Date: 2004-07-27
From: Hawk Mt. Road (Eckville Shelter), PA

To: Rocks and Rain
Miles today: 25.1

It is always an unpleasant feeling to begin a hike on a rainy morning, especially when the forecast calls for inclement weather to last all day. I hit the trail wearing hiking sandals and the old pair of socks that I use only with the sandals.As predicted, it rained for most of the day, alternating between heavy downpours and drizzles. There were occasional respites from the rain, but the water on the trees would continue falling to the ground. Sometimes this tree borne water would fall in steady drips. Other times, it would fall in sudden dumpings caused by wind.The rock concentrations were awful; the worst yet. Some of them were better described as boulder concentrations. The worst ones were situated on steep inclines. It was treacherous climbing up and down them in the rain. I often had to use my hands for leverage. What concerned me the most was slipping on a wet boulder and sustaining an injury that would end the journey. I slipped once, but was okay.During part of the day, I hiked with London Len, a British hiker, 62 years old, who I had met back in North Carolina. I had not seen him for weeks. Our hiking paces do not match, but for safety reasons we ascended and descended together the steepest boulder piles. Besides the boulder concentrations, there were numerous stretches of smaller rocks. London Len described them as "ankle slappers." They were not as treacherous as boulders, but could easily twist a hiker's ankle.There were some old woods roads that I followed today; they enabled me to hike faster and make up for the slower pace among the rocks and boulders. But even the old roads had impediments to my progress; they were covered with puddles of water that had to be avoided. And the rocks were present on parts of these roads.Late in the afternoon, I increased my hiking pace, hoping to reach a paved road before dark. From there, I wanted to thumb a ride to a hostel in the town of Palmerton, PA. I moved fast, stepping from one rock to another, choosing rocks that were as flat as possible to ease the soreness of my feet. Sometimes I would get lucky and step upon actual dirt¢a flat spot on the ground. During this ramped up phase of the hike, I suddenly slowed down. The thought occurred to me that I might be doing harm to my feet and legs. I recalled several hikers I know who had contracted tendonitis or shin splints from pushing themselves¢and their legs¢too hard. Some of these hikers had to stop hiking for many days. One of them quit the trail. At that point, I slowed down. I decided to skip the final push to the town and settle for a stay in a shelter.When I reached the shelter, I changed my mind about staying there. It was an old structure, dark and creepy. Two older men I had never met were occupying it. One of them was heavy set. Another hiker further back on the trail was planning to stay there. I did not want to sleep in this place with people who might be snoring. In particular, I suspected that the heavier set man would snore. On this journey, it seems that people with chunkier builds are the ones more likely to snore.I hiked down a slope to Lehigh Gap with the intention of thumbing a two mile ride into the town. I realized that hitch hiking would be difficult because it would be dangerous for motorist to pull over. A highway cuts through the gap. There were curves on the highway. There were tall, concrete walls at spots beside the road. It was drizzling.I walked along the breakdown lane as trucks whizzed by, sending a spray of mist against my back. There was a twelve inch wide curb which ran along the base of the concrete walls. I walked along this curb with my umbrella positioned at an angle to avoid scraping the wall. The umbrella did more than keep me dry, it kept me safe by alerting drivers to my presence.Eventually, the stretch of walls ended and I noticed a quiet road behind some trees. I left the highway and followed this road into downtown Palmerton.By this time, I was hobbling from exceedingly sore feet. I ran into Brood X who pointed out the location of the hostel. He said that he was going to eat at a cheap restaurant with Wipeout, so I joined them.The free hostel is located in the basement of an old building that houses the government offices of the county, or to use the correct word, the borough. There are bunks and a shower in the hostel. What a pleasant refuge from the rain.The other hikers in this hostel are Baloo and Carp. Baloo directed me to a boiler room where the temperature is hot. There, he and other hikers had hung their wet clothes to hopefully dry overnight. I did the same.It was night time when I ascended a stairwell and wandered through the civic building in search of a shower room. My search led me across an old basketball court. My sandals, still wet from the rain, made a squeaky noise as I padded across the floor of the court in the near darkness. Street lights from outside the building gave me barely enough light to seek out the door to an old locker room. There I found a light switch and the shower room.To save on weight, I do not pack a towel. I use bandanas to dry myself. They don't work too well. After this shower, I also used my sweaty hiking shirt to dry my skin. Today on the Appalachian Trail, I hiked for 25 miles through rocks and rain; it was my longest day of hiking. Actually, I hiked over 27 miles when the highway walking is factored in.There is a price being paid for these long miles of hiking. My feet are hurting bad. I question whether or not I will be able to hike tomorrow.