5/22/08 20 miles to Boiling Springs, PA
I have not been able to adequately express myself recently—both because of my pitiful hand circulation and because of my frantic hiking pace. For the last week it has been both unseasonably cold and rainy. It seems we are in the last throes of winter, rather than in spring. The terrain is so heavily flooded that in many places the trail is altogether submerged, simply a swamp. Luckily, last night I chose to stay at the Ironmaster’s Mansion, a cavernous home converted from a station on the Underground Railroad to a hostel. In keeping with my typical hiking situation, I was alone—the only guest in an enormous mansion. The innkeeper, Ray, gave me the tour of the home’s secret slave labyrinth, which I was glad to have taken despite my sore knees. My biggest concern however, was solved by the massive kitchen. For a few days previous, I had survived on Ramen and peanut butter and unfortunately arrived in Pine Grove Furnace Park to find the camp store closed. Like a true hiker and Freegan, though I pillaged all of the leftovers to make surprisingly appetizing meals and some of the best pancakes without the use of any measuring device.
Today I tramped over more rocky Pennsylvania ridges, but broke through the treeline to find a valley of farmland at the end. So tonight I am camped near the riverbank under the bridge of Boiling Springs, the closest to a bum that I have ever felt. Aside from the hiking world, I am grateful to have bought a portable radio at Trail Days. I heard the Brahms Violin Concerto and the Mendelssohn yesterday. It really brightened things up.
5/20/08 20 miles to Rocky Mountain Shelter
The odd thing about my hands is that I lose all control of them in even the slightest cold conditions. Sometimes I feel almost amused and horrified at the same time, to see how comical my plight is. I don’t really appreciate the power of opposable thumbs until I try the tasks of backpacking without them! I can’t cook without sparking a lighter, I can’t eat without holding a spoon, I can’t write without gripping a pen and I’m virtually disabled from using every other zipper, clip or contraption that I carry. Aside from that, however today was a fun day. I am alone again in a shelter—how unnerving. Tomorrow is the true halfway point.
5/19/08 30.6 miles to Devil’s Racecourse Shelter (northwest of Hagerstown, MD)
Perhaps it is because I feel guilty of my sloth at Trail Days, but also it is the logistical convenience that inspired me to do a thirty-mile day. It certainly wasn’t difficult on a beautiful day like this, especially with all sorts of quaint Civil and Revolutionary War monuments to walk through. Regardless, I can feel the excitement towing me into another state: Pennsylvania tomorrow! On a lighter note, “Crazy Richard’s” is my new favorite brand of peanut butter, a gift from Steve at the ATC.
5/18/08 8 miles to Ed Garvey Shelter in southern Maryland
Trail Days was both invigorating and relaxing, but I feel that finally I have earned a restful night’s sleep. Today, Steve the director of the ATC (Appalachian Trail Conservancy) was kind enough to drive me back north to Harper’s Ferry, WV. In transit I gained plenty of valuable knowledge about the mechanism that supports the AT. Things are quiet now and I am sharing this spacious shelter with 4 sisters. Tomorrow maybe I can reach Pennsylvania.
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