Date: 2004-06-20
From: Mombasha High Point, NY

To: Day 81: Seven Lakes Drive, NY
Miles today: 12.8

I got up on AT Day 81 at 4:20 a.m. and hit the trail around 6:45 a.m. The weather was absolutely beautiful on this Father¢s Day, with early morning temperatures in the 50¢s and rising to maybe the mid 70¢s in the afternoon, with a light breeze and patchy clouds ¢ very pleasant. Finally, given my history of falling into water and mud on the two previous days, I am also pleased to say that I managed to survive this entire day without a single mishap, except for nearly getting lost ¢¦The latter occurred after I had successfully climbed Buchanan Mountain¢s rocky and boulder strewn slopes, and walked along the shores of the lovely Little Dam Lake, when I came to a paved highway and could not find the AT on the other side. First I walked about a half-mile one direction, gave up and walked a half-mile in the other direction. One problem I had was that I wasn¢t sure what road I was on in the first place and second, when I reached the half-mile point on my second scouting mission I found a White Blaze faintly painted on the gravely pavement leading up a side road boarding a small creek. I went around the barrier, others had clearly done this before me, and hiked up the hill for a quarter mile or so, but when I failed to see any additional White Blazes, I turned around.When I returned to the highway I tried to flag down a motorist, and after many failures (remember that I was still a muddy mess, so I guess I probably looked pretty scary) one guy stopped and confirmed that this was indeed on ¢old¢ Orange Turnpike. I thanked him profusely and then looked up this road in my guidebook only to discover that the white blaze I had found on the side road was there to denote a spring source of water for the AT. Relieved that I now at least knew where I was, I paid even more attention to any sign of an AT marker on both sides of the road as I returned to the spot where I left the AT on the other side of the highway. Once there, I checked out the double blaze markers and retraced my steps a couple of hundred feet back up the highway in the same direction I had just left and at last found the ¢hidden¢ trail ¢ right where the guide book said it would be ...Feeling foolish for wasting at least 45 minutes at this intersection I was anxious to begin climbing Arden Mountain so I could try to get back on schedule. Upon reaching the summit of this small mountain, I stopped for a snack and then tried to hustle down the other side, but the steep, rocky trail was a challenge. Once I did manage to reach the bottom, I crossed NY 17 and asked a parked motorist (who was using a pay phone) to confirm my location. He complied and then asked if I was an AT through hiker. I told him I was, whereupon he asked how I was doing and wanted to know if there was anything I needed. I told him I was fine, but he persisted until he had given me a small bottle of sparkling water and a chocolate peanut butter protein Power Bar ¢ my favorite. We waved goodbye and I started down Arden Valley Road.Within ten minutes of crossing over the NY State Thruway I was flagged down by a guy parked along the road who also wanted to know if I was an AT through hiker. I told him I was, whereupon he told me he was a trail angel and that he had water and other supplies if I needed them. I told him I was fine since another guy had already treated me to water and a Power Bar less than a half-mile down the road. We chatted for a while since this guy knew who I was from my trail name and he knew many of the other through hikers I had met earlier. The fellowship of the AT is amazing.Leaving my would be benefactor I climbed Green Pond Mountain, passed over the lovely CCC-constructed Island Pond outlet, and then found a lovely spot to sit down and eat my lunch. I then proceeded onward to the famous ¢Lemon Squeezer.¢ The latter is an extremely narrow (less than two feet) flat sided gap between several large boulders and despite the fact that I managed to wiggle myself and my pack through the narrow opening leading to the gap, I was unable to fit through the gap itself. Naturally I was disappointed, but apparently I was not alone as the guidebook clearly describes a short (less than 50 yards) by-pass around the squeezer.The rest of the hike up and over Surebridge and Fingerboard Mountains was uneventful and quite pretty, although rocky and/or ¢rooty¢ at times and thus hard on my now increasingly sore feet. Since I was in a rush, I passed up the Fingerboard Shelter and instead stopped at the summit of the mountain to eat the protein Power Bar snack given to me by the guy at NY 17.I reached Seven Lakes Road, after a day¢s hike of about 12.8 miles around 4:30 p.m., but my wife was nowhere in sight. Fearing that I might not be at the pick-up spot, I stopped a couple of day hikers, but they were even more lost than me. I tried my cell phone, but as usual there was no service so I checked my maps once again, showed the day-hikers how to get back to their cars, and concluded that I was in the right spot and that I might as well settle down for an unknown duration wait. Well I didn¢t have to wait long since within 15 minutes I saw Hot Chocolate waiving from our big truck as she passed me on the other side of the highway. She returned before I finished repacking my gear and we then drove back to Black Bear Campground for a shower, dinner, etc., etc. All things considered, I can now once again proclaim, Life is Great!