This post’s format will be a little bit different. I did not have a lot of daily content so I am going to just do a single section of the entire timeframe. If you were interested in the daily stops and mileage, I will list the usual section headers at the bottom of the blog. Following that will be the usual table of data.
Let’s start with the ugly. The day I left Duncannon was nice for most of the day then it turned ugly. Around 5 o’clock the skies opened up and a torrential downpour occurred. It lasted for about an hour and I would wager several inches of rain had fallen. It had stopped by the time I was setting up my tent but by then all of the clothes I was wearing were completely soaked and the outside of my bag was damp as well.
Most of the items inside my bag remain dry but things still had a damp feeling. While charging my phone overnight, I got a warning message on my phone that it had detected moisture in the charging cable and charging would be disabled. After this the charging cable no longer worked. This was not good as I rely on my phone for a lot of the things I do on trail. Photography, navigation, planning and more require my phone.
As I started hiking the next day the strap on my left pole broke. The straps are instrumental in helping support me as I hike so I was not happy. At the end of the day I cut a section of cord of my rope that I have with me and was able to reattach the strap.
Given all the rain from the evening before, the trail was extremely wet and had running water in it for a significant portion of the hike. Needless to say my feet remained soaking wet all day. This has been by far my lowest day of the hike and if I did not quit that day, then I’m sure I am not going to quit. These 24 hours we’re definitely ugly.
The bad is pretty much spread evenly throughout the week. Pennsylvania is known for being extremely rocky section of trail did not disappoint. Some of the rocks are large boulder type rocks that you can walk across the top of and can be enjoyable. What really becomes a problem are the smaller rocks that litter the trail and make it impossible to stride without stepping on them. This can cause your ankles to turn every witch way and some of the rocks are sharply pointed, causing pain on the bottom of your feet when stepped on.
You might get a reprieve from the rocks and be walking on relatively smooth terrain for a mile or so but then the rocks return and progress is slowed. Generally speaking, Pennsylvania is relatively flat but what makes the rocks go from bad to ugly is when you are going down a descent and it is full of rocks. When this happens my progress slows to a crawl.
Bad bordering on ugly occurred on my fifth day of hiking as I was heading towards a hostel to dry out. On a section of the trail where it makes a hairpin turn, I got turned around and ended up walking the wrong way on the trail. It all tends to look the same with rocks under feet and white blazes on the trees. I went about 3/4 of a mile before I met a fellow hiker that I knew coming the other way and he informed me I was going the wrong way. I swore this would never happen to me and here it was happening to me. What made it worse was once I got back to the point of my error and started walking north, the trail immediately smoothed out and followed a logging road for two or 3 miles. This made that one and a half miles and 40 minutes lost even more painful.
I have since left Pennsylvania and I’m currently 40+ miles into New Jersey and the rocks still exist. They are starting to diminish and I’m told we’re almost done with them. Here’s to hoping so.
It wasn’t all bad or ugly. There has been some good in Pennsylvania. First was Bob, the man supporting my friend Craig that I hiked with last week. Through Craig, I arranged to have Bob take me to Walmart to get a new charging cable. When I got to town early, around 10 AM, Bob had just begun breakfast in Hamburg and would not be able to pick me up for over 40 minutes. At that time the shuttle from Cabela’s came through and I was able to arrange a ride on it and convince the driver to drop me off at Walmart. I’m sure it was against his rules but my sad face did the trick. I arranged for Bob to meet me at the Walmart and bring me back into Port Clinton where I could have lunch and then resume the trail. The burger I had was not very good, but with a new charging cable and sunny weather my spirits were lifted.
After four consecutive nights in the woods with damp gear, I needed a break. A night at a hostel to dry things out, do laundry, and take a shower was another lift to the spirit. The Shanty at Blue Mountain served that purpose nicely.
Places to stay for the next couple days were challenging so I followed suggestions on the FarOut app that we use to navigate the trail. The day after leaving the Hostel, I stayed in Palmerton in a ladies backyard. Squeaks, as she is called, is a hiker and trail maintainer that allows hikers to stay in her backyard. I walked from the her place to the Palmerton Tavern for dinner. Across the street from the tavern was the local ice cream stand, so I had a cone for dessert. In the morning, a five minute walk took me to Dunkin’ Donuts where I got a breakfast sandwich. After packing up and eating my breakfast, Squeaks drove me to the trail head to resume my hike. She is a wonderful person.
The hike out of Parmerton is steep and requires some scrambling over rocks and boulders. Many hikers have posted comments about it’s treacherousness and how they would rather take the simpler bad weather trail then attempt the climb. Squeaks told me it wasn’t that bad so I attempted the hike and found it challenging and somewhat enjoyable. I also have read that if you can’t handle this climb you’re going to have trouble when you get to the Whites in New Hampshire.
My next stop was Wind Gap and, like Palmerton, places to stay are scarce. Also like Palmerton and Squeaks backyard, there were options mentioned in FarOut. Detzi’s Tavern, a restaurant and bar 1.3 miles from the trail, allows hikers to camp out back in the field on their property.
I hiked to the tavern, got my tent set up, and had a nice meal. The next morning, Joe, one of the owners, showed up and offered us coffee and a ride to the trail. Another hiker and I opted to get breakfast at a local diner. Joe gave us a ride to the diner and came back to get us when we were done. As he dropped us off at the trailhead he gave each of us a couple of candy bars. What a great guy!
My last day of hiking in Pennsylvania took me to Delaware Water Gap where I would spend the night at the Deer Head Inn. The Deer Head Inn is a jazz club that has been in operation for years. I had an enjoyable dinner listening to live jazz music followed by a great nights sleep.
The first available shelter in New Jersey was 25 miles away so I got up early and crossed the Delaware River to officially leave Pennsylvania behind. I’m now 18 miles beyond that shelter and taking a zero at a hostel called Mosey’s Place. Mosey was a 2015 thru hiker and a wonderful host. From here I’ve planned out my next few days which will be shorter than I’ve been doing in order to experience some of the marquee locations on the trail. I’ll tell you all about them in the next blog.
Day 103 – Doyle Hotel to Tentsite: mile 1149.5 to mile 1170.9
Day 104 – Tentsite to William Penn Shelter: mile 1170.9 to mile 1192.3
Day 105 – William Penn Shelter to Eagles Nest Shelter: mile 1192.3 to mile 1211.3
Day 106 – Eagles Nest Shelter to Windsor Furnace Shelter: mile 1211.3 to mile 1226.0
Day 107 – Windsor Furnace Shelter to The Shanty at Blue Mountain: mile 1226 to mile 1246.6
Day 108 – Shanty at Blue Mountain to Winter Trail junction: mile 1246.6 to mile 1261.0
Day 109 – Winter Trail Junction to Detzi’s Tavern: mile 1261.0 to mile 2281.5
Day 110 – Detzi’s Tavern to Deer Head Inn: mile 1281.5 to mile 1296.9
Day 111 – Deer Head Inn to Brink Road Shelter: mile 1296.9 to mile 1321.8
Day 112 – Brink Road Shelter to Mosey’s Place: mile 1321.8 to mile 1339.8
Daily Data
| Day | Miles | Total Asc | Total Desc | Steps |
| 103 | 21.4 | 4091 | 2805 | 59072 |
| 104 | 21.4 | 2654 | 2883 | 57151 |
| 105 | 19.0 | 2129 | 1975 | 50845 |
| 106 | 14.7 | 2309 | 2824 | 45456 |
| 107 | 20.6 | 3202 | 2706 | 57571 |
| 108 | 14.4 | 1597 | 2536 | 45964 |
| 109 | 20.5 | 3106 | 2814 | 58177 |
| 110 | 15.4 | 2066 | 2611 | 46164 |
| 111 | 24.9 | 3868 | 3149 | 68536 |
| 112 | 18.0 | 2860 | 2444 | 50414 |
Wow wow wow!
I hate those football sized rocks you can’t step around. So hard on the feet! Glad you had the bright spots! It must feel like you’re really moving along now! Checking those states off.
Great job!!
PA is a rocky state indeed. Nice views from the Pulpit Rock. near Hamburg. The Delaware Water Gap area also has some nice views. Glad you continued on after that “bad day”
Stay safe!
Way to persevere!!! The rocky trails of PA are just crazy and I wonder how many sprained ankles they have claimed responsibility for. So glad you had some places to stay along the way that allowed you to meet quality folks….and get dried off, showered, fed, and a good night’s sleep. You’re doing it!!!!!! Keep it going!!!!!!!!!
Hey Dan great reading about your adventures , keep them coming
Amazing! So your cone probably wasn’t Rocky Road.
Thought about the awesome tattoo you’re going to get?
Keep up the great work.