Date: 2018-05-11
From: Darlington Shelter

To: Duncannon
Miles today: 11.4

Last night, we could hear thunder to the east, but the storm appeared to go around us. I set up my tent about 5:00 and cooked the freeze-dried turkey with thyme, wild rice, peas and carrots dinner I had bought at the outfitter in Boiling Springs. I like freeze-dried dinners only occasionally. There¢s a slightly strange taste to all of them. I do better with the totally synthetic tastes of Knorr¢s sides and instant mashed potatoes. The shelter started getting crowded with GA-ME thru-hikers, Flip-Floppers and section hikers. It was too much excitement for me. I retreated to my tent and read And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini, one of the books recommended by my readers. I am nearly finished it and enjoying it immensely. From the next tent, I could hear a male hiker reading to his female companion. I couldn¢t make out the words, and romantic as it may have been for them, I felt like telling me them to shut up. After all, it was after 7PM, and decent folk ought to be asleep. I awoke early, ate a Kind Breakfast Bar, and started hiking about 6:15 under blue skies. The trail was frequently rocky, a foretaste of rocks to come, with one stiff ascent early in the day and a very steep descent to Duncannon. I arrived at the Doyle Hotel around 11:30. Quite a few flip-Floppers who had gotten ahead of me took a zero day today. They include Reid, Rizz and Batgirl, who got her name when she had an encounter with a bat in a privy. Also GA-ME hiker Ulysses is here.  Several GA-ME hikers essentially ran by me on the trail this morning. Oh, to be young again! Perish the thought! I also met a day hiker, Santa Claus¢ Brother who enjoys an audience. The Doyle Hotel is a trail institution. It¢s one of the original Anheuser Busch Hotels dating back over 100 years, when Duncannon called itself the Jewel of the Susquehanna and was a center of the lumbering industry. The lower part of Duncannon that sometimes floods was used to house the workers and presumably their entertainments.  The Jewel has not aged well. Pat and Vickey bought the Doyle in 2001 with the intent of restoring it. The previous owners removed the historic bar top that was Smithsonian-worthy. I stayed in the Doyle in 1998 and once again under Pat and Vickey¢s reign. It I is much improved now. Back then, it was so filthy that I spread my ground cloth on top of the bed and slept in my sleeping bag. I would only crouch in the bathtub to minimize contact with it. The Doyle has not aged gracefully. The plumbing and electrical systems are in danger of failing, but my little 3rd floor corner room has cross ventilation. The sheets are clean, and the showers, well let¢s just say that there are showers. In the old days, Yuengling Lager cost $0.50 for a 10 ounce glass and six pensioners with perhaps four teeth between them would open and close the bar daily. When Pat and Vicky bought the Doyle, they raised the price to $1.50 scaring off the riff raff. Now they charge $3.25. Draft beers include several Yuenglings, including the Lord Chesterfield Ale I¢ve been fantasizing about. I enjoyed a 10 ounce pour with an excellent shrimp po¢boy for lunch.Town visits have a certain rhythm encompassing eating, doing laundry, and buying groceries. After lunch, I walked two blocks to the laundromat, and at 4:00, the local grocery store provided a shuttle from the Doyle. Willow and I joined Grumpy and Now for pizza at Sorrento¢s. Before long, Kidska and Batgirl joined us. Sam popped in to assure that nothing went to waste.  Actually Grumpy carried three slices out for lunch tomorrow.Duncannon seems like an appropriate milestone to evaluate my hike thus far. My body is doing fine. No blisters or other foot problems. My knees are a little sore from today¢s high impact hiking, but there¢s no swelling and they will be fine by tomorrow. I¢ve taken a total of four Aleve on this hike and seem to be in less pain than most others. My gear is also performing well. I still feel foolish carrying a bear canister, but I¢m committed to it. The only change I¢ve made is to substitute the Be Free Filter for the Sawyer Squeeze Filter. If I can find it, I would like to substitute a picaridin-based insect repellent for the DEET I¢m carrying. I¢ll start increasing my daily mileage on the section from Duncannon to Port Clinton and see how that works. Each day in the forecast shows a good chance of showers or thunderstorms, so my mental toughness will be challenged as well.Friends make all the difference out here. I hope I¢ll appreciate my friends at home more after this hike.