June 29 Bear Creek Mountain Resort, PA 1257 Miles
After spending two pleasant days with hikers in the bunkroom behind Bert's Restaurant in Palmerton, I took an Uber through Allentown, NJ to Bear Creek Mountain Resort, NJ.
The resort was a number of metal buildings with a pool, a couple of bars and eating areas, and a deck in the back looking out onto the ski lifts.
Outside my third story window, a wedding rehearsal was being held in the courtyard. It appears there is a wedding held at the resort almost everyday.
Since Terrie told me her plane would be late, probably around 10PM I assumed, I ate a sandwich at the bar and took a pitcher of beer out on the patio to listen to the band.
She arrived early, at 9PM, and she looked wonderful. I was very happy to see her.
June 30 Bear Creek Mountain Resort, PA 1257 Miles
The resort was a number of metal buildings with a pool, a couple of bars and eating areas, and a deck in the back looking out onto the ski lifts.
Outside my third story window, a wedding rehearsal was being held in the courtyard. It appears there is a wedding held at the resort almost everyday.
Since Terrie told me her plane would be late, probably around 10PM I assumed, I ate a sandwich at the bar and took a pitcher of beer out on the patio to listen to the band.
She arrived early, at 9PM, and she looked wonderful. I was very happy to see her.
June 30 Bear Creek Mountain Resort, PA 1257 Miles
Terrie and I relaxed today and spent the day walking around eating, drinking and doing laundry.
We had a delicious steak dinner that night and on the way back to our room we heard Twist and Shout coming out of a wedding banquet room; so we crashed the party and danced a couple of numbers until we slopped our wine on our clothes and figured it was time to slip out.
It was nice being clean and wearing regular pants and a shirt again.
It was nice being clean and wearing regular pants and a shirt again.
July 1 Bear Creek 1270 Miles
Terrie and I went to Hamburg, Pa to pick up a portable water filter; I had been going a long time without one. But Pennsylvania had few springs on the trail and available water could be dirty). Along the way we enjoyed the Pennsylvania countryside of small villages and farmhouses.
On the way back to the resort, we got caught in a long downpour that flooded the flat narrow roads and stopped us frequently. It was quite fun and exciting actually.
Back at the ski resort, we hung out at the pool and had too much sun and too many Moscow mules and I barely defeated Terrie in a number of rounds of gin rummy.
Terrie wanted to hike with me some.
Well, Pennsylvania is rocky and this area is especially rocky I told her. It could be difficult.
I have been doing Crossfit a while so I am in pretty good shape she said.
Do you have good shoes I said.
These are great shoes my confident wife said.
So I contacted a shuttle driver and arranged for a hike the next day, Sunday.
Terrie wanted to hike with me some.
Well, Pennsylvania is rocky and this area is especially rocky I told her. It could be difficult.
I have been doing Crossfit a while so I am in pretty good shape she said.
Do you have good shoes I said.
These are great shoes my confident wife said.
So I contacted a shuttle driver and arranged for a hike the next day, Sunday.
July 2 Bear Creek 1269 miles
We packed some snacks, tortillas, peanut butter, bananas and after meeting the shuttle driver we drove to Smith Gap Road, 12 miles north of Palmerton, PA, and about 1500 feet elevation. We planned to slack pack South into Palmerton and to our car.
We climbed the mountain and arrived at the trailhead around 10:30AM. There was a group doing trail magic. But we were just starting and so we continued to venture down the trail.
Terrie hiked adeptly over miles of easy to moderately rocky trail.
This is not too bad she said.
At this rate we could be done by five I said.
But we didn't get in Palmerton until seven-thirty.
We climbed the mountain and arrived at the trailhead around 10:30AM. There was a group doing trail magic. But we were just starting and so we continued to venture down the trail.
Terrie hiked adeptly over miles of easy to moderately rocky trail.
This is not too bad she said.
At this rate we could be done by five I said.
But we didn't get in Palmerton until seven-thirty.
The trail became rougher around four o'clock and her feet and legs were getting sore and shaky. We stopped for lunch.
Around 2 PM we stopped at some water jug trail magic left beside the trail and looking on my GPS I noted a gravel trail that would bypass the AT for four or five miles.
We took the old gravel trail uphill for a mile or so, much to Terrie's dismay. It takes a while to get hiker's legs and she was looking weary. But she was a trooper and pushed up the hill and over it .
I pointed out a bear's paw in a pool of mud and we saw a nice view as well.
After five miles, the gravel road stopped and a little grassy trail took us back to the AT, which, unfortunately, was all pointy rocks. I felt sorry for Terrie. She was over this.
How much longer she said.
Only about a mile I replied.
Isn't that what you said last time?
I wish I had looked at the AWOL Guidebook a little more closely. I had overlooked the part where it said that the trail into Palmerton that we were crossing was a rocky steep trail due to zinc smelting from 1896 to 1980.
And it was a rocky steep trail. In fact, there was no "trail," just a field of huge boulders piled up and resting on each other down the mountain.
Terrie was dismayed and then happy to get through it and onto the dirt trail fifty yards onward.
My legs are shaking she said. I can barely stand up.
But the trail was no more than a minute walk and we came out onto another field of boulders.
Let's rest I suggested.
I'm going to kill you she suggested.
We rested and then I guided her through another section of the "quarry." I was hoping that was all of it but it wasn't.
We went through a number of these chaotic rock fields, punctuated by a few yards of trail. Terrie learned the technique of walking sideways, hands on boulders.
This is your fault she said.
Yeah, you are right. It is, I replied.
And it was my fault. I should have done more research. I felt very guilty but I had to get her up and out of there.
You may need to call a helicopter to get me off.
I crawled over to her. You can do this I said. You can do it.
I don't know she said looking tired, sweaty, exhausted.
.
Let's get off this stupid mountain and this stupid ass trail. Who designed this crap? I said.
This f.... up mountain I said.
Yeah, it sure is. This is way too dangerous she said.
Screw these people. Come on let's get out of here. Let's do it.
I scrambled over to a ridge where there was an American flag painted on a rock. Please, I thought, let this be the end of it.
Look, an American flag, I yelled back to her and climbing to the ridge. It's like they planted a flag at the top!
On the top of the ridge I could see a mile or two down to the river, the bridge, and the parking lot where our car was. Looking down over the ridge I saw a steep cliff, and then bushes and a piece of trail. Thank God.
Our car she said, I see our car.
Yeah. We are almost there.
We had to climb down on a half foot ledge, pressing our stomachs to the wall face. I guided Terrie's feet along the places to put her feet and the cracks in the rock to grab. She performed like a trooper. Her trainer later told her that she should have been roped.
Forty-five minutes later we were down the trail, having met a hiker coming up. He was a German thru-hiker and planned to go over those rocks as the sun went down and then camp somewhere.
He smiled upon hearing our story. He would not go down any gravel road he said. Just the AT.
There is no place to put up a tent on the trail, Terrie said later.
He'll find one, I said. He'll walk into the night until he does.
We finally came down to the highway and across the bridge and to our rental car. Then on the way out, we both yelled out "F.... You Mountain!!!" Giving it some major middle fingers.
You know it was dangerous, she said later, and I worry about you hiking these rocks, but at the same time it was
kinda exciting.
See the kind of girl I married?
Around 2 PM we stopped at some water jug trail magic left beside the trail and looking on my GPS I noted a gravel trail that would bypass the AT for four or five miles.
We took the old gravel trail uphill for a mile or so, much to Terrie's dismay. It takes a while to get hiker's legs and she was looking weary. But she was a trooper and pushed up the hill and over it .
I pointed out a bear's paw in a pool of mud and we saw a nice view as well.
After five miles, the gravel road stopped and a little grassy trail took us back to the AT, which, unfortunately, was all pointy rocks. I felt sorry for Terrie. She was over this.
How much longer she said.
Only about a mile I replied.
Isn't that what you said last time?
I wish I had looked at the AWOL Guidebook a little more closely. I had overlooked the part where it said that the trail into Palmerton that we were crossing was a rocky steep trail due to zinc smelting from 1896 to 1980.
And it was a rocky steep trail. In fact, there was no "trail," just a field of huge boulders piled up and resting on each other down the mountain.
Terrie was dismayed and then happy to get through it and onto the dirt trail fifty yards onward.
My legs are shaking she said. I can barely stand up.
But the trail was no more than a minute walk and we came out onto another field of boulders.
Let's rest I suggested.
I'm going to kill you she suggested.
We rested and then I guided her through another section of the "quarry." I was hoping that was all of it but it wasn't.
We went through a number of these chaotic rock fields, punctuated by a few yards of trail. Terrie learned the technique of walking sideways, hands on boulders.
This is your fault she said.
Yeah, you are right. It is, I replied.
And it was my fault. I should have done more research. I felt very guilty but I had to get her up and out of there.
You may need to call a helicopter to get me off.
I crawled over to her. You can do this I said. You can do it.
I don't know she said looking tired, sweaty, exhausted.
.
Let's get off this stupid mountain and this stupid ass trail. Who designed this crap? I said.
This f.... up mountain I said.
Yeah, it sure is. This is way too dangerous she said.
Screw these people. Come on let's get out of here. Let's do it.
I scrambled over to a ridge where there was an American flag painted on a rock. Please, I thought, let this be the end of it.
Look, an American flag, I yelled back to her and climbing to the ridge. It's like they planted a flag at the top!
On the top of the ridge I could see a mile or two down to the river, the bridge, and the parking lot where our car was. Looking down over the ridge I saw a steep cliff, and then bushes and a piece of trail. Thank God.
Our car she said, I see our car.
Yeah. We are almost there.
We had to climb down on a half foot ledge, pressing our stomachs to the wall face. I guided Terrie's feet along the places to put her feet and the cracks in the rock to grab. She performed like a trooper. Her trainer later told her that she should have been roped.
Forty-five minutes later we were down the trail, having met a hiker coming up. He was a German thru-hiker and planned to go over those rocks as the sun went down and then camp somewhere.
He smiled upon hearing our story. He would not go down any gravel road he said. Just the AT.
There is no place to put up a tent on the trail, Terrie said later.
He'll find one, I said. He'll walk into the night until he does.
We finally came down to the highway and across the bridge and to our rental car. Then on the way out, we both yelled out "F.... You Mountain!!!" Giving it some major middle fingers.
You know it was dangerous, she said later, and I worry about you hiking these rocks, but at the same time it was
kinda exciting.
See the kind of girl I married?
July 3 Bear Creek 1269 miles
We hobbled around the resort and rested all day.
We hobbled around the resort and rested all day.
July 4 Bert's Restaurant 1282 miles
In the morning, Terrie drove me in the rental car to Palmerton where I was to meet the holiday overtime employee at nine-fifteen and pick up my pair of size 13 sport Crocs.
I was looking forward to trying a larger size in the shoes that I had worn for the first 110 miles.
But the employee didn't show. I had missed him according to the gas station attendant across the street. They came at 7:30.
So I spent another night at Bert's with a few young people sitting around the telly eating chips and drinking beer.
I was looking forward to trying a larger size in the shoes that I had worn for the first 110 miles.
But the employee didn't show. I had missed him according to the gas station attendant across the street. They came at 7:30.
So I spent another night at Bert's with a few young people sitting around the telly eating chips and drinking beer.
July 5 tent site 1277 miles
Well, I got my shoes and after all that waiting around for them, I saw that they were too big and so sent them back. I went to the library where I spent some frustrating time trying to put photo's on my blog from my phone. It's screwed up.
Then I Ubered to Smith Gap where I had left off with Terrie a couple of days ago and then walked 7 miles North to a two tent campsite alongside the trail. It was five o'clock. It felt good to be on the trail and in the open air again.
Then I Ubered to Smith Gap where I had left off with Terrie a couple of days ago and then walked 7 miles North to a two tent campsite alongside the trail. It was five o'clock. It felt good to be on the trail and in the open air again.
July 6 Delaware Water Gap 1293 miles
Looking forward to getting to Delaware Water Gap because it was the last town before entering New Jersey. I know Jersey would not be a piece of cake but I and many others were more than over Pennsylvania rocks.
I packed up my tent and left at 7:00 AM and walked a few miles down into Wind Gap where I met Laura sitting at the trailhead eating a sandwich.
We walked up the trail but I had lost some of my legs and she went ahead easily.
About twelve miles into it I began to tire and got careless and tripped over a root. I fell on my side and then onto my face and onto some rocks.
I looked at my left leg and saw that there was going to be a big bruise there. I felt my face and noted that I had a cut on my cheekbone.
But my glasses were intact perhaps because I had gotten my hand over them when I hit the rock.
I walked into the town of Delaware Water Gap over some moderately rocky trail and taking a side road into town. Delaware Water Gap is a small town that, like so many others, seemed to have suffered when the expressway was opened next to it.
I found the Presbyterian Church of the Mountain Hiker which provided bunk beds and shuttles just for donations.
I got a bunk and went for some ice cream and a hot dog at a shop across the street. Then the church provided there weekly Thursday potluck to hikers and friends. It was an amazing feast of chicken, salads, pies, and homemade ice cream, and I enjoyed talking with the church folks.
I packed up my tent and left at 7:00 AM and walked a few miles down into Wind Gap where I met Laura sitting at the trailhead eating a sandwich.
We walked up the trail but I had lost some of my legs and she went ahead easily.
About twelve miles into it I began to tire and got careless and tripped over a root. I fell on my side and then onto my face and onto some rocks.
I looked at my left leg and saw that there was going to be a big bruise there. I felt my face and noted that I had a cut on my cheekbone.
But my glasses were intact perhaps because I had gotten my hand over them when I hit the rock.
I walked into the town of Delaware Water Gap over some moderately rocky trail and taking a side road into town. Delaware Water Gap is a small town that, like so many others, seemed to have suffered when the expressway was opened next to it.
I found the Presbyterian Church of the Mountain Hiker which provided bunk beds and shuttles just for donations.
I got a bunk and went for some ice cream and a hot dog at a shop across the street. Then the church provided there weekly Thursday potluck to hikers and friends. It was an amazing feast of chicken, salads, pies, and homemade ice cream, and I enjoyed talking with the church folks.
July 7 Delaware water Gap 1293 Miles
Going into the toilet room this morning, I saw that I had a black eye to go along with the yellow and black bruise on my side. Also I noted that my ankles were swollen round.
I met a couple of guys, short and slender Dundee and tall and gangly Lil Cub in the bunkroom taking turns at the shower.
I have been looking for you, Dundee said.
Looking for me? Why?
Because you are Crocs and I am Dundee.
Well what do you know I said.
The three of us went for a hiker's breakfast and I settled in on a ruben instead.
Then, we took a shuttle to Walmart for a resupply with a road raging, wheel-to-the-floor Church fellow named Kenny.
Kenny didn't like the idea of people coming onto the expressway ahead of him and gunned it like mad to prevent that happening. Lil Cub and I were holding our breath the whole way to Walmart and back.
Back at the bunkhouse basement, I took a little nap, talked with Cowgirl about books, and in the evening went to listen to some jazz next door at the Deer Head Inn.
At the bar I met a fellow through hiker, Persistent, around my age, in his sixties. I also met 65 year old Blueberry again. I had met her walking in a meadow a couple of weeks ago.
They were staying at the Inn which I could not afford.
I love jazz and it was a very professional uplifting band playing at seven o'clock.
I listened to it out on the porch of the Inn with Blueberry but I was tired and very reluctantly went back to the church around 8PM, hiker's midnight.
I met a couple of guys, short and slender Dundee and tall and gangly Lil Cub in the bunkroom taking turns at the shower.
I have been looking for you, Dundee said.
Looking for me? Why?
Because you are Crocs and I am Dundee.
Well what do you know I said.
The three of us went for a hiker's breakfast and I settled in on a ruben instead.
Then, we took a shuttle to Walmart for a resupply with a road raging, wheel-to-the-floor Church fellow named Kenny.
Kenny didn't like the idea of people coming onto the expressway ahead of him and gunned it like mad to prevent that happening. Lil Cub and I were holding our breath the whole way to Walmart and back.
Back at the bunkhouse basement, I took a little nap, talked with Cowgirl about books, and in the evening went to listen to some jazz next door at the Deer Head Inn.
At the bar I met a fellow through hiker, Persistent, around my age, in his sixties. I also met 65 year old Blueberry again. I had met her walking in a meadow a couple of weeks ago.
They were staying at the Inn which I could not afford.
I love jazz and it was a very professional uplifting band playing at seven o'clock.
I listened to it out on the porch of the Inn with Blueberry but I was tired and very reluctantly went back to the church around 8PM, hiker's midnight.
July 8 tented near Carter Lake 1313 miles
Walked twenty miles today.
A wonderful guy at the church brought a number of our packs up the trail 10 miles from the church and I slack packed alone out of Delaware Water Gap around 8:00AM. Crossing under the expressways and uphill onto a moderate trail terrain for the most part.
At the end of ten miles there was a hiker's feast put on by Tom Kennedy and sponsored by supporters for mental health. It was quite a feast of watermelon and hamburgers, potato salad and cake, and blue ribbon beer. There were about twenty hikers there including Lil Cub and Dundee.
We left there together with full packs, and I ended up separating from them, checking out a side trail. I didn't want to just hike. I wanted to explore some.
It was a nice trail with many wild dogwoods flowering along side a stream. I didn't know there were any. In Georgia I was told the original dogwood had died out.
Then I met twenty-two year old Cowgirl along the way, we have a love of books together, and we hiked together for a while but she was anxious to get to a water source and to put in her long miles so she could reach New York City in time to see a friend. She left this slow guy behind.
But I passed her about four miles later, as she sat with some guys at a campsite, and continued walking an easy grassy road, walking past probable campsites and into the setting sun, meeting twenty-nine year old Whiskers along the way, thinking that we would camp together, and then I, pushing ahead as it was getting dark, and seeing a big climb up ahead, decided to camp at Crater Lake near the trail around 8PM, seeing no sign of Whiskers.
You are not supposed to camp there but I did anyway, close to the trail.
Whiskers, on the phone, walked past me, saying he wouldn't be camping with me, his girlfriend was going to pick him up
.
I fell asleep to the insistent sound of frogs and whippoorwills and hoot owls.
It had been a long twenty mile day but a good one.
A wonderful guy at the church brought a number of our packs up the trail 10 miles from the church and I slack packed alone out of Delaware Water Gap around 8:00AM. Crossing under the expressways and uphill onto a moderate trail terrain for the most part.
At the end of ten miles there was a hiker's feast put on by Tom Kennedy and sponsored by supporters for mental health. It was quite a feast of watermelon and hamburgers, potato salad and cake, and blue ribbon beer. There were about twenty hikers there including Lil Cub and Dundee.
We left there together with full packs, and I ended up separating from them, checking out a side trail. I didn't want to just hike. I wanted to explore some.
It was a nice trail with many wild dogwoods flowering along side a stream. I didn't know there were any. In Georgia I was told the original dogwood had died out.
Then I met twenty-two year old Cowgirl along the way, we have a love of books together, and we hiked together for a while but she was anxious to get to a water source and to put in her long miles so she could reach New York City in time to see a friend. She left this slow guy behind.
But I passed her about four miles later, as she sat with some guys at a campsite, and continued walking an easy grassy road, walking past probable campsites and into the setting sun, meeting twenty-nine year old Whiskers along the way, thinking that we would camp together, and then I, pushing ahead as it was getting dark, and seeing a big climb up ahead, decided to camp at Crater Lake near the trail around 8PM, seeing no sign of Whiskers.
You are not supposed to camp there but I did anyway, close to the trail.
Whiskers, on the phone, walked past me, saying he wouldn't be camping with me, his girlfriend was going to pick him up
.
I fell asleep to the insistent sound of frogs and whippoorwills and hoot owls.
It had been a long twenty mile day but a good one.
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