Date: 2004-07-01
From: Rausch Gap Shelter

To: Hertlein Campsite
Miles today: 23.0
Weather: scattered clouds

For those taking notes, there is a good campsite near PA 443 which is not mentioned in the book, approximately 5 miles after Rausch Mtn Shelter.Many old mining town foundations are along this stretch of the AT. Apparently the coal mining industry that fortified these villages was not so prosperous and they disappeared in 1910. All that remains is a cemetary and some walls.During one of my breaks, my spare water bottle leaked and I lost my reserve water. No worries, Haystack Creek was within a mile and I'd refill there.As I crossed the footbridge for the creek, I bumped into Tapeworm taking a break. I told him I had to get water and he mentioned a spring up ahead instead of filtering from the creek. But neither of us knew about the detour (they actually had orange signs stating "Appalachian Trail Detour" with arrows) that bypassed the spring and I ended up climbing Second Mountain in the heat with less than a half liter remaining. This was pretty stressful until Tapeworm gave me some water to get me to the next shelter. He also spotted a rattler working its way through the rocks. Cool, second snake in two days.Saltlick, claiming he was going to do 40 miles that day, was lounging at the approach trail to the William Penn Shelter and calling it a day. He had hit a wall.After replenishing our water supply, Cuba, Mike, Tapeworm, and I continued to the next shelter and got stuck in a thunderstorm. This was unlike the VA storms in that you could hear the thunder for at least 45 minutes before the rain hit you. Also the rain was light and most of the drips got caught in the leaves. Considering we have had beautiful weather since I left Virginia (told you so) I have no complaint about this storm.It was also worthwhile to reach the 501 Shelter. This had four walls and a huge sunroof. A caretaker maintained the building so it had some added features, such as a mirror, books, and magazines. If you have a cell phone you can order pizza, which we did without hesitation. There is also a solar shower that I found refreshing even though it was cold.I hung out there for three hours but was determined to forge ahead so that the miles into Port Clinton would be less the next day. Nobody could convince me to stay and off I went for another five miles to an empty campsite between two flowing streams.Along the way I dealt with some rock steps. I keep hearing the rocks get worse after Port Clinton. I, so far, really like PA although some of the flat terrain gets boring. Many hikers, though, grumble about the rocks--these mysterious rocks--yet no one is consistent in how they would describe them. I have heard that you feel like an ant climbing up a sandhill. I have heard that you feel like you are walking on the bottom of a pond where the stones are rounded and they move. Then I hear that you will be walking on jagged and pointy edges of stones that jutt out of the ground.All I have noticed is that the rocks slow you down and ETA's are thrown off. This annoys many hikers who want to make a shelter before sunset. Otherwise, PA is easy.It was just getting dark when I set up my tent. I was alone but knew the sound of water would lull me to sleep.