Date: 2018-07-10
From: High Point Shelter

To: Pinwheels Vista Wawayanda Mountain
Miles today: 20.3
Weather: clear sky

I was feeling much better this morning than I had anticipated I would be. My feet were very sensitive to the rocks but the bottom of my foot below my toes did not rebel at every step like it had been doing yesterday.In the morning I started out hiking with Moses who slowed so that I could keep in step. On the Guthooks app there is a shelter marked that is not an official Appalachian Trail shelter. It is called the secret shelter. I told Cole when I headed out that I would meet him at the junction of the AT and the blue blaze leading to the secret shelter. However, I was so caught up in conversation with Moses that I completely missed the junction and had to turn around and backtrack .3 of a mile. Cole caught up to me and we headed for the secret shelter hoping for a shower. The shower was cold, which did not surprise us, however it was outside in the open with no privacy whatsoever. Neither of us wanted to use it but I did convince Cole to at least wash his hair. I¢d actually had a shower at the state park yesterday, but he had not. We were also able to briefly charge our electronics.A few more miles up the trail we took another side trip. Unionville was .7 miles off the trail but we needed to Resupply. A nice deli sandwich was calling to us also.The Resupply options were very meagre and extremely expensive however the sub was huge and delicious.The Mercury was soaring and we were not anxious to get off the shaded porch in front of the deli. They too had an outlet for hikers to charge their electronics.Eventually it was time to move on.I enjoyed the scenery today. We walked around Wallkill Reserve. It was wide open, unshaded from the blazing heat, but it was a change of scenery. We also walked along a long boardwalk which I loved! So did my feet! There are no rocks to stub my feet on along a boardwalk. Then we were back out into the woods and hoping to find water. Cole was ahead of me and suddenly I heard his squeeky crackling voice yelling ¢Go away bear.¢ I ran up to where he was, adding my voice to his as I ran. When I reached him he said¢It¢s ok mom. It is gone.¢I peered off into trees and saw two black faces staring back at me. They were much smaller than the bear I had seen the other day. Juveniles perhaps?¢No it isn¢t bud, and there are two of them.¢Cole raised his trekking poles and clanged them together. There was something about that sound those bears did not like at all. On the first clang they turned and ran. We decided to stay together after that. I was tired and feeling spent, but we needed to find a place to pitch the tent. We found a spot at the base of Wawayanda mountain and started to unpack, but then stopped. Cole was nervous about the bears. The group that we had camped with the previous night had indicated that they were going to camp at the vista on the top of the mountain. It was only about a mile away, but it involved a steep climb up the side on a path called ¢stairway to heaven¢. Plus, the sun was beginning to set. We would have to move fast. It was a risky move. I couldn¢t see anywhere in the guide book or on Guthooks that there would even be camping spots up there. What if the group ended up going elsewhere.We decided to chance it and began the steep climb.We passed a few day hikers coming down. I asked one if he had seen any other backpackers. He told us he had, and that one had even set up a tent at the top. He gave us directions how to find them. This relieved my worries greatly. I also asked the day hiker if he had passed a spring on the way down.He said yes, but he was certain that I didn¢t want to drink that water and he offered me the little bit of water he had left in his Nalgene bottle. I politely declined.¢ You¢re going to drink that water over my tap water?¢He just didn¢t understand.We found the spring, collected a few litres and climbed some more. Finally we found a little circle of tents and the group we had been looking for. They were sitting out on the rocks enjoying an immaculate view. In the distance we could see lightening striking. The sky rumbled a bit, but the view was clear. The sun set.It had been a long day, but the finish was spectacular.