Date: 2018-06-13
From: Leroy Smith shelter/Mile 1274.7

To: Delaware Water Gap/Mile 1294.7
Miles today: 20.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Rob and I left the shelter by 7:15 after some oatmeal and coffee. Rain showers threatened. Rob had only 4.5 miles to Wind Gap where he would meet a shuttle to return him to his car so he could get back to Richmond. We encountered plenty of rocks but arrived at Wind Gap right at 10 am. Rob and I parted. I¢ll always be grateful for his company and encouragement through some tough parts of the Trail.After a steep climb out of the gap to return to the ridgeline I was greeted by both rain and rocks. Because Rob and I made Wind Gap much sooner than expected I considered trying to push through all the way to Delaware Water Gap, but I needed to see how fast I could move through what I anticipated would be slow going. (Scars had said the worst rocks were between Wind Gap and Water Gap.)I started into the rocks, and now (after the fact), if I had to pick, I¢d say the worst rocks in Pennsylvania were after the climb out of Wind Gap until Wolf Rocks (about five miles where there is little reprieve AND the rocks are particularly difficult due to their size, shape and abundance). With the rain, the severe rocks, no company, and the uninteresting environment I had to set my mind to just getting through this part of the hike. (In Pennsylvania I have said often the terrain is ¢uninteresting¢ or even ¢boring¢ (or ¢monotonous¢)). Earlier today I read a post from a trail friend that suggests a nice contrast between ¢uninteresting¢ and a more exciting walk in the natural world: And the sights today, oh wow. I tried to capture what I could in photo/video, but an iPhone could never do it justice. My day was simply full of natural wonder and beauty. Today¢s breathtaking moments consisted of standing at the top of Bromly Mountain Ski Resort, ridge walking Baker Peak, walking along the edge of Little Rock Pond (above), following the edge of Big Branch River, and even walking through a Rock Cairn Garden ¢¦(Courtesy: Sharkbait)I did put on some music (and listened to a Freakanomics and an RZIM podcast). The rocks WERE terrible and I rarely picked my head up. More than once I would set my foot only to have it involuntarily shoved or slide into a sharp edge of a neighboring rock, bruising some part of the sides or top of my foot (any portion not protected by the sole or toe cap). It continued to rain so the rocks were wet, which called for even more patience, which somehow I seemed to conjure up. Although I had had a few moments of anger and frustration over the rocks while hiking with Rob, I did not let myself give in to the frustration.A couple of younger thru-hikers passed me, but otherwise it was a depressing and solitary afternoon. I did listen to Mighty Blue¢s most recent interview of me and (because I have been trying to manage actively my emotional state) was encouraged by his observation: ¢Your personal management of your hike is almost as if you personally intervene in your own psyche, . . . you manage your own psyche on the trail, don¢t you? You know what should be coming, you make those changes to your expectations. . . . For me everything was new.¢After Wolf Rocks I noted that I still had 8 miles to go to get to DWG. The last shelter was coming up soon, so I had to make a final decision. At my usual average of 2 to 2.5 miles per hour I could get to DWG, provided the rocks were not too bad. I decided to go for DWG and get finished with Pennsylvania. The rest of the Trail was unite a mixed bag of beautiful soft pathway, a number of small but seemingly pointless ups and downs, more troublesome rocks, a long stretch on an old road bed (where I could make good time) and a 2.5 mile steep, difficult descent into DWG. I did fall coming down a makeshift stone staircase when a flat rock tilted forward making the wet surface slanted. I twisted my right ankle, banged my right elbow and wrenched my right shoulder a bit. Picking up the pieces, I seemed to be alright ¢ nothing hurt seriously. Shortly thereafter I got a call from my buddy Sleeves saying he was going home (I had left him in Duncannon) for medical attention. (The ¢sore knee¢ he thought he had from a fall 150 miles earlier was actually a broken tibia.)With four miles to go I noted that I was fatigued. I was starting to feel the weight of the pack and my legs were tiring. I had no choice now but to press on. The weather moderated and the sun tried hard to appear. There were a few views down towards the Delaware River and the narrow gap it had dug through the low mountain ridge. Stacy called ahead and booked me a room so I could roll into something comfortable even if I had to arrive after 8:00 p.m.I pressed on. The descent was arduous physically because of its steepness and duration, mentally because of the wetness of the rocks and terrain, especially at a time when I was nearly exhausted.I forced my way down and was delighted to finish at the Deer Head Inn. After a quick shower I enjoyed dinner at the Sycamore Grill. I all but collapsed into bed with a belly full of food after ¢ perhaps ¢ my toughest one day of hiking. (I even noticed my hands were sore and swollen ¢ I guess from the long day of gripping strongly to help maintain balance through the rocks, to help power up the inclines, and to help ease me down the long, steep descent.) I¢m going to need my zero day, but there is a great deal of satisfaction having completed Pennsylvania ¢ a state (and almost 230 miles) that may have created more stress (and therefore required very focused management of my emotional/mental state) than any task to date. In reality, the rocks of Pennsylvania were not fun (although some of the very large rock scrambling was fun ¢ and some was harrowing), were extremely difficult and/or frustrating at times, but in the final analysis were not as bad as the hype or as bad as I had anticipated. BHMHow to follow RTK:Blog:  http://www.rtkchallenge.com/bl...YouTube:  https://www.youtube.com/channe...Podcast:  http://returningtokatahdin.lib...Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/rtk_...Please consider joining the "RTK AT Challenge":  https://fundraise.appalachiant...