Week 8

Week 8 Monday- Sunday This week I am a rockin' rockstar! There are rocks everywhere! Up the mountain, on the ridge line, along all the pathways, and pretty much anywhere else you could imagine. My feet have taken a pounding! I have lost a third of my big toenail and jacked up my left shin pretty good, all because of these mean grey boulders. I also still haven't reached Super Fund, which is the rockiest part of the entire state. 

There have been a few awesome highlights throughout my constant trudging of the rocks. On Thursday, my hiking friend Wolfdog and I stayed at the Rock N' Soul Hostel in Schuylkill Haven, PA.

This place was heavenly. Run by a retired police officer and his family, the hostel was composed of a bunkhouse, the main house (where we at dinner and breakfast on the front porch), and a bright teal 1953 Ken-Craft trailer named Trashy. We had the pleasure of staying in the camper, which was fully furbished with 1950's memorabilia and decorations. We even watched an old film they provided called The Long Long Trailer starring Desie Arnez and Lucille Ball (just for top off the whole time warp experience). After a hot outdoor shower and two awesome homemade meals, our hosts took us back to the trailhead where we slack packed 14M to the next town, Port Clinton. Sheets of rain came down on us nearly the entire hike, but it was nice to hike without our packs on for a while and cover ground a tad faster than usual. When we arrived in town, the rain let up enough for us to get to the pavilion dry. That night, we decided to treat ourselves to a little Friday night out on the town. Hamburg, PA, the town right next to Port Clinton, is home to the largest Cabelas outfitter in the world. The company also offered free shuttles for hikers from the pavilion to the store. We were like kids in a candy store. The place was 250,000 square feet of awesome, full of all kinds of outdoor gear and gizmos. It had a restaurant, gift shop, and all kinds of stuffed game on display from all ends of the earth. They even had a small aquarium next to their fishing section. 

After our visit, we stopped in Red Robin for burgers and then headed back to the pavilion.  

In the past week or so our group has dissipated down to just me and Wolfdog. Spills went to hike with her friend Scout, and we lost Howdy about a week ago when he went into town on a rainy day to pick up a package and never surfaced at the campsite we were meeting at that evening. This coming and going of hikers in a group is typical. Who knows, maybe we will pick up another hiker in the next couple of weeks, or maybe we ourselves will part ways. Like I have said before, I will enjoy the time I have with the friends I have made, and if I lose them, I lose them. It is not like we won't see each other again anyway. The trail is only so big. The saying goes that the AT is the biggest little small town you'll ever be apart of in your life. You meet so many people over and over throughout the trip. Yesterday, Wolfdog and I caught an awesome view at The Pinnacle. The Pinnacle is a beautiful overlook about 2M up a very rocky climb. We were told by some locals at the top that it is the best view in the state. 

While we were up there, we caught up with some guys racing big-rig remote control cars. I did not know this was a thing, but the guys were pretty interesting. 

The end of PA is nearing, but before it comes, we will have to face a killer amount of rocks. After we cross Lehigh River, we will be faced with Super Fund. This is a region of the trail with a crazy exposed boulder climb and nearly 17M without good water. The site originally housed a lead smelting plant, which poisoned the ground water and killed nearly all the vegetation. Hopefully with an early start, we can make it through the climb before the heat of the day with enough water to sustain a 17M hike. After that, we should only be two days away from Delaware Water Gap, which is the last city right before the border. New Jersey, here we come!