| 6/30/01- VISIT - Eagles Peak Campground - 0 miles. We took a day off today w/
Moons Dad & wife Barb. They have a camper at a nearby campground + we relaxed
ALL day. Felt good to not be hiking in the heat & sun. Great to see family
again! |
| 7/1/01 - Darlington Shelter Campsite - 14.3 miles.
Dad dropped us off today & we continued our hike through the Sahara. Oh,
it just felt like the Sahara, we are still hiking the AT :) We hiked mostly through
farmland today so there wasn't much relief from the sun. A small thundershower
passed through this evening so maybe thinks will be cooler tomorrow. |
| 7/2/01 - Clarks Ferry Shelter Campsite - 15.9
miles. The weather was much nicer today - cool, sunny, & breezy. We went
through the town of Duncannon. We are out of the farmland & walking on lots of
rocks. Not too bad so far, but Pennsylvania is famous for its rocky terrain. |
| 7/3/01 - BEAR - Campsite on Sharp Mt. - 18.7 miles. It was another gorgeous day
today. We saw a bear on the trail, he looked us over & ran into the woods. So
glad I finally saw one! We climbed Stony Mt., which lived up to its name. |
| 7/4/01 - William Penn Shelter Campsite - 18.9
miles. Happy 4th of July! For the holiday, we did the something we do everyday
:) Today was hotter & humid, but the terrain was easy. As we sit here
making dinner, we can hear fireworks going off in the distance. Maybe we will see
some tonight if the rain holds off. |
| 7/5/01 - Eagles Nest Shelter - 19.2 miles.
The rain didn't hold off, so I guess fireworks were cancelled. It was humid again
today & the rain came this afternoon, unfortunately before we got to the
shelter. We are now hanging out at the shelter w/ our friends we have caught up with
(Hipbone & Mt. Goat, Swampfoot & The Flash). |
| 7/6/01 - Port Clinton, PA - 8.6 miles. Today
was nice - cool & sunny. We had good views for our hike into Port Clinton.
Went to the Port Clinton hotel & had the biggest plate of fries EVER.
Plus they had ZIMA :) We are meeting Moon's Mom & hanging out with her
this evening/tomorrow. |
| 7/7/01 - VISIT
- Kutztown, PA - 0 miles. We spent the day w/
Moon's Mom. We had a fantastic time at the Kutztown German Festival & even got a
few miles of walking in. "We walked A LOT" - Dee (Moon's Mom) commented!
So much for a rest day :) Got lots of food & was great to visit for the
day. |
| 7/8/01 - Eckville Shelter Campsite - 15.2 miles.
Had breakfast at Cracker Barrel & then Dee dropped us off at the trail head.
Passed The Pinnacle today, which has the best view of PA (they say).
Unfortunately it rained overnight & this morning & it was still overcast when we
went by. Met a bunch of new people today due to all our days off, so we are all
visiting her at the shelter. |
| 7/9/01 - Bake Oven Knob Shelter Campsite - 17.4
miles. Had a great night at the Shelter last night. We met w/ Nimblewood
Nomad, a well-known long distance hiker & also met up with the Barefoot Sisters.
Today was nice & we had fun scrambling on the rocks at Knife's Edge & Bear
Rocks. |
| 7/10/01 - Delp's Trail Campsite - 17.5 miles.
We hiked through an EPA Superfund site today. A Zinc-Smelting plant polluted
a lot of the country side & there is not much cover. We hiked over lots of rocks
in the blazing sun - lots of fun! (HA). We are at a nice campsite now & got here
just in time - we had thunderstorms & hail come through about 1/2 hr. after we got
here. |
| 7/11/01 - Wolf Rocks Campsite - 17.6 miles.
Today was nice - cool & breezy. Not many views & lots of rocks to hike
over. Our feet & ankles will be very happy when we are out of Pennsylvania (and
all the rocks!) |
| 7/12/01 - Delaware Water Gap - 8.6 miles. We
headed into town today to resupply, shower, etc. The last few miles of PA were
kinder than the rest of the state. We are very happy to be leaving PA & entering
NJ tomorrow. |
| 7/13/01 - Mohican Outdoor Center Campsite - 10.5
miles. We are finally in our home state of New Jersey. Never thought I'd be so
happy to see it, but after PA we are! Had a great day today - nice hiking, good
views, met some awesome people. Everything you would want for a perfect AT day. |
| 7/14/01 - BEAR - Brink Road Shelter - 14.3 miles. Today was another nice day.
We had views I never expected in NJ. Much different than South Jersey
Northeast NJ. We saw our 1st NJ Bear today - but not real close-up. |
| 7/15/01 - VISIT - Stealth Campsite - 15.4 miles. With all the eating we did today,
it is amazing we found time to hike 15+ miles! My Mom & Dad surprised us at
Culver's Gap & treated us to Cinnamon Rolls from a nearby bakery & then lunch.
A few miles before this campsite we met some past thru-hikers & trail Angels
who gave us veggie pizza, soda, & cookies. We are stuffed, happy hikers &
hope no bears get the rest of our food tonight! |
| 7/16/01 - Pochuck Mt. Shelter Campsite - 16.6
miles. We walked through High Point State Park today. Then we entered the
lowlands and crossed many bog bridges. It was an interesting, different part of the
trial. |
| 7/17/01 - VISIT - St. Thomas Church Hostel, Vernon NJ - 7.4 miles. We had a short
hike into Vernon where we met my Grandmom & Marie & Eddie. They treated us
to a great lunch & dropped us off at this Hostel. The Church allows hikers to
stay in the basement of this building. We also met with friends who live in this
area for dinner. A very nice relaxing evening. |
| 7/18/01 - Wawayanda Shelter - 5.1 miles. We
barely got out of the hostel today. It was so nice & relaxing there but we had
to get out because we have BIG plans for the weekend. Stay tuned. |
| 7/19/01 - Mombasha Mt. Campsite - 14.6 miles.
We crossed into our 9th state today - NY. There were parts of the trail that
were filled w/ boulders & big, flat rocks. It was fun climbing them - something
different! |
| 7/20/01 - Watkins Glen Race Track - 6.1 miles.
We hiked to a road crossing & picked up a rental car for a weekend off.
We picked up our friend "Toast" & drove to the Finger Lakes regions of NY
for their annual WINEfest! It is going to be a HOT weekend & a great time to
take a day or 2 off. |
| 7/21/01 - VISIT - Watkins Glen Rack Track - 0 miles. Met our friends Dale &
Alicia & had a great time tasting wine. We didn't buy as much as we usually do.
Toast had a great time as well & lived up to his name. We camped on the
infield of the race track. |
| 7/22/01 - Harriman Motor Lodge - 0 miles.
Drove back to the trail today. A past thru-hiker was hosting a BBQ at the park
(Harriman State Park) and we hung out there for awhile. Got a room for the night and
will return to actually hike tomorrow. |
| 7/23/01 - West Mountain Campsite - 12.9 miles.
Returned to the trail just in time for our favorite weather, Hazy, Hot, &
Humid. Hiked through Harriman State Park and the famous "Lemon Squeezer" -
a portion of the trail that goes through a very tight area. |
| 7/24/01 - Graymor Spiritual Life Center - 12.2
miles. We hiked over Bear Mt. today. It was by far the hottest day yet, with a
heat index of 115! We were sweaty, stinky messes. Franciscan Friars allow
hikers to camp on their property & even feed us dinner! |
| 7/25/01 - Stealth Campsite - 14.6 miles.
Today was hotter than the embers of Hell, we know because we were there @ Lehigh Gap (in
PA). Luckily, we hiked past a lake this afternoon & were able to cool off &
wash off all the sweat. Hopefully this heat wave will break tonight.
Tent is also hot & sweaty. |
| 7/26/01 - Nuclear Lake - 16.6 miles. It
rained on us this morning & really cooled things down. It was actualy very
refreshing to walk in the rain after all the days of heat. The evening is beautiful,
with clear skys & cool temps. We are camped near a gorgeous lake, despite the
name. |
| 7/27/01 - Schaghticoke Mt. Campsite - 18.0 miles.
Today was a great day to hike - cool & sunny. We crossed into
Connecticut. We also met the first south-bounders of our trip (thru-hikers that
start in Maine & head south). We are headed into Kent, Ct. tomorrow to resupply. |
| 7/28/01 - Bob's House, Kent, Ct. - 6.5 miles.
We hiked into Kent & hung out all day at the Laundramat. There is no
hostel or cheap hiker place to stay so we loitered in front of the laundry. We did
actaully wash our clothes at one point. There is a really nice guy in town that lets
hikers crash in his living room so we went there for the night w/ a couple of bottles of
wine. Great company & conversation today! |
| 7/29/01 - Silver Hill Campsite - 10.2 miles.
Had breakfast in Kent & then started out of town. We had a leisurely hike today
w/ lots of views & rests. Hiked w/ Seattle, Seven, & Rambunny, great trail
company. This campsite is beautiful, and even has a couples swing. |
| 7/30/01 - An Unknown Campsite near the AT - 15.6
miles. Today consisted of a lot of ups & downs. We met a past thru-hiker
(who we had met before) - Felix. He is quite a character & treated our group to
dinner & beers. We decided we did enough hiking for the day & drove to this
state park campground (after picking up some wine..) |