Date: 2017-08-17
From: Kirkridge lean to

To: Delps Spring campsite
Miles today: 19.7
Weather: light rain

"I do not like the rocks of Pennsylvania." That comment from Train, coming apropos of nothing as we sat taking a break in the midst of the ongoing rock garden that had been the trail for at least the past five miles, was a tacit admission that maybe all the nobos' warnings about "Rocksylvania" actually involved a germ of truth.If it was any consolation, at least the trail designers didn't seem to be looking for the rockier terrain to add more challenge, as they had done as recently as a few days ago. It was clear that everywhere was rocky.And the terrain wasn't quite as bad as the nobos' hype about there being nowhere you can place your foot flatly. I was doing so for probably 80 per cent of the time.Even with having to concentrate on our feet all the time, we still managed an entirely creditable 2.5mph. It was, as one trustworthy nobo had said, tedious rather than particularly difficult.And after more miles of this than I'd have preferred, the trail returned to normal tread and we were able to walk normally again. Throughout the day, there were more rocky sections but not for any sustained distance and we were able to complete a respectable tally of just under 20 miles. With rain forecast for tonight and then again tomorrow afternoon, this sets us up well to get into Palmerton by lunchtime.Our progress was also helped by another dose of town food in the middle of the day. To be honest, I hadn't seriously considered making the mile-long trek to the cafe in Windy Gap but when we crossed the road after nine miles of walking, Train said he was surprised I hadn't suggested it. With the midday heat making itself felt, the idea made more sense and we rocked into town for burgers, fries and many refills of cold, sweet sodas at a very hiker-welcoming cafe. The terrain -- PCT grades, but sadly without PCT tread quality -- also gave me chance to get to know Train a little better. Like just about everyone out here, he's an interesting guy. I guess it comes automatically when people actively choose to follow a different path -- figuratively but also literally -- to the one society pushes us towards.Among the trail discussions that helped the miles fly by were topics such as the large percentage of the new generation of tech grads who seem unwilling to get their hands dirty, about the need to care about doing your job better today than yesterday rather than giving in to complacency and mediocrity, and various tales of youthful indiscretions before we were old enough to know better.All this helped us arrive at our campsite a couple of hours before dark. There was a spring but it was about 0.4 miles down a steep slope. Since we're definitely in bear country, I suggested one of us go down while the other watched the packs. I still had plenty of energy so I offered to go, and Train was more than happy to accept! When I returned half an hour later, I concurred with his view...Life is good.AT fact of the day: The bear issue is certainly real, which made it rather more worrying when, while checking out the various campsites, we found some previous occupant had dumped probably a pound of dog food -- presumably surplus to his or her needs -- in the middle of camp. That's not going to help...