Date: 2003-06-12
From: Darlington Shelter

To: Duncannon 
Miles today: 11.4
Weather: light rain

Darlington Shelter to Usually, when I write my journals, I'm in my tent or in a shelter. Today, I'm typing, and drinking a $0.75 Yuengling draft at the Doyle in Duncannon, PA. Hotdog, Paparazzi, Mule, B-Roc and I said we'd celebrate the halfway point here, and we did. I have never gone into a bar, and asked for a room. Until today. That's the Doyle. It is nearly 100 years old, and was an Anheuser-Busch hotel. The current owners have only been here for about a year. The rooms are... rooms. I mean, they have beds. Each floor has a shower/restroom to share. The bar serves all meals, plus, obviously, alcohol. To make the place more hiker-friendly, there's a sign hanging off the second level saying "Hikers Welcome", internet access in the bar, and a washer and dryer are to be installed any day now. Good place. The people are friendly. The rooms are cheap. The beer is cold. I like it.From the moment we all woke up this morning, which was, collectively, early, we all had one thing on our minds: the Doyle. Wild Flamingo left first, followed by Mule, and by 7:45 B-Roc led Paparazzi, Kid (Kevin), myself and Hotdog toward Duncannon. He set a fast pace, and we had one steady, steep climb to slow us down, but once on the ridge, the miles flew to the next shelter, 7.3 miles north. B-Roc and I arrived there in about 2 hours and 15 minutes, with the others straggling in shortly after. From there it was 4.1 to town. We, once again, were in hurry-up mode, which is probably what caused me to fall coming down a mountain. No harm done, and I thought it was funny that when my feet slipped down the sloped rock, they flung (flinged? flang?) dirt about 6 feet forward, almost hitting B-Roc. I landed safely on my pack.At the end of this steep, rocky downhill, B-Roc spotted Heaven on Ice...a cooler with cold drinks in it, left by Trail Angel Mary of Duncannon. Thank you, Mary!! That is so awesome, when hot, with tired, sore feet, to come across cold drinks, totally unexpected. What a relief!We were all happy to be near town, when we stepped out of the woods onto the road. I found out soon enough that the road hurts my feet. Or maybe my feet were sore already. Either way, I wanted to be off of them. But walking the roads to and through town didn't matter much, as I was Almost There. We pointed out important businesses to each other as we passed them. Pizza place. Laundry. Uni-Mart. ATM. Then, there it was... Doyle. We had arrived. The four of us and a southbound hiker walked into the bar, all in a dirty, sweaty, stinky line. The lady behind the bar says "You guys need rooms." She had us figured just right. Mine and Hotdog's room wasn't ready yet, as it wasn't even 1pm, so we were forced to order some food and have a beer. I hate when that happens. Cheeseburger. Small Fries ("You don't want the large, it's BIG. The small size is pretty large.") I wasn't sure I could, but I cleaned my plate. It was very good, and hit the spot.I always say, 'it's the people that have made this trip so great' and it's true. As I was sitting in the bar, typing away, drinking a beer, the southbound hiker that came in just behind 4 of us, came over to me and said "And who is this, typing away?" I said "My trailname is Wench." He said "I've been waiting to meet you for a long time." I laughed, thinking he was referring to meeting a wench in a bar, and I made a comment along those lines. He said "No, I've been waiting to meet you." I got a little nervous, but he continued "I've been reading your journal on Trailjournals since you started." How cool! He's been keeping up on a lot of journals, especially those that started in March, and, because he's going south for a bit, he said he's met a lot of those he followed, including A-train, Subman, Hotdog, me, Lite Shoe. He even asked if we were still carrying Soleman's Flag. It's sorta weird when I meet someone who knows me, or knows something about me that a strang! er doesn't know, and it's happened to me a few times, but when I find out it's due to the journal, it's okay, and rather cool. Better Day, the southbounder, seems to have a positive attitude, and said he might, if his wife will allow it, when he finishes this southbound section, go to Katahdin and hike south. So I might see him again, along the trail.I got to check my email and trailjournals guestbook today, briefly, and am very thankful for all of the support I've received. I ask a lot of people I meet on the trail to check out my journal website, and sign my guestbook. That way I have their email addresses and can send them a note when I get time. I wish I could keep in contact now, but it's difficult, since, when I get internet access, my time is limited. I really do appreciate the comments and encouragement. Everyone I've met has been so nice. I want them all as my friends.It's neat being in a hotel, leaving the door open, but on our floor are a bunch of hikers, including B-Roc across the hall, and Paparazzi and Mule at the end of the hall. The three of them are shooting for a big day tomorrow, but I'm not going to. I've had a good time hiking with, or at least staying with them for several days and nights. But, we must all hike however we feel we need to. With my family coming soon, I'd fall behind anyway. At least this way, they can say they outhiked me, instead of me taking time off. ;-)Either way, I'm in no hurry to get out of Duncannon tomorrow. I have to do resupply shopping, and am planning on going 11 miles, so I have time. I am excited my sis will be hiking with me, and excited to see my mom and nephews. The time will probably be too short, but I'll take it. I am having a good time out here, but like to talk to family when I can.