Date: 2007-06-28
From: Lake Tiorati - ETA Camp

To: Graymoor Spiritual Life Center - Ballpark Pavilion
Miles today: 19.4
Weather: clear sky

I slept well last night in the bunk house at ETA Camp. I was glad to be out of the rain. Leo took me back to the trail near Lake Tiorati in the morning. I started hiking at 7:15 and needed to reach the post office in Ft. Montgomery before it closed at 5 PM. It was 13.8 miles away and I had almost 10 hours to get there. That shouldn't be too difficult, right?The trail started off pretty well. I was at the top of the hill going down. It was warm, about 80, and humid. I ran into a few of those steep NY rocky climbs along the way. I met a section hiker named Jim from Arizona. We stopped at Beechy Bottom Brook for lunch since there was water there. I cooked my lunch and took my boots off for a while. I had picked up a zip lock bag with food in it labeled "lasagna 1" in the hiker box at the Doyle Hotel in Duncannon, PA. After carrying it for nearly 250 miles, I was finally going to eat it. It looked like a home made meal that had been dehydrated. It was delicious. So, to whoever left the the lasagna at the Doyle, thanks.After lunch there was another long steep hill to climb. Jim quickly fell behind and I did not see him again. I walked through a bunch of blueberry bushes again today, but most of the berries were still green. I found one patch that had some ripe berries and collected about a half cup and put them in a plastic bottle for later. I probably spent 20 minutes here and I really didn't have time to spare. I put my pack on and pushed up Bear Mountain. At the top, I found a vending machine and had a Vault energy drink. Then I headed down the hill. It was already 3:15 and I had about 2.6 miles to go. I went down the mountain pretty fast and reached Lake Hessian Park at 3:45. Just after the park I saw a bobcat, two black bears, a porcupine, and a red fox, as I passed through the Bear Mtn Zoo. The AT is blazed right through the zoo. I was stopped by a group of about 20 teenage girls. They saw my backpack and asked if I had hiked all the way up Bear Mtn. I said yes and told them I had hiked all the way from Georgia. That may have been a mistake. The questions started flying. I talked to them for about 5 minutes they clapped and cheered for me a couple times and wished me luck on my journey. OK it was now about 4:00 and I exited the zoo. There was a large highway bridge crossing the Hudson River. I stopped to check my distance and discovered I had lost my data sheet for a second day in a row. Now I have limited information for the next 30 miles. I needed to get to the post office and it was suppose to be about a mile from the zoo. I put my pack on and hurried across the Hudson River bridge. When I was about 3/4 the way across, I noticed the directional signs on the bridge didn't mention Ft. Montgomery. Oops! I got my guide book out. I was suppose to have gotten off the trail and gone around a traffic circle over a different bridge to Ft Montgomery. I headed back towards the zoo. I got there at 4:25 and found the correct road. I reached the post office at 4:45. I got my box, retrieved a few items from the box, and then forwarded it on to Kent, CT.I walked across the street to M&R Groceries and deli. I had two large slices of pepperoni pizza, a rootbeer, and a Red Bull energy drink. I still needed to hike 6 miles to get back on schedule. It started raining while I was at the deli. I finished my food and prepared to leave. I put on my rain hat, but no rain jacket. It was too hot and that would just make me sweat more. I headed back to the zoo ad back across the Hudson River bridge. Then the trail went up another steep hill. Near the top of the hill the rain stopped. I was worried about it getting dark before I reached the Graymour Spiritual Life Center where I planned to stay. I hiked as fast as I could in my soggy wet boots. It started getting dark about 8:45. It gets dark earlier in the bottom of a forest where the trees block the light. I reached hwy US 9 and crossed it. I pulled out my head lamp for the last half mile to the turn off. It was difficult to see the white blazes and where the trail was going. I made it to the paved road where a sign said to follow the blue blazes. Well white blazes were tough enough to follow in the dark and blue were impossible. Fortunately between the directions in the Companion book and signs at the facility, I made my way back to the Ballpark a little after 9:00.I set up my tent in the pavilion and went over to the cold water shower. My feet were shriveled up from walking in wet boots. It felt good to get cleaned up even though the water wasn't hot. I washed my clothes in the sink and hung them on the clothes line. Then, I went to bed. There is one other person here and they have been snoring since 10:00 last night. It is now 7 AM. I am going to let my clothes dry a bit more before I leave here this morning.