Saturday, July 8, 2017
I’m finding that I have to take extra care as I hike through Pennsylvania, and I don’t just mean because of the rocks.
I need to be more careful about when I get water and how much of it I carry. There have been a few dry stretches.
I also have to take care to include electrolytes in my water. I’m sweating so much every day that plain water isn’t enough.
And I’m trying to keep my calorie intake up. I’m being more purposeful about the amount and kind of calories I consume.
| Weather | Hot and humid |
| Trail Conditions | Becoming rockier, with a couple of climbs, but also long, mostly flat sections |
| Today's Miles | 18.3 miles |
| Trip Miles | 1,171.6 miles |
This extra care is helping. Although I sense that the heat and humidity are taking a lot out of me each day, I’m not feeling already drained when we begin walking in the morning.
We had six miles to go this morning before we would reach a water source, so we would need to be careful about water use.
We helped ourselves a bit by leaving our campsite at 7:30, before the day began to heat up. Stick left a couple minutes before me.
Right after crossing a footbridge over Peters Mountain Road I met Extra Mile and Leapfrog. They told me they had just talked to Stick and he was ahead of me by about five minutes.
Extra Mile and Leapfrog had met Stick a couple months ago. They live in Pennsylvania, and now that they are near home they are doing their own slackpacking.
They shared some Gatorade with me, which was greatly appreciated. Peters Mountain Shelter was still three miles away, the first place for me to refill my water bottles. The Gatorade helped to stretch the water I was carrying until I arrived there.
The trail through this section was a series of barely-noticeable ups and downs, but in several places it was rocky.
I was still hiking with a broken tip on one of my trekking poles, so when I noticed a rubber tip on the ground I picked it up and put it over the broken end. I figured if it fell off someone else’s trekking pole it might fall off mine, but at least for now I’d give it a try.
It fell off before the end of the day.
While I was stopped for a late lunch at Kinter View, another hiker passed along the rumor of a hiker feed at the next road. That was about four miles away, so I hoped the trail angels would not pack up too soon.
Fortunately, the trail was smooth for much of the way as it went steadily down from the ridge, so I made good time.
To make sure I had plenty of water, I stopped to refill at a spring, then continued on and reached the trail magic at 3:30.
Actually, I heard the trail magic location before I saw it. I heard voices of several people talking and laughing, so I knew it had to be the right spot.
I was greeted by Trail Angel Mary. She told me she was a member of a group of hikers and trail supporters called Billville. They organize trail magic weekends, as well as a big hiker gathering at Damascus Trail Days.
Several chairs and a couple tables were clustered around some canopies, erected in the woods just off the trail and about a tenth of a mile before the road.
Among the hikers here were Bartender, Minutes, and Bear King. I had not met them before, but I knew of Bartender because I had been following her on Instagram since before I started my hike.
Later, we were joined by Radio and Dirty Duck.
Trail Angel Mary cooked us brats, which we consumed quickly with cold drinks, side dishes and desserts.
This was the kind of hiker gathering you don’t want to end. I stayed here as long as I could.
Bear King talked about his encounters with bears and how he got his trail name, which led to many jokes.
Then Mary came around and asked if anyone wanted to try her peppermint drops, which she sells. Bartender said she would try a drop.
The look on her face immediately told that the scent was extremely strong. Someone joked that tonight she will be a bear's after dinner mint.
I was tempted to stay here and camp nearby. Some of the hikers apparently were planning to do that, but Stick had already left. I lingered behind for a little while, then pushed on.
Leaving the trail magic encampment, the trail made a long climb on an old roadbed, then flattened out again. Because of the old road, the trail wasn’t as rocky as before.
Part of the way up the trail crossed a small stream. The water was so yellow-red from iron I was glad I had gotten water earlier from a spring.
At the top of the 500-foot climb was a stone marker. This was the junction of Horse-Shoe Trail, which runs 140 miles from here to the western edge of Valley Forge National Historical Park.
A campsite was here, and this was also the spot of a fire tower until its use became obsolete and it was torn down.
Someone had made clever use of the plentiful rocks by making furniture with some of the large, flat ones.
I was feeling tired, but though it might have been nice to stay here, I decided to push on. It was just 6 p.m. and I still had plenty of daylight to reach another campsite at a spot called Yellow Springs.
Along the way, I passed another stream with yellow-red water.
Three miles later, after going through a section of thick rhododendron, I arrived at the campsite. It was a large, flat area, which had once been the site of a mining town.
When I arrived, Stick had already set up his tent and was gone. When he came back he told me he had gone to check out the ruins of the town, but reported there was not much to see. It was mostly overgrown.
It was a little unnerving to camp here because of a deer that kept wandering around nearby. It seemed to be sickly because it was skittish, but didn’t seem to be bothered by our presence.
At one point a section hiker who was camped here said to the deer, "Do you want a cracker?”
"That's not a good idea,” I quickly responded.
"You're right,” she sheepishly answered.
It’s never a good idea to feed wildlife, but especially when they appear to be diseased.
According to a comment posted in the Guthooks app, the deer has been here for several days and has been acting in the same strange way all of that time. It’s even eaten clothes hanging to dry from a tree.
I’ve had bears and other animals walk through my campsite and haven’t been alarmed, but as I crawled into my tent I worried about what this odd deer might do.
And it's whispered that soon, If we all call the tune
Then the piper will lead us to reason
And a new day will dawn
For those who stand long
And the forests will echo with laughter
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