Date: 2003-06-09
From: Quarry Gap Shelters 

To: Pine Grove Furnace State Park
Miles today: 17.4
Weather: scattered clouds

The rain that started last night had quit by this morning, and the sun was shining. I'd heard comments as I was waking. "What's that big orange thing in the sky?" "It looks like it's gonna be a beautiful day." "Maybe the trail will dry out." The last one was a joke. No way the trail would dry out that fast! Ever since leaving Harpers Ferry, my feet have been wet. Every day, all day. Yuck! It also makes blisters more likely to form on my feet, but I've been relatively lucky, with only two minor blisters. Today, the backs of my shoes started to rub on my achilles'. Hopefully the trail will be drying out some soon, and I won't have wet feet and shoes all day long.All of the thruhikers at the shelter last night were headed for Pine Grove Furnace State Park today, and Ironmasters Mansion Hostel for tonight, except Hoser. He went on past here. B-Roc, Paparazzi, Mule, Hotdog, and I are at the hostel, along with Sara, who's traveling the East Coast staying in hostels, and another hiker, who I haven't talked to much yet. This place is very cool! It is an old, huge mansion. There is a bunkroom for men and a separate bunkroom for women, which is different than most hostels I've been in, but apparently the norm for American Youth Hostels. I was looking forward to a room to myself, but have enjoyed the company of another female. I've been around 4 guys almost every night since leaving Harpers Ferry, and some of the days before, and needed either alone time, or another female to talk to. I got a little of both today. That helps me keep my sanity.The hike today was a quick one. Hotdog and I took 7 hours to hike the 17+ miles today, which is a quick pace. It's understandable though, as we both wanted to get to the Halfway Point! The official halfway point is right here, and we all wanted to celebrate with a beer, but there's none to be found. We'll wait until Duncannon in three days to have a beer.I am not as excited about the halfway point as I thought I'd be. Maybe because I realize there is a LONG way to go yet. Or maybe when I see the halfway marker tomorrow morning, it'll mean more to me. I am proud of myself for getting this far. It has been, and continues to be an awesome adventure. When I look at a map of the entire AT, it amazes me that I covered that much distance on foot! Also, I used to think Pennsylvania was SO far north, which, from Florida, it is, but hiking the AT, it is merely half way. I'm excited about the rest of this trip, since I haven't been to most of the states I'll be hiking through.Parts of the trail today were just gorgeous, surrounded by mountain laurel, and even though they weren't blooming, it was still beautiful. I liked walking through the pine forests where the pine needles provide a nice, cushiony path to walk on. When there weren't rocks, I'd spend my time looking left and right, just to see what I could see.Then there was the other type of trail: waterlogged. A lot of the day was spent rockhopping, stepping from one side of the mud to the other, or going around thick mud sections. When they're wet, I try not to step on the rocks, but today I did some. Until I nearly fell. I stepped on a big rock, and both feet slipped off forward. Luckily, I landed squarely on both feet, yelled "woo-hoo!" and kept on hiking. After that I walked in the water if I thought I'd hurt myself trying to avoid it.I am very much looking forward to family coming to visit me in the next several weeks. I'm sure that will mean I fall behind the group I've been around, but that is fine with me, as I'm sure I'll hook up with them again. Plus, it will give Fly and Smoothie time to catch up! I'm glad my sister will be hiking with me some. It'll be nice to share this with someone close to me. I don't have that out here, and that is one thing I miss, sharing with a loved one. Experiencing with a loved one. I know that through my journal, my friends and family are involved more than without the journal, and I am very glad I decided to keep a journal.Before I started this hike, I didn't expect to end up hiking with the same person nearly the entire trip, but that is the way it's worked out with Hotdog and I. A week or so ago, he told someone "I slow her down when she needs to be slowed down, and she speeds me up when I need to be sped up." That is a pretty accurate statement in that I would probably push myself harder than I need to if I weren't hiking with him. I don't know this for sure, but I know myself pretty well, and that is one of the things I knew I needed to watch out for. It has worked out well, hiking with Hotdog. As I've done for years, I tend to need some time to myself occasionally, and it seems I get that opportunity on the trail, especially if there are a lot of climbs during the day. If there aren't the climbs, and Hotdog is right with me, I tend to not talk much. Hopefully he doesn't take it personally if I don't talk back much on those days.I've been considering a lot of things lately, while hiking, ranging from how to get home to considering career and location changes. Meeting and talking to all kinds of people won't make a decision for me, but it has opened my mind to new ideas. It's up to me to use this knowledge to find my path. I know I still have lots of time to work things out, and in the meantime, I'll keep walking north.