Date: 2008-07-17
From: Dennytown Road, NY

To: Half mile north of Stormville, NY
Miles today: 16.2

The two words for today were hot and humid!I woke up about 5:30am and wrote my journal for yesterday and got that sent in along with a bunch of photos. I wasn't in any hurry to get started because today will be a short day. I planned on eating dinner about 15 miles up the Trail. I ate the three donuts I had packed out yesterday and drank a liter of water. I packed up and was walking north on the Appalachian Trail at 7:50am. I stopped at the pumphouse at Dennytown Road and filled all three water bottles, washed out my bandana and my shirt. I stuck that wet shirt on and it felt good! :-) I decided to supplement my three donuts this morning, so I stopped and picked a handfull of huckleberries and ate those. I crossed NY Rt 301 in 4 miles and walked around the backside of Canopus Lake. I was getting attacked by mosquitoes and yellow flies in those 4 miles. I stopped long enough to spray a little Deet on the back of my arms. Have I mentioned that I REALLY don't like biting bugs? I was getting close to the north end of Canopus Lake and I scared up two bucks. One had a nice eight point rack and the other had a smaller four point rack. They were both still in full velvet. They ran about 40 yards, then stopped and watched me walk by. I got a quick glimpse of a fox running off just shortly after I saw the two bucks. I got up to an overlook on the north end of Canopus Lake and I set my pack in the sun to dry, then took off my hat, my shirt and my shoes and socks and sat all those in the sun. I was soaked from sweating this morning. Canopus Lake I decided to eat an early lunch while I waited on all that stuff to dry. I had some tuna and Fritos, nuts, diced peaches and a piece of gum...and another liter of water. I was just about ready to start packing up when four nobos came walking up. Their names are Low, 10 O'clock, Pathfinder and Quiet Riot. I talked to them a while...other than Gator I haven't been seeing any thru hikers for the last couple days. They walked on, then I packed up and climbed up to Shenandoah Mtn and took a picture of a painted flag, in memory of 9-11, on the rocks. I walked down that mountain and past the side trail to Shenandoah Tenting area without stopping. I kept descending to RPH Shelter. Those 4 nobos were there drinking ice cold sodas! Someone had just left a cooler full of ice and Cokes. My oh my, that really came at a good time! :-) Low, 10 o'clock, Pathfinder and Quiet Rio enjoying sodas at RPHI talked to Low a little. He said he had been reading my journal earlier this year because he had met me in VT last year. I climbed Mt Mansfield with Blue Jay Lefay, Scarecrow, Gabby, Mrs Gorp and Mrs Liteshoe right after the Long Trail Festival and ran into Low who was thru hiking the LT. He said he didn't get much of a chance to talk to the rest of us because Mrs Liteshoe was working him over with a hardsell sales pitch on her book. She's pathetic! :-) The Ordinary AdventurerI walked on and those guys stayed there resting up it¢s going to be a 38 mile day for them. I climbed Hosner Mtn and stopped a couple times to take a picture when I got a view. View from Hosner MountainThis is one of my least favorite parts of the Trail...not because of the Trail itself, that's nice...it's because of the road noise from the Taconic State Parkway and I-84 which the Trail closely follows for 7 or 8 miles. I came up to some flamingos and figured I'd better take a picture to prove it. If I just wrote casually in my journal that I walked by half a dozen pink flamingos, there are one or two of you that would have thought I was crazy! :-) The picture speaks for itself! Pink Flamingos on the Trail in New YorkI crossed Hosner Mtn Rd, then climbed a couple hills to NY Rt 52 near Stormville, NY. I turned right on the road and got to Danny's Pizzeria and had some spaghetti with sausage and garlic bread. The sausage was excellent. I had an antepasta next...I'm usually not too keen on those, but this one was loaded with meat and was very good. I drank two sodas with my meal, then got a third just to sit and let my phone charge longer and me to dry off more. Those four nobos came in and ordered a bunch of stuff and I got another picture of them. They've only done 24 miles, so they still have another 14 to walk tonight. I'm only going another half mile. :-) I filled up all three water bottles, went next door to Mountain Top Deli and bought a lemonade, a big cinnamon roll and a banana for tomorrow morning's breakfast, then I packed up and walked on. Those nobos were laying stretched out on the side of the pizza joint because they ate too much. :-) I walked back to the Trail and only another half mile before I found a good soft flat spot and set up my tent for the night. I took a bandana bath and laid there as still as I could and the sweat was still rolling off me. I finally cooled down enough to at least stop sweating. :-) I love my tent! There's mosquitoes trying to get in and bite me, but they can't. Ha! :-) I don't know who put that cooler of ice cold Cokes at RPH Shelter, but THANKS! It was greatly appreciated and really came at a good time! :-) I have tomorrow planned out to have dinner at a deli on NY 22. I already have a good breakfast, now if that hotdog stand is opened when I walk by NY 55 at lunchtime. ;-) Yeah...it's a tough life out here on this Trail. Another great day on the Appalachian Trail. :-)