch then moseyed through the afternoon heat over my last 6 miles to where I am camped. I also finally found somewhere with service for the Peek and got the last few days worth of posts sent out (sorry for the delay...I know reading these is the highlight of the day for most of you).

Another great streamside campsite in prepsration for another 18-ish mile day through the Cumberland Valley and caping somewhere around the Darlington Shelter then into Duncannon on Wednesday for a nice half day break.

Bird and Twiggzy...I am leaving from the Doyle Hotel on Thursday morning, will either of you catch up by then?

So many things you don't wanna do, what is it, what have you got to lose

- Snowfox

Sent on the go from my Peek

Day 75 (7/4) - God Bless America

Day 75 - 25.8 mi/1090.0 mi tot
Tumbling Run Shelters to Toms Run Shelters

First things first, happy Independence Day to everyone out there (when no one else is listening I refer to y'all as "my adoring fans")! While many of you probably enjoyed a day of cookouts, beer and parties, I hiked...oh wait, that makes this a day that ends in "y". My big celebration will come tomorrow when I reach the halfway point of my journey and shortly thereafter make my attempt t join the half gallon club at the camp store in the Pine Grove Furnace State Park. The objective is to consume a half gallon of ice cream as fast as possible. Sounds like my kind of challange, I jus need to pick my flavor. Updates from that adventure will follow.

As for today, another non-eventful day on the trail. I am beginning to think that most hikrs took this weekend off since I have seen so few other thru hikers out here. A pretty boring day for me with no good views (or really any views for that matter) and just a bunch of repetitive trail scenes along the way. Although I did see part of another rattlesnake and must have scared it with a rock I had kicked forward because I heard the rattle. If there were people out there who were indifferent about snakes, this sound will change that outlook for good. A very disturbing noise that I won't soon forget and definitely puts me well into the anti-snale category.

A nice camping area tonight with a stream nearby and the whole place to myself. I had a good dinner of orange pepper chicken with chocolate pudding for dessert. A nice way to end the day. Probably a short one tomorrow at about 19 miles to stop right before a long section of "camping prohibited" area. Duncannon/Harrisburg by noon on Wednesday for a good half-day with Uncle Paul.

From the mountains to the valleys to the ocean, white with foam (at least I get 2 out of 3).

- Snowfox

Sent on the go from my Peek

Day 74 (7/3) - Mountains

Day 74 - 24.7 mi/1064.2 mi tot
Annapolis Rocks to Tumbling Run Shelters

Wow, its been a while since I've gotten any trail magic other than from Princess but the cooler full of sodas at the top of the rise just into PA was very welcome as the afternoon heated up. And I knocked off another state, Maryland, to bring my total complete states to six...woohoo.

like the lyrics below say, I was able to make good time For most of the day but the few uphill climbs and downhill descents were tough. They were all really steep and covered with boulders making for very slow going. I had a great lunch at High Rocks with a 180 degree view of PA and MD farmland below and then took a nice long break at Pen-Mar SP on the border for a snack, some water and some phone calls. My "Yogi-ing" skills are apparently lacking as I didn't get to mooch off of any of the picnicers that were there...oh well, there are more state parks coming up in the next few days and I might get lucky there.

Nothing real exciting on tap for tomorrow might try to get started extra early to beat the heat and be able to hide out somewhere during the middle of the day when the temps are supposed to be really bad.

The walkin's easy when the road is flat, those danged ole' hills will get you every time.

- Snowfox

Sent on the go from my Peek

Day 73 (7/2) - Civil War

Day 73 - 23.0 mi/1039.5 mi tot
Harpers Ferry Hostel to Annapolis Rocks

There are tons of Civil War battlefields and monuments in Maryland...who knew? Anyway there were some cool ones like the Stonewall Brigade monument and the Washington Monument. Now, all the attentive folks out there are having two problems with this:
1) "the" Washington Monument is in DC
2) he had nothing to do with the Civil War

Well I agree with both of those statements, but there is a second monument to the man and it is near Boonsboro, MD and the structure was used as a signal tower by Union troops during the war. So there...I am not nuts (well maybe just a little).

As for the hiking today, it wasn't bad but my feet are a little sore while I am getting used to my new, stiffer shoes. Made good time and was at Annapolis Rocks by 3 pm and spent the rest of the day with Castle, a 2009 thru hiking friend of ours, who is now working as a ridgerunner here in MD and just happend to be stationed as the caretaker here for the next few days. It was good to see her and we had a good time catching up. This is a really nice area with some great views and the sunset tonight here should be great.

Moving into PA tomorrow with Duncannon/Harrisburg still on tap for Wednesday.

The power hungry go shopping at a human grocery store - aint that rich...what's so civil about war anyway?

- Snowfox

Sent on the go from my Peek

Day 72 (7/1) - Its so hard to say goodbye

Day 72 - 21.3 mi/1016.4 mi tot
VA 7 to Harpers Ferry Hostel (MD)

Did a lot of goodbyes today, some are good and others not so good.

The "not so good"
- Sabrina headed back to Richmond tonight before her Sunday flight back to the west coast for a while after driving a hour north to me during afternoon rush hour traffic to deliver a late-arriving new pair of shoes.
- My chase car. (see above). I am currently accepting applications for a new chase car and driver. Requirements are: 21 or older (so they can buy my beer for the end of the day), car big enough for up to 3 hikers and their gear, an immunity to massive quantities of BO and nothing important they need to do for the next 3 months.

The "good":
- Virginia, after a month of almost non stop hiking through this state, it was good to say good bye and chalk up one more state completed (up to 4 now).
- West Virginia, a nice short piece of state that I got all the way through today, incuding a stop at the ATC HQ for my picture and information to be logged for their stats. That makes 5 states completed so far.
- Three digit mileages, I passed the 1000 mile mark this morning and no looking back.
- My shoes and socks. The replacement shoes finally arrived to let me retire the defective pair I wore for 550 miles and I got two new pairs of socks to replace those that I had been wearing since Springer Mtn.

And of course, the day wouldn't be complete without a car mishap...a deer ran into the front passenger side door rendering a nice dent, a non functional exterior handle and an inability to open the window. Go figure.

More progress north tomorrow, moving farther into MD after spending the evening at this hostel with a 60 person church group.

(this song is so far out of my memory I have no lyrics to add here...for all you late 20 and 30- somethings, just think back to a high school dance for a bonus image for today's song)

- Snowfox

Sent on the go from my Peek

Day 71 (6/30) - Calm Like a Bomb

Day 71 - 0.0 mi/995.2 mi tot
NoVA

This is the first time I have done 2 zero days in a row this whole trip...the closest before was a 3 mile near-o followed by a zero, which still wasn't the same. It felt good but by the end of the day I was getting antsy to get going again.

But it was a good day and a great last full day with Sabrina before she heads out and I am back on my own for the hike. We had a great lunch with Carl and we can not thank Chris enough for letting us crash at his house for these last 3 nights and for putting up with us messing up his previously orderly life.

Well, back at it tomorrow, should be a very productive day.

These vultures robbing everything leaving nothing but change.

- Snowfox

Sent on the go from my Peek