Date: 2007-07-28
From: Allentown shelter

To: George W. Outerbridge shelter
Miles today: 16.8
Weather: overcast clouds

This morning is humid again. Hiking along the ridge of Blue Mt is great since it offers glimpses of the valley below. Once we left the shelter the first 4 miles just flew as we hiked on another dirt road. It¢s great to be able to click off the miles while early in the day. The heat of the afternoon will slow us down a lot. One good thing about some of the powerline crossings is the blackberry bushes on the side of the trail. Right now they are about perfect and it¢s hard to resist stopping and eating them. They are so good. The rocks continued to be a hazard since you have to watch where you put your feet. If you don¢t, then you¢re an accident waiting to happen. We¢ve come to far to get knocked off the trail by not paying attention. We hiked on Knife Edge which is a bunch of huge rocks/boulders that form the ridge here. The views are great but the terrain is angled where you need to have a good foot placement. From Knife Edge we hit Bear Rocks and then Bake Oven Knob. By now the humidity is still high but the temp is getting higher. We still come upon dry springs and have to almost ration what we drink to ensure we have enough for the day. We take advantage of any water source we can when we see it by drinking and topping off our water bottles but today is one of those days when the sources are scarce. After Lehigh Furnace Gap the trail is more exposed but there are also blueberries along the trail. It will take forever to get where we go if we keep stopping to pick berries but they are so good and tasty and hard to resist. Besides, the moisture they provide helps take away some of the thirst for a drink of what little water I have left. My bite valve popped off the tube twice today. The last time was shortly after Lehigh Furnace gap when I still had about 8 oz of water. As I was leaning over to pick some blueberries it popped off again and I lost about half my remaining water. I have to remember to turn the shutoff valve to off when not in use. Lesson learned! Tony was on a mission to get to the shelter because he took off and left us behind while we pick berries. I ran out of water about a mile or so before the shelter and it was not fun. When it¢s hot/humid and you are exposed on a ridgeline the last thing you want is to run out of water. Earlier when we were hiking in the rocks on the trail I made the comment that this kind of hiking is like a controlled drunken stagger walk. It is because you can¢t walk a straight line and keep your balance when you are stepping from rock to rock. It¢s just funny to watch. It is even funnier trying to do it but just as frustrating when your feet are hurting. When we reached the shelter Tony was there and already had got water and he said the spring is cold and flowing. Awesome! That¢s the best news today. The shelter is pretty old and worn. It feels like a cave since it¢s so dark inside. At least the fire pit is in front and there are many trees to set up my hammock. First thing is to get water and drink at least a liter. Tomorrow we climb Lehigh Gap. The photos I¢ve seen of it before look pretty steep. It should be interesting. Today was a good day with many different things throughout the day. All the berries were the best part and so were the views of the countryside that we also got to see. Now it¢s time for bed and hopefully an early start. Tenting: Handyman, Breeze. Shelter: Tony Tiger, Toba. Wx: humid/foggy-am, hot/humid-pm