Date: 2014-06-29
From: Fingerboard Shelter

To: Fort Montgomery, NY
Miles today: 14.4

Awake at 430. Big day to get to Bear Mtn - rumor of a Hiker Feed. The weather is nice with a good breeze but it calls for mid 80's with high humidity which and really saps my energy by the end of the day. I usually only drink about a gallon of water a day but lately its been more like 3 gallons. Water sources have been tough to find given the lack of rain or they have been of poor (stagant) quality. Fortunately some trail angels have left water at crossings. Lots of tough steep straight up climbs and when you pop out into the sun on rock crossings you can really feel the heat from the sun. It also makes for poor picture taking given the haze. I have only a half liter of water to start the day with and hope to find some early. However, it wasn't until 3 miles later that I finally came across some and cameled up and filled my 2 liter bottle as well as my juice bottle. I got turned around at William Brian shelter after talking to a hiker at the shelter and wandering around all of the herd paths in the area. I finally back tracked and realized after a while, of course the trail goes straight up the rock wall and off I go! I got to the Pallisades Parkway and NYC is only 34 miles away! While taking a break, Mud, Neck Bone and Sole passed through followed by Oconne. West Mtn. is not tall but again lots of straight up rock climbing. My legs feel a little better today but while not as leaden as day before they are still not at peak performance. Stairs, stairs and more stairs leading up Bear Mtn. It seems like the stairs were built for people with a 38 inch inseam and with my short legs there is a lot of stress on my hips and knees. Oconee and I got to the top and the Crew was there and even better there was vending machines where i was able to get some Powerade to replace some of the electrolytes I have lost. The down side is that there is no sign of the rumored hiker feed. We checked out the Perkins Memorial Tower built on top of the mountain and offered some great views. It was also kind of neat to hear the West Point artillery booming off in the distance. We decide to head to Hessian Lake at the base of the mountain to see if the feed is down there. Another long down with stairs - bang, bang, bang on the knees give me flashbacks to Hot Springs when my calf swelled up after such a climb down. The Crew has invited Oconne and I to share a room at the Holiday Inn Express in Fort Montgomery. The thought of an air conditioned room, shower, laundry, pool etc.. sounds like a no brainer. I need to shorten up my days and would enjoy the break. Still no sign of feed at the lake so we head out to the zoo where the bear cage marks the lowest point on the AT. However, its not much of a zoo with more displays than actual animals. What is really crazy is all of the people that are here for swimming at the lake and at the pool located at the zoo. Its pretty overwhelming after being on the trail where you only see a couple of people at a time. After working our way on a side trail we get to Fort Montgomery where we are rewarded by stumbling into an awesome food place called Foodies. This place is a hidden gem with all kinds of homemade salads of all kinds and real NY Pizza - grease and all. From the outside it didn't even look opened and a bit of a hole in the wall. These delectable delights are out of this world and I got some Thai cabbage salad that was to die for. This was followed by angel hair pasta with lime flavored EVO with herbs and dried tomatoes. The owner and staff were great people and so accomadating we didn't want to leave but it was still a bit of a walk to the hotel so we got going. Once there the shower was the most popular spot quickly followed by the pool with a couple of beers. After some pool time I was able to get my laundry done, ate the rest of the food in my food bag and made a list of things I needed for tomorrow since I'm all out food. I'm looking to do 20.2 miles to the Fahnstock State Park where hikers can stay for free and has a shower/restroom. I then spent about 2 hours updating my journal and got to bed around 1215 am.