Date: 2006-03-19
To: Shakedown Hike #2
Miles today: 0.0

3/17/06Destination: Toms Run ShelterStarting Point: Pine GroveWell I am out for another cold night. It is Friday night and I am currently sitting in Toms Run Shelter. I am typing this entry into my pocketmail which is a slow process, especially with gloves on. My Mom and Dad dropped me off at Pine Grove about 5:30. They are staying in Chambersburg tonight and my Dad is running a half-marathon tomorrow. I hiked the 3.5 miles to the shelter in little over an hour so I had plenty of daylight to get a nice camp fire going. I actually used the fire to warm my "tuna in a bag" diner.I plan to get a 7 am start tomorrow and hike about 21 miles to South Mountain, where I will meet my parents for a ride home. Tomorrow is a very important day because I will get a true taste of knocking off a 20 mile day. In just over a month, I will start walking 20+ miles everyday for over 100 days.Well it is getting to cold, time to bundle up in my sleeping bags.Later3/18/06Destination: South Mountain (PA 233)Starting Point: Toms Run ShelterToday was an awesome day for hiking. I met tons of people, which was very different from my previous hikes. A father and son actually showed up to the shelter after dark last night. They are working on hiking the entire trail over 4 years. I left Toms Run about 7 am and stopped at Birch Run Shelter for a snack around 9 am. A group of 4 section hikers were rolling out of bed and getting ready to continue on to Pine Grove. I sat and talked with them for awhile. Three of the guys were from Baltimore and unfortunately I forget their names and the fourth guy was Joe but I forget where he was from. I am definitely going to have to write down the peoples names that I encounter on my thru-hike rather then waiting until I write in my journal and realize I can¢t remember.Not long after leaving Birch Run Shelter, I came across a couple, Bogey and Slim, who were from Seven Valleys (Only miles from my home). They were a very neat couple that had actually hiked the entire trail over 10 years and are planning a thru hike for 2007. I arrived at Quarry Gap Shelter before noon and was about 14 miles into my 21 mile day. The hiking had been easy all morning and I was making good time. The Quarry Gap Shelter is amazing. I actually ran into Jim the caretaker of the shelter who is also from York.After lunch at the Shelter, I headed out for South Mountain where I was meeting my parents. About a mile out from the shelter I rolled my ankle. The ligaments of my ankle are weak from previous wrestling injuries. It seemed really bad at first, but I finished hiking and got to South Mtn. slightly after 3 pm. My Mom and Dad actually walked in to meet me and hiked the last mile or so with me.My ankle is swollen, but I know it will be fine with some rest and rehab. I learned a very valuable lesson about being more careful, especially in the rocky PA terrain. Other than the ankle, the twenty plus miles came very easy, my muscles, feet and everything else feels great. I think with just over a month to go this will actually prove to be a good thing. It will force me to take a few weeks off of hiking and focus my time on the many other things that need done before I leave.(Thanks to everyone that has taken the time to sign my guest book. Also, thanks a ton for the Team Shad fund-raising donations. I am 1/10th of the way to my goal and I haven¢t even started my hike. Awesome!)