Date: 2014-06-05
From: DWG to Branchville, NJ

To: Branchville to Unionville, NY
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

The 16 mile day coming out of Branchville was relatively easy as the trail was well maintained and our bellies were full of pizza. We kept up a steady pace throughout the afternoon and had plenty of time to stop for a cool side trail trip up to the highest point in New Jersey. An old stone lookout tower near High Point served as a nice motivator in the late afternoon. The panoramic views were incredible. This state is truly a beautiful one. After hanging out at the tower and getting some trail magic beers from two locals, we all trekked the last half a mile together to the shelter. Surprisingly, there were still spots in the shelter, and since we knew rain was coming, we gladly unrolled our sleeping pads and bags so as to not have to pack out wet tents in the morning. Several more hikers rolled into camp not long after us. There must have been at least 13 or so hikers at the shelter for the evening. This is by far the most folks I've encountered on the trail. The "Herd", as a portion of this group is called, consists of mid to late March starters who are the true beginning of the hiker "bubble". While I love the extra company and the chance to meet new people, it is a very different experience sharing the trail during the day and the campsites in the evenings with so many fellow hikers. But I remember times just recently when there wasn't another person in sight for days so I'm not complaining! As it steadily rained overnight, I was grateful to be in the shelter but reminded of how much I enjoy my own personal space provided by the tent. The next morning, several folks got up early and started moving down the trail. Moaglee, Happy, and I waited out the rain until about 9 AM and then started our day. I had to stop into Unionville to pick up a package at the post office. (Black Diamond graciously sent me a new set of poles as one of the locking mechanisms on mine had broken. They were very kind and sent new poles with no hassle. Great company to stand behind their product and make it easy for a thru hiker like me to get what I needed.) Neither of the boys were planning on stopping as we were gonna try to make it the 19 miles to Vernon. However, Happy needed water so he had to come into town. We then sent Moaglee a text, and he soon joined us. We had every intention of hiking out but once Moaglee realized that his replacement sleeping pad had not yet made it to the post office in the next town we'd be passing, we decided to just hike to the next shelter. Well, plans once again were subject to change as we met a very kind woman named Sunshine who offered to let us camp in her backyard since she wants to get involved with the hiker community and start doing some trail magic! One of our blessings that not all share is that we do not have a specific date by which we have to be done with our hike. We have the luxury of time, and as we are trying to time our hike right so that we can meet up with Moaglee's mom and sister in New York City, the sudden change of pace and plans suited us just fine. With plenty of good weather ahead, we're able to enjoy each day as it comes.