Date: 2017-08-13
From: Wawayanda Creek 

To: High Point State Park HQ
Miles today: 18.8
Weather: scattered clouds

Should the calzones at Annabel's restaurant in Unionville be banned from the Olympics? Based on the way I powered up to New Jersey's highest point -- the creatively named High Point State Park -- there is a case to be made that these Italian delicacies are definitely performance-enhancing.I'd arranged to stay tonight with a local hostel run by a former thru-hiker named Mosey, but after being trapped in the food vortex of Annabel's until 2pm, I warned Mosey that I might not make it to the meeting place until 7-8pm.But with the aid of the calzone, I walked up to the park HQ just before 6pm.The trail might have something to do with it, of course. Notwithstanding the ascent of the state's highest peak -- a modest 1800ft or so -- the trail was generally beautifully graded and fast.So too might the huge breakfast and coffee I'd earlier enjoyed at Pochuck Valley farm market, which fueled me over a series of hills and then through the Wallkill River national wildlife refuge to Unionville.I'd been short of water the night before, thanks to just missing the opening hours of the Heaven Hill farm stand and then finding the water in the swamp-like rivers after that unappealing. It meant I hadn't cooked dinner at my campsite just before the start of the boardwalk.I already knew from going stoveless on the Israel National Trail that not having a big evening meal usually manifested itself in flagging energy levels the following afternoon. Given that today was going to be long and end with a decent climb, this lesson was a little unnerving.But the Israel trail didn't offer the deli blazing that the AT does on this part of the world, and that made all the difference.I was on the road this morning at the early -- for me -- hour of 6.50am because I knew the Pochuck Valley farm market restaurant was open fewer than two miles away.The early start was already rewarded by the last bit of fog lifting off the marshes through which the magnificent boardwalk meandered.It turned out I wasn't the only one caught out looking for a campsite last night. On the bridge over Pochuck Creek -- not near the bridge but actually on it -- someone had pitched their tent. I said hello as I went past but the bottle of wine in a paper bag outside the tent suggested the occupant had had an entertaining evening.This was a Sunday morning and the first early recreational walkers were just arriving so I was guessing his or her sleep in was going to come to an early end.The restaurant, reached via a mile-long road walk, was everything it was billed to be. That's really saying something, given the raptuous praise previous hikers had given it.Even at 7.30am, there were some others present. It seemed like this was the local old guys' regular get together on Sundays.My focus was on coffee and a breakfast sandwich, which arrived with egg, ham and dripping with melted cheese. I think the server looked shocked when I wolfed it down then immediately ordered another.One of my favorite activities is to settle in over coffee and read a newspaper cover to cover. The cafe had the usual New York papers but also had the local one, The New Jersey Herald, so I went with that -- and discovered it was a discordant right-wing rag with no balancing liberal or progressive voices.But it was still a pleasant way to start the day and I left at 9am, feeling ready to tackle the hills on the way to New Jersey high point.Soon after returning to the trail I met some LASHers -- the accepted acronym for people doing "long-ass section hikes" along the AT. Zed and Sue were hiking from Massachusetts to Harper's ferry in West Virginia and were clearly even less morning people than me, since they were packing up around 9.30am.But what they lacked in timely departure they made up for in sheer pace, easily blitzing me up and down the hills.I knew Unionville was about 10 miles away and that the second half of the journey was on almost flat terrain. Even the hilly bits were generally well graded and then as the trail went into the national wildlife refuge, it was as flat as a pancake. I could get used to this!The final traverse into Unionville followed a former train line, which just goes to show how easy the grade was.Coming into the turnoff into town, the AT left the railroad route and headed uphill for reasons unknown. I stayed on the train track and discovered the reason for the detour when the line followed a girder bridge about five metres above a waterfall -- and getting to the other side meant inching across a narrow girder with no handrail.Having survived that, I was soon walking into the pleasant little village of Unionville, which was just over the New York state line. The idea of a final deli blaze even after I'd nominally left New York was an amusing final flirtation with this state. As I was walking in, a nobo walking back to the trail confirmed that Annabel's restaurant was "legit".Zed and Sue were already in situ so I sat beside them and ordered the Stromboli calzone. At $6.95 for one, I was thinking it couldn't be that big so, taking my cue from the Pochuck restaurant, I ordered two."Are you sure," the waitress asked. I was.When the first calzone arrived, it was truly enormous -- even by the standards of American portion sizes."I think I've made a mistake," I thought, later getting the second calzone to take away and putting it into my pack, "but it's a mistake I suspect future me will be very happy with."And I am.Life is good.AT fact of the day: As I was heading up one hill, I saw a guy with a tiny pack hurtling towards me. This proved to be Stringbean, who is attempting to beat the unsupported speed record set by Knots -- the hiker clad only in his underwear in the Whites -- only a month or so before. He too was happy, humble and talkative, but he also admitted that his goals are to also set the overall -- IE supported -- speed record too. Wow, jus