Date: 2011-03-01
To: Post Hike #3-Hey! What about Pennsylvania?
Miles today: 0.0

I bet you all thought I was conveniently "forgetting" about that fast forward I took in early July last year skipping a 235-mile section of Pennsylvania. Not so.Right after climbing Katahdin, my initial plan was to head back to Boiling Springs, PA, where I had left the trail, and start hiking north to Vernon, NJ to complete the trek and retain my thru-hiker status. Although I hiked solo from Georgia to Vermont, I almost always camped around other people at night. The only part of this plan that I didn't like was that there wouldn't be very many people out on this section of trail in October. The northbounders would be long gone and the southbounders would already be south of there. So it looked like it was going to be a very lonely hike. After I hooked up with Wild Poodle and Cahoda in Vermont, I discussed my plan with them. Turns out that they, too, had fast forwarded from Harpers Ferry to about 150 miles north of Vernon, NJ and were planning to head back to do that section after Katahdin. So our revised plan was that they would go to the northern end of their missed section and start hiking south. I would go home from Maine, take a two-week break and then fly out to meet them in Vernon, NJ and we would hike Pennsylvania together.The day after I arrived home, I get a phone call from Wild Poodle. As Legs and I were driving to Bangor airport, Holly and Paul were taking Wild Poodle to the emergency room. Her foot was really hurting when she went to bed after summiting and by morning had swollen and was getting more painful. X-rays confirmed it. She had broken her foot climbing back down Katahdin and would be laid up for six weeks. Cahoda was facing several more weeks of physical therapy for her wrist. Pennsylvania was a "no go" for both of them.Still stubbornly wanting to finish the trail this year, I made a list of things I needed to do at home before heading out. Coupled with really not wanting to hike this section alone at this time of year and the realization that I had to (a) find a place to live, (b) buy a new wardrobe, (c) buy a car (Legs had totaled my Cadillac in Miami¢not her fault), and a myriad of other real life details that required my attention, I finally had to accept the fact I was going to be a long distance hiker (1900+ miles), but not a thru-hiker. But that's okay. I hiked my own hike and did the trail on my terms and for the time being am more than satisfied. I remember being asked many times while I was hiking whether I would consider doing another thru-hike in the future and my knee jerk reaction while I was hiking was "No way, no how, uh-uh, nope, not me!" But then I kept on meeting hikers who had thru-hiked in previous years and they all said, "Just wait..." And I kept on thinking, "No way, uh-uh, not a chance." I have to say, though, that for the past month or two, stray thoughts about another long distance hike keep popping into my head. When they do, I try to remember how cold and wet I was so many times; how miserably hot and sweaty I got; how badly my knees and feet hurt after a hard/long day; how scared I was a few times when I was hiking alone after dark. But as hard as I try to not forget all the negatives, I then get a cascade of memories of unbelievable sunsets, breathtaking views, the laughter shared with other hikers, that sense of being truly alive, and the personal satisfaction of accomplishment attaining all the little daily and weekly goals. So here it is at the beginning of the 2011 hiking season, and yes, I have Springer fever. BUT, I first have to finish the trail. Right after Trail Days I'm heading up to Pennsylvania and hiking north 235 miles to complete the section I skipped last year.