Date: 2018-05-26
From: 501 Shelter

To: Hamburg, PA
Miles today: 24.1
Weather: clear sky

Around 6 the shelter began stirring and everyone was up by 6:15. I got up and out to begin the day into town. Word has it, the rocks begin after the 501 shelter so these miles would be tough. Sure enough, the rumors were fairly true and these miles were tough.In the morning I met Fainting Goat who is a woman hiking the AT as her 3/3 triple crown. She was really cool and we chatted about hiking for an hour before she stopped to reserve a rental car in town and I continued on.The miles passed by and as much as I don't want to say it, they were fairly unremarkable. Barely any views for the entire day and just ridge walking along rocks. It was tough and my knees and feet definitely felt it. I stopped 15 miles in around noon for lunch and just ate off the side of the trail instead of hiking 0.3 to the shelter and 0.3 back. 0.6 round trip is a lot for lunch so on trail it was! I was joined by 3 flip floppers. One named ambassador was carrying a 50+ pound pack and said she was going to do a shakedown in the next few weeks. I encouraged her to do it ASAP as her joints wouldn't hold up under that weight but I don't know if she will take my advice. I had contacted Two Clicks to let him know I was going to be hiking into the same town he was in. He had zeroed today to take care of a shin injury. He said I should join him in his hotel and just throw him a couple bucks! Better than tenting in town! When I got to town I figured I would just hitch in to Hamburg about 2 miles away. Low and behold, at lunch Two Clicks texted me and said he found me a ride. Two Clicks is relatively famous on Instagram and one of his followers lives in the area. This man makes money off his YouTube channel building and fixing cars! I gave him a call and we planned our meetup time and spot.When I descended the 1000' in 0.7 miles which was rough on the knees, I was popped out in a rail yard. I walked a bit off trail to a pavilion for hikers in town where we could camp for free. At the pavilion, a guy named fresh ground who runs the Leap Frog Cafe was there! He caters to the hikers further north of the massive bubbles and just keeps jumping north as we hike all the way to Maine. He is famous for his trail magic! He had hot dogs ready for me then cooked me a few more and had Gatorade, watermelon, fruit and other snacks for me to devour. It was awesome and great to have while hiking. He could even tell I was a thru hiker right away from Georgia as opposed to the Flip Floppers and that made me feel good!Once Two Clicks' follower showed up, I jumped in his falcon and he drove me to the hotel. On the way, we were stopped at a stop sign and I talked to thru hikers hanging out at a barber shop that's hiker friendly in town. They were amazed by the ride I had and Two Clicks' follower was able to show off his car as he peeled out. It was an amazing ride!When we got to the hotel, the three of us hungout. They had never met before which is insane! The power of social media I suppose! Once he left, he vowed to drive us to trail tomorrow morning at 8:30. What an awesome guy. I'm completely blanking on his name but I'll find out again tomorrow! Two Clicks and I then made our way to the Cabellas across the street which is the largest in the country.it has a legit mountain in the middle with hundreds of taxidermied animals and an aquarium! I bought a tiny fuel canister then ran to Walmart to resupply food while Two Clicks went back to the hotel bar. When I got back, I joined him and ate dinner with a couple of beers and dessert. It's nice to have my appetite back after the food sickness from Timbers.That night I finally showered (sorry Hamburg, PA-- I should have showered earlier) then hung out and caught up on tasks. What a great day! 75ish more miles in PA! Even with the rain and upcoming climbs, I'm so pumped. And I'm really excited to be back with Two Clicks and I think he's happy to have someone he knows around too! Goodnight!P.S: Thanks Jacqui! It was great to reconnect but one of the hardest things to get back in the swing of hiking. I appreciate you saying that about the kid in Duncannon. It was a weird situation I had no idea would occur but I feel as though it may have at least caused him to think a bit more. I almost left it out of the journal in fear people may think I was too harsh on some teenage kid but hey, it's reality and for the most part I try to tell everything that happens as it is-- as appropriately as possible. I hope he learns too.