Date: 2014-06-07
From: campsite at mile 1103

To: stealth camp 
Miles today: 27.0
Weather: broken clouds

I got up and rolled out early, early for me. I had big dreams of making 30+ miles today. I had six miles to hike to get to a store to get a cup of coffee that would propel me for at least a little while on to victory and enter the thirty mile club. These first miles were over pretty nice terrain so i made good time. At the store i saw they had a kuereg machine for coffee, hmmm, ok, i know how to work one of these. Not this one, its broke. Anger flowed through the veins in my entire body. Not really but i was disappointed. I bought a quart of chocolate milk and a bag of pretzels. I downed the milk so i wouldnt have to carry the bottle and munched the pretzels as i went back to the hippie highway. From there it was up and over a hill that on any other day i would have hardly slowed down but today i dragged up it. Whats the matter with you? I couldnt get going. Well going down the other side i will get revved up and really start stepping along, nah not really. Then came the rock maze. I had no idea what this was but it was on the guide so it must be a thing. Its these huge huge rocks piled up and scattered around that you sneak between and climb over. Its all marked so you cant get lost but its pretty cool. Also not a place you fly right thru. I screwed around a little extra to climb on things and get a better view of the lay of the land. It appears i was not in the mood to hike today. After the maze there were a few more little hills before the alec kennedy shelter where i planned on a lunch break. I made fair time getting there but once there i sat down, ate and decided it would be a nice day to get a nap in. After about an hour i woke hearing the click of hiking poles coming. It was someone i didnt know and cant remember his name but i had a good talk with him for about an hour. Now it was about two o clock, i was about 4 miles from boiling springs where there is a campground and 18 from the next real place to camp and the guide says no camping in the middle. Did it mean no camping at all or mostly no camping? I would be in boiling springs too early but not really enough time to get to the next place. I got a good motivational txt from a friend and the power nap combined had me ready to move along. I would get to boiling springs about 4 and found that they were having a town party, foundry day! There were vendors everywhere selling things nobody could ever carry for a thousand miles so i bought only a drink and a snack from the gas station. By this point i was starting to fell more spirited and being amongst all the people had me ready to get back where i fit in. I dont like being really scuzzy and surrounded by people in normal society. Boiling springs is a really cute town with a big pond full of trout that people can catch, i know this cuz i saw em do it. Old buildings, old stores, small town america. I liked it but it was time to move on. I would just go as far as i could then find a spot to secretly set up camp. The trail from here was truly flat and easy walking. Flat like pancake flat which was good for making up for dragging earlier in the day. I moved along well, moving along the hedges at the edge of fields. I was finally in farmland and easy walking. One point in particular was horrendous, it was along a swampy area and the mosquitos were feeding. I had to put my poles away so i could swat them but could not keep up with the swarm so i would have to stop and spray myself with bug spray. Well when i stopped they all piled on, nearly drove me crazy in short order, like i was being attacked. Im pretty sure i have never seen mosquitos this bad. I sprayed myself and got going again as fast as possible. Thankfully it wasnt too long till i got back out into the fields. I could have lost my mind if i stayed near the swamp. From there it was just sime more walking along till i got in the area where i wanted to camp. Low and behold i came upon a big river called the Conodoguinet river, a nice shallow lazy river, perfect for camping by. I found a little section of flat shoreline and was home. It ciuld not have been better. I washed in the river and it was much warmer due to the shallowness. I left my rainfly off so i could see the river as i lay myself down for the night. I had the most best little secret campsite going and i wasnt going to tell a soul, till now.