Date: 2008-05-26
From: Stealth site .1 mile past Windsor Furnace Shelter,

To: Allentown Hiking Club Shelter, PA
Miles today: 16.4
Weather: clear sky

Quiet nite last nite, except some bird or chipmunk or something somehow made a comotion on my tarp. So it was 61 degres when I woke @ 6:00 a.m. I did deploy my tarp, just too paranoid about rain I suppose. I'm experimenting with the time I get up in the a.m., but I knew today would be a long day, so I'd rather make use of the daylight. I personally had a restless nite, freakin headache again, and this crazy dream that I was having to negotiate with some mafia guy to get the memory card for my camera back. In my dream, it had pictures on it that he wanted to post on the internet, and I didn't want that to happen, so I was at this fancy dinner with my family @ a restaurant, and had to keep excusing myself to talk to the guy on the phone. Finally, a black car showed up and some dude in a suit handed me the memory card..but it was the wrong one! LOL The rest of the dream was just more of me trying to get the right card. Weird huh? I never or rarely dream like this at home, and the other weird thing is that my father (who has been deceased for 11 years) has been in almost every dream I've had out here.So, on to hiking. I took 3 excedrins before stepping off @ 7:30, and my suspicion of caffiene headache was confirmed. I was absolutely wired (excedrin has caffiene in it). First it was up (no surprise), and it got very bouldery, but took me to The Pulpit, which had a fantastic view. On the way up, 2 young guys, Cocoa and Nut (from TN), FLEW past me like I was standing still. Man, these (in general) young men are incredible out here. Cookie was also there already. We took pics and I headed on to the next most incredible view of my hike so far (FINALLY..VIEWS!!). The Pinnacle, which I know is the highest point in the county (maybe PA?), was just stunning. To get your attention for the blue blaze, someone (or several people) piled up this 10 foot tall cairn of sorts. Wonder who got to do all that work.I stayed there for probably an hour and just soaked up the warm sun and breeze, layed on the rocks, took pictures of the hawks floating on the air currents right in front of me. Wow, this place is beautiful. The trail had been very rocky up to this point today, but then I had to laugh.Leaving the Pinnacle, it is a (possibly groomed?) almost as wide as a 1 lane road, dirt path for like 5 miles down. Almost all of the trail was non-rocky except the first part, and then at the very end of the day.When I left the Pinnacle around 10:00 a.m., I hiked a few moments and then saw perhaps the largest black snake I've seen yet. Its body was stretched 1\2 way across the 8' wide trail and then into the leaves. It was awesome!All day long, Cookie and I played leap frog. This guy is amazing too. He's 55 years old and blows by me like I'm hiking south. I don't know how they do it. He started from Springer on freakin March 5, and he's already here!! I tried placing my feet in his tracks, and about pulled my leg out of its socket...my short legs are not an advantage out here.I was going to stop @ the next shelter for lunch, but somehow totally missed the sign for it. I'm not convinced there was one because the companion showed Hawk Mt. Road and Eckville Shelter @ the same place. I was a bit disappointed when I realized this shelter has a shower, which I was in desperate need of rinsing off.I kept hiking and came to an unnamed creek. I decided to walk as far down creek as I could and take a bandana bath to get the salt off my body. I was just coated from sweating so much. So the coolest thing though, I actually found a natural drain in the creek. Meaning, all of the water came to one place, and there was a hole (even making the gurgle drain sound with the tiny whirlpool) that led back under ground, so all the water was going there! It was the coolest thing, so I knew this was the place to take a bandana bath, because you couldn't get water past this point! Ahhh....to have uncoated skin is so refreshing out here. Then I sat down to eat lunch, and Cookie showed up and he jumped into a bit deeper place slightly further up. We both kept laughing, because we felt like we were little kids going to the swimming hole.Despite feeling cool and refreshed, Next thing up was a steep 2 mile climb. It was in the 80's today, so I hiked in my camisole with no short sleeved shirt. It was a tough climb (not rocky), but I just plugged along and finally made it. Then it got rocky a bit to Dan's Pulpit, which had a small view.There was a couple there with their 18 month German Shepard (Sasha), and she was afraid of my hiking poles because she'd never seen them before. I let her sniff them, and then we were buds.I kept on, and the next 3 miles were very very rocky. Mind you, I'd already gone 12 miles, so at the end of the day, dealing with rocks is harder due to fatigue. I also needed water, and my info was wrong. There were 2 different blue blaze trails, 1 with water, the other...who knows? I showed the first with water, but I soon realized (after going WAAAAY down a hill), it wasn't gonna be there. Man I hate that. So the next blue blaze (about .5 mile further) had a sign, Dan's Spring, so I knew this was right. This too was way downhill, and the spring was cold and great, but someone had dumped\dropped macaroni in it, so it was tacky. C'mon people, keep it real out here and pick up after yourselves!The trail was on\off rocky with some relief the last 1.5 miles. I did see a tiny fawn, scared of me, but calling for it's mother. I was like, "Oh man, please don't let me have a bambi moment and find the momma dead," but 200 yards up, I heard rustling and saw baby and momma running away from me. Whew.....Oh, and I also saw a molted baby rattle snake skin on a rock. I lifted the rock to make sure the skin wasn't still attached, but no snake, so I picked it up. Pretty cool really.It never fails at the end of a hard day, the freakin gnats come out to play. I don't know what they are attracted to, salt, sweat, or maybe my stench? Well, to get through the remaider of my day, I wrote a poem that I would like to share:"Ode to Gnats"Gnats are annoyingGnats are NOT funThey fly in your eyes & earsAnd land on your tongueSometimes I wishThat I were a truckerSo I could drive fastAnd splat those little.....Oh wait! Jerks doesn't rhyme does it? Well, back to the drawing board on this one.....To get through the last few miles, I just told myself to take it easy, slow down, I'd get there if I kept moving. I was really really tired and my feet felt like knubs.I finally got to the shelter @ 6:17, and was so glad to see a great area to hang. Cookie, Kirby, Cocoa, and Nut were already there (of course) and I set up camp and walked up to the picnic table to make dinner. We all talked and laughed and I really enjoyed socializing with these guys.I'm finally in my hammock, it's quite warm (71 degrees @ 8:15 p.m.). Chance of rain tonight and t-storms tomorrow afternoon. I'm planning a short 10 miler to the next shelter tomorrow, to allow me to find a place that is lower in elevation (pretty much on a ridge until descending to Lehigh Gap), and quite honestly, I'm beat.Another hiker showed up, he's got a dog and is talking at FULL VOLUME ON HIS CELL PHONE..reminds me why I don't like staying @ shelters. If he doesn't shut up soon, I'm going to go over and speak to him. It's freakin 10:00 p.m.!I'm also planning to get up @ 5:00 a.m., to get an early start so I can be 100% for sure I'm out of those storms if they actually hit.Looking forward to a short day and then some lounging in my hammock tomorrow. I'm passing out now...~CertainCut and Paster Note:Trail poetry at its best! I'm surprised we haven't read one about the rocks yet!- Persistent