Date: 2011-06-12
From: (76) Mountain Chruch Hostel, Delaware Water Gap

To: (77) Branchville NJ
Miles today: 28.2

Having slept in, I thought for certain that I would be the last one of the group to head out, but after leaving my spot under the porch I glanced inside the hostel and saw that I would be the first. It was still drizzling out, but I gripped my hiking poles with both hands and crossed the bridge over the Delaware River into New Jersey. So long Rocksylvania (Pennsylvania), until we meet again.New Jersey was immediately more green, wooded, and scenic than its neighbor, but the rocks continued. Jersey presented several new difficulties as well, the first being that the many lakes, ponds, and swamps that the AT passed housed a continuous and inexhaustible source of mosquitoes. Another difficulty was how poorly marked the trail was. Several times the trail split off into two separate directions without any proper identification as to which route was the AT and which was some lesser and obsolete trail. The last problem I faced was the water sources, the majority of which I deemed untrustworthy as they were brown and smelly (and not just the stagnant sources). This last problem became the most serious issue for me. I arrived at a stream after several hours of hiking only to discover that that it stunk like a septic tank. I followed the stream into the woods for a way and found that it was overflow from a swampy marshland. I continued on and was eventually able to fill my bottle from a park hand pump. Fearing that water conditions would be the same ahead I filled my 2 liter bag and carried it as well. This extra reserve turned out to be a smart idea, as all of the water ahead was as equally unsatisfactory, and sometimes even a reddish brown in color. In the evening I ran into Bud Heavy and Cactus Jack. They told me that they were hiking into the next town, and that they were going to talk to people there until somebody offered them a place to stay (they have a history of luck with this). They were completely without a backup plan. With no hostels in town, and the promise of rain, Bud Heavy and Cactus Jack were putting all their faith in the idea that things always work out somehow, so why worry about it? They were undoubtedly in for an adventure, but as for me, I was not looking to test my luck, and decided to head to the shelter a few miles before town. I hiked on, and several miles later had to stop for a large copper head in the middle of the trail. The snake had attacked my pole while I was walking, and continued to bite and snap as I picked it up with my other pole and flung it into the woods. I am getting pretty good at this.It grew dark while I hiked, and I could see a lake down in a valley, its edges dotted with the lights of houses. It dawned on me that I had missed the shelter and hiked into town by accident, a total of 28.2 miles (The town was Branchville, NJ). Missing the shelter meant that I was going to get rained on, and it also meant no water (so much for avoiding adventure). I went into a nearby steakhouse and the manager let me fill my water in the bathroom. Then I went outside and looked around in the dark for a place to sleep. I found a tunnel under a road, but it was full of water, and everywhere else seemed to be private property, so I gave up and headed back into the woods. It started to rain immediately after, so I rushed over to a flat area among the trees and began building a shelter with my tarp. The ground was soft so I lined the tarp edges with rocks, and then, soaking wet, I crawled inside. I had hung my tarp high enough this time, and was very cozy inside. The rain pounded with a vengeance all night, but my shelter held up and kept me dry. I was pleased, but had to wonder at the fates of Bud Heavy and Cactus Jack, both of whom were behind me and possibly still hiking.