Date: 2014-05-29
From: Boiling Springs, PA

To: Duncannon, PA
Miles today: 25.6
Weather: few clouds

Day 78- May 29, Boiling Springs to Duncannon, PA, 25.6 miles. We had a very enjoyable evening with Nancy and Bill and then a good night's sleep in their lovely home. Nancy put out lots of choices for breakfast this morning before driving us back to our pick-up point from yesterday in Boiling Springs. Nancy walked the trail with us for about 45 minutes and then got her daily run in by running back to her car. We thank Nancy and Bill for their hospitality-we enjoyed our time together!We had a big mileage day planned and did it in fine fashion. It is over 25 miles from Boiling Springs to Duncannon but the first 12 or 13 miles are flat! We cruised those miles at almost 3.5 mph, which is super fast for me. The weather was perfect for a big miles day because it was overcast with some light mist at times and some rain in the early afternoon and temps in the 50's and 60's. The trail crossed through some pastures and our legs got soaked as we brushed up against the tall grasses that lined the trail. We were concerned about ticks as we walked in these pastures, but we seem to have come out clean today. Jim pulled a tick off his leg as we arrived in Boiling Springs and Terry reports that she had a tick after her walk with us on Monday morning. We will continue to be vigilant about doing tick checks! The afternoon portion of our hike had a few ups and downs and the guidebook indicated that there was a 5.6 mile stretch that was very rocky. The guide has never said that about any other part of the trail so we were a bit concerned about what we'd find. It turns our that this stretch was not too bad and we've certainly done much rockier portions in parts of Virginia. There was no view from Hawk Rock today so we started our steep descent into Duncannon. Jim and I have hiked from Duncannon to Hawk Rock a few years ago and we have done a couple of miles of the AT just on the other side of the Susquehanna River, which we will tackle tomorrow. It is strange to be on trail that we've hiked in the past. Tonight we are staying in the Doyle Hotel, a legend on the trail. The food gets excellent ratings but the accommodations are a little less desirable. But it was the only choice in town, on the trail so here we are. When we walked into the bar/restaurant area we were robustly greeted by the thru-hikers we've seen the last few days. They just can't shake us! We were given a decent room, the honeymoon suite-one double bed and only 2 of us in the room- and the shower was hot so we have no complaints. The room cost us $35. Thin Mint and Trademark are here too and we haven't seen them in over a week so we did some catching up over dinner. Today I wore my new pair of boots, the ones I ordered awhile back that are a half size larger than my original pairs. I am cautiously optimistic because after a long day of walking and being wet for the second half of the day and hiking on some rocks, I had no sore spots. I left my old boots with Nancy and asked her to send them to me later if this pair didn't work out or to throw them away if I let her know I am happy with my new pair. I will continue to test these boots for another day or two before I give her the final word.Big bacon cheeseburgers were our choice for dinner and they were very tasty! I also ate 2 very delicious hard pretzels that were made by the Gettysburg Pretzel Company. I am a huge pretzel fan and I was happy to discover another brand of good hard pretzels. The rain seems to have stopped and tomorrow is forecasted to be overcast but dry. I'm sure my boots will still be wet in the morning but maybe they won't get any wetter. All is well.