Date: 2018-05-31
From: Campsite mile 1315.6

To: Branchville, NJ
Miles today: 7.5
Weather: overcast clouds

Woke up this morning to a misty, wet tent. Hunger was setting in but realistically it was only because I knew I had no food. If I had some I knew I wouldn't be this hungry. I ate my six cheese crackers, the last of my food then pushed hard to town. I figured why stop when I would just get wet and couldn't eat? The 7.5 miles went quick and I made it to US 260 and waited for Two Clicks. I sat there and chatted with another thru hiker hitching into town. When Two Clicks arrived we decided to head to the diner in town and he agreed to staying at a motel in town. I figured it would be good to eat well, shower, hang out and brush off yesterday. I also wanted to focus on my new food needs as I'll be eating cold until I figure out where I can either buy a new stove or have it sent to me. Weirdly enough, im not too worried about it. Maybe I've gotten too comfortable with how the trail works but it seems to always provide. And plus, Branchville didn't have any outfitters so I couldn't get anything here.We had a nice couple ask if we needed a ride as we sat at the trailhead and took them up on that offer. They dropped us off at the diner and we were very grateful! Here, we took our time eating a ton and sipping on coffee before heading to the market. Never resupply on an empty stomach!Next, we walked the half mile to the market. It was a pricy resupply especially starting from scratch but I think it'll work well and I'll be all set. We called the motel in town to reserve a room and then hitched there. They let us check in at 11 which was great. We hitched again to the motel about 3 miles from where we were and a nice older gentleman gave us a ride there wishing us well on our journey!Our motel room was fairly cramped but honestly it was ideal. We just needed a roof and a bed. The people running it were super nice and welcoming! Bonus-- the shower head was amazing! We hung around trying to help them fix our room TV and showering. Around 2 we got a ride to the bar by the owner Leano. We made a deal with him that we didn't need him to work on fixing the TV if he would drive us there. He was happy to do so.Gyps bar was a great hangout. We tried a few different beers and ate a bunch of food while laughing about our situation. For a few hours we hungout here and enjoyed the views off the back patio of the lake in town. Again, everyone was super nice here! Luckily, Leano agreed to pick us up too so around 5 we gave him a call and he was there within 30 minutes. This gave us enough time to run next door to the fishing store. I tripped on the step in as I was texting and gave the clerk a good laugh. I swear I fall more in towns than on trail although I fall a lot regardless! Here, I got Paracord for bear lines. My old line was with my food in the bag that got taken. I was hopeful I might find a stove too but the one they had wasn't what I was looking for and like I said I wasn't too worried.When we got back to the motel, the owners wife, their kid and the neighbor who lived there were in our room. I swear I could write a book on this place between the people living here who told us their life story and the shenanigans going on. Anyway, they were awesome and just trying to fix the TV. They had switched out the TV and still had no luck but for some reason I got it to work after playing around for a few minutes. Leano was pumped!The rest of the night consisted of eating, watching TV and catching up on chores-- journaling, drying things out, and enjoying the rest. Quite an exciting few days but I think Two Clicks and I were happy to do a full-on nearo and chill out ready to tackle the last 40 or so miles of NJ