Date: 2010-05-10
From: Bake Oven Knob

To: Smith Gap Road
Miles today: 20.0

Another very cold night. The good news is that all the cold air hastemporarily eliminated the presence of insects. And the snakes seemto be staying under ground in their holes. Once you got movingthough, the walking was very pleasant. I got a very early start andhiked down from Bake Oven Knob to the Lehigh Gap and crossed a bridgeover the Lehigh River.On the other side of the river was a spectacle I have never seenbefore. The next four miles of trail crossed through an area ofdevastation caused by nearly a century of zinc smelting in Palmerton.The emissions from the plant, which was closed down by EPA in 1980,left the entire side of the mountain completely stripped of anyvegetation.   A Superfund cleanup by EPA was completed and some grassis now starting to take hold. So the mountain is now slowly comingback to life. Still, it felt like I was walking on the moon. Notrees. No bushes. Just some grass.   I climbed up and out of the Gapup this very steep slope that was just rock. No vegetation at all,and no soil either due to the resulting erosion. The scramble up thedenuded rocks, which required me to use both my hands and my feet, isconsidered to be among the most challenging on the A.T. south of NewHampshire. I worked up a really good sweat and was pleased that I wasable to complete the climb. I was very exposed to the elements thewhole way up to the mountain. Fortunately it was clear and sunny withonly a chilly breeze to contend with. I would not feel comfortablemaking that climb if it was raining and the rock was wet and slippery.The walk from there was easier. Finally, a reprieve from the rocks!Then I ran into a problem. There were no water resupply pointsavailable until I got to Delps Spring, the spot I intended to camp atfor the night. I knew this going in so I stocked up with waterearlier and was careful to make it last through the day. When I gotto Delps around 4:00 p.m., I had very little water left and found thatthe spring was dry. Now I was in a predicament, half a canteen ofwater left to make dinner and get through the night. Not good. So Ireferred to my Thru-Hiker's Companion book which indicated that aformer thru-hiker, Mechanical Man, lived a mile off of Smith Gap Roadand welcomed hikers to stop by, get water, and camp in his yard. So Iplunged ahead another 2.5 trail miles plus the 1 mile road walkknowing that when I got to his house I definitely would be able to getsome water. It turned out he runs a hostel out of his house. Therewere already three other hikers there who were slack packing A.T.sections (Chilly Willy and her husband Just Ray from Orlando and DavidThe Surveyor from York, PA). I was able to shower, order a sandwichfor dinner, sleep in his garage with the others, and, of course, getsome water. What a pleasant surprise all that was. Really appreciatewhat Mechanical Man and his wife, Crayon Lady, did for me. He hasbeen supporting folks like me who are hiking the trail in this mannerfor 20 years. He is also a caretaker for the part of the trail whichruns from his place north to Wind Gap. Good people.So I guess that explains why I ended up hiking 20 miles today.Tomorrow I will ease into Wind Gap and give my sore feet a break.Expecting lots of rain tomorrow night so I will probably stay in amotel.