Date: 2018-06-05
From: NJ 284 Unionville NY mile 1346.2

To: Wawayonda shelter
Miles today: 15.7

I woke up at 1am to the sound of a loud discussion from 3 youths over at the gazebo. I waited a while hoping they'd leave so I could go use the port-a-potty. I don't think they realized 4 hikers were sleeping around the corner in the park not visible from the gazebo. I couldn't wait and had to get up to go. I went into the port-a-potty undetected but before I was done one of the girls exclaimed how much she had to pee and was surprised to find the port-a-potty occupied. When I exited she was startled. They left right after. I woke up with the birds at 4:45 and layed back down until 5:50 and began packing up inside my tent. When the sun started appearing on the basketball court I moved my still wet laundry over to it along with my rainfly which was wet with dew so it could all dry. I walked up to the store and grabbed a resupply and breakfast of yogurt, granola, banana and coffee and ate it at the gazebo. The previous night's youth had left their soda bottles there even though the trash can was 2' away. I cleaned it all up because I didn't want people to think the hikers left it! I packed up my now dry things and Thumper and I headed out with our socks hanging on our packs to finish the drying cycle. Like hobos. We walked thru Walkill Wildlife Sanctuary on a flat and wide trail for about 2 miles, stopping at a bench for a quick snack. As we moved around the pond we watched a doe playing with her 2 fawn for about 15 minutes. She could see us walking in her direction and when she felt we were close enough she and her little ones moved away. It was sweet to observe that!More boardwalks today thru low wetlands and larger ups and downs. NJ loves the 2 board walkways but I always feel unbalanced. I hold my hiking poles in each hand so I can be steady. There's no way I want to fall into what lurks on the sides, sometimes mud and sometimes swampy water. There was a 1 mile wide and beautiful boardwalk over Pochuck Creek and a suspension bridge. There were lots of people walking here and a woman who I think said she was Marybeth and I had a nice conversation for about 2/3rds of it until I was back in the woods and she'd turned back to complete her walk. It was a beautiful area and nice to talk with her about hiking. I had just sat down on a rock to rest my feet and snack when Thumper texted me a picture of a large dish of ice cream telling me to turn left at the road after the cow pasture. I put away the unopened protein bar and put my shoes back on and boogied out the short boardwalk thru the cow pasture really hoping I wouldn't fall off the side and turned left. I found her on the front porch of Heaven Hill Farm. Inside was the sweet smell from the bakery, ice cream and fresh produce. I bought a tomato a small dish of ice cream and a mango lemonade. Strange combination I know but it's what I wanted. I devoured them while resting my feet. I was emotionally preparing myself for the stairway to heaven. We're just a couple of miles from the shelter but it's getting late. I won't make it there until 7:30 or so with the climb but I need the rest. Once restored Thumper and I headed out. At the bottom of the climb I saw a hiker stealth camping because he wasn't able to make the climb today. I took my time but the climb was sweaty and strenuous up the rock mountain. At the top I took the blue blaze trail to the view. It was nice but I didn't linger. I needed to get to the shelter. I arrived at 7:45 and most everyone was settled in their tent or shelter. I found a spot in between some other tents and set up quickly and then went to the picnic table to cook dinner. I quickly ate some rehydrated baked beans that my friends Glenn and Linda had made prior to my trip. I had dehydrated the leftovers and it was nice to have them tonight and think of them. I brushed, stowed my food bag in the bear box and dove into my tent to blow up my sleeping pad and get some shut-eye.