Date: 2019-07-21
From: Unoffical Campsite at MM1106.5 (PA)

To: Alec Kennedy Shelter (PA)
Miles today: 13.0
Weather: clear sky

I had trouble falling asleep last night. I used my phone to plan logistics and edit journal entries until about 12:45. Partly I think the problem was the heat, but having eaten a half gallon of ice cream might have also played a role. I then woke up about 5am.There was no ice cream or swimming pools to look forward to today, just trying to get to the Alec Kennedy Shelter so we can have a short day into Boiling Springs tomorrow. While we had a campsite to ourselves last night, we were passed by a couple of hikers who had tented closer to the park. SC and I made plans to meet at a woods road in 3.5 miles. However, when I got there, she wasn¢t there. I texted and she said she was at the road, but she hadn¢t realized that the road she was at was 5.3 miles from our campsite. She was in the zone this morning, and went almost 2 miles farther without even noticing!Anyway, we plan to meet at a railroad crossing in another mile. I leave first and am walking through this swamp and the mosquitoes are eating me alive. When I get to the railroad crossing, I drop my pack as quickly as I can and pull out my insect repellent. Mosquitoes swarm around me as I dive into my pack looking for my headnet. I had been recently wondering if I should send it home. I¢m glad I haven¢t!After the railroad, we walk together for a change. There¢s supposed to be a convenience store at the next road crossing and we don¢t want to miss it as we¢ve heard they have good food and we are getting low on snacks.We find the store and are greeted with a wonderful blast of air conditioning. The 2 guys who passed us this morning are here. We get our food and sodas, then sit down to enjoy the AC for a while. I got a taco salad and it was exactly what I was craving. We were coming up on Old Town Road, and SC hadn¢t heard the song, so while we were having lunch, I showed her the video on my phone. That song has been in my head lately, particularly after I asked a 9 year-old section hiker how he was enjoying his hike and his response was to sing the chorus. I¢ve changed the words to fit the trail:Gonna take my boots to the old town road,Gonna hike ¢til I can¢t no more.I¢m the first one to leave the store. Then over the next mile or so I am passed by the other 3 and 4 others we¢ve been hiking with lately. I meet up with everyone at a stream and another hiker shows up that we thought was several days ahead of us. Apparently he got sick after the half gallon challenge and spent a couple of days in a hotel room recovering. We all leave about the same time to cross Old Town Road and then climb a hill where the Rock Maze is waiting for us. The Rock Maze was fun. If followed the blazes, you got right through, but it was easy to think you knew the way and not pay attention and find yourself off trail. It was a nice change of pace to be scrambling through rocks and watching carefully for blazes. So often on the trail we just go on autopilot and plod forward.After the Rock Maze, a bunch of us met back up at the next road crossing. Most people were going into town, while SC, three guys, and I were stopping at the shelter just 4 miles before. As we left the road it was thundering and we hoped we wouldn¢t have to hike in a storm. It seemed like those last few miles to the shelter took forever. I stopped and filtered water at a creek just before the shelter turn off because the water at the shelter was supposed to be difficult to get to. The last half mile carrying all that water was particularly tough.Finally I got to the shelter and even had dinner made when it started to rain. It had been hot all day, probably even hotter than yesterday and the storm brought instant relief.