Date: 2006-06-12
From: Lehigh Gap

To: Mohican Outdoor Center, New Jersey
Miles today: 45.0
Weather: overcast clouds

On Tuesday, June 6th we got a shuttle from Ira Fine to Lehigh Gap. We got on trail at about 11:30 AM. It was a challenging 1100 foot CLIMB out of Lehigh Gap, mostly boulders. Sunshine made it with the help of Lost & Found. He carried her pack over some of the really difficult places. We reached the top and hiked for about 6.5 miles. This area is part of a Super Fund Cleanup. Parts of it are starting to see new life, while other areas are barren. There was no shelter in the area so we found a campsite next to the trail.   It was nice and quiet and we spent a good night there.Wednesday morning was cool and overcast. We cooked breakfast with the last of the water that we had carried up from Lehigh Gap. Water is scarce in this area so we walked a mile on the road to the home of Mechanical Man, who is a great friend of the trail. He and Crayon Lady invite hikers to get water from a spigot on their property. We filled up on water, Gatorade, birthday cake and great conversation. Thank you Mechanical Man for your hospitality and for the ride back to the trail!We hiked in the rain to Leroy Smith shelter, had a snack and a break and then decided to hike on to Wind Gap. There were some rocky areas, but it wasn't too bad getting down to the road. We checked into the Gateway Motel and ordered a too large pizza for supper.Thursday was spent trying to get medical help for Sunshine's ear. We drove to Easton and got some help. We filled the Rx and had a nice lunch and spent the night at the Pocono Motel at Delaware Water Gap.Friday we took a day off from hiking and got the car shuttled to the Mohican Outdoor Center in N.J.Saturday, June 10th, we got a shuttle back to Wind Gap. It was cool but DRY as we hiked up out of the gap. We saw a large deer and then a fawn. A little while later we saw another deer, probably a doe. The deer all looked very healthy. We enjoyed walking along Wolf Rocks, it was a lot like Tinker Cliffs(near Roanoke VA) and not as difficult as we had anticipated. L & F lost his hat, but found it. A dayhiker had picked it up. We arrived at the newly renovated Kirkridge Shelter. There resides a chipmunk with an attitude! Roger, the Ridge Runner was there along with Sarah & Roo, two dads and their 14 year old sons. It was a good but chilly day.Sunday was a pretty day. A lot of people were out doing day hikes. We talked to quite a few along the way down to the Delaware Water Gap. We enjoyed a very good meal the the Trails End Cafe. While we were there, Thunder, who we met last year while hiking, saw us and came in to say hello and to offer us a ride if we needed it. It was really good to see Thunder. We walked across the street to the Church of the Mountain Hostel and saw Roo and told him that we hoped to see he and Sarah up the trail.We continued hiking across the bridge over the Delaware River. Goodbye PA and hello NJ. We stopped at the visitor center and filled up on water and hiked into the Worthington State Forest and up to the backpacker campsite. We had it all to ourselves. The ridge runner, Lone Ranger, came in to pack up his things and leave for the night. We ate dinner, put our food into the bear box, because two bears had been seen in the area earlier in the day and then we enjoyed the beautiful sunset.Monday, June 12 No bear or deer visited us during the night, but the squirrels were running around while we ate breakfast. We packed up the tent and hiked toward Mohican Outdoor Center. The hike around Sunfish Pond was really nice. We saw a deer and then took a wrong turn so we were on another trail for a little while, but corrected our course. We saw a box turtle on the trail. When we were approaching a power line, we saw a large black bear. He was walking uphill and was about 45' away from us and didn't seem concerned about us at all and walked away from us. Then we enjoyed the grand view of the resorvoir and the river, watching the hawks of course. We meandered with the trail over some rocky terrain until we reached Camp Rd. and walked to the car at the Mohican Outdoor Center. After a hot shower and a meal, we headed for N.Y.We are now going to New York to hike a few days before we go back and hike the rest of New Jersey with our friends, Jig and Flatwheel, that we met two years ago in the Smokeys.God bless the following people we are praying for daily as we hike in his country: Connie's Father, Uncle Dan, Mike Ruttle, Liz Santa, Ralph Schwartz, Ralph Zeblin, Root, & neices Brook and Karyn (who are both pregant!), all our family and the good people of St Christopher's.