Date: 2005-08-06
From: Brink Road Shelter

To: Port Jervis, NY
Miles today: 17.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Today was a day of putting one foot in front of the other. I ate only a granola bar for breakfast, since I had planned on going into Branchville, NJ for some minor resupplies and to treat myself to a real breakfast, just 4 miles up the Trail. I thumbed a ride into town and found just what I was looking for in the form of the Jumboland Diner. My three Michigan cohorts had the same idea, but they found a place closer to the Trail which, unfortunately, I hadn't seen, so I missed seeing them for the entire day. When I got back to the Trail I encountered a Thru-Hiker from 1968 whose trail name was ¢Kentrisha Bush Pilot.¢ He was full of great stories and local lore, which I could have listened to for a long time, had I not felt a growing sense of time pressure. I also chatted for a while with a ridge runner named Rick who was helpful in figuring out where I might be able to find water. Other than and a brief stop to enjoy the view from the top of the Culver's Gap Fire Tower, today was simply a day for walking in the woods.Water is getting very scarce on the Trail so it¢s important to ¢top off¢ whenever it¢s available. This means carrying more water (aka "weight") at any given time than is usually necessary, but it¢s a far better alternative than running out.When I arrived at the High Point Ranger Station at 7pm, I was greeted by the sight of the three Michiganders sitting outside the door cooking dinner. The station was supposed to be open until 8pm, but closed early due to budgetary reasons. Rather than join them for another 2 mile walk to the nearest shelter (which didn't appeal to me at all, particularly since I would then have to backtrack tomorrow morning to pick up the drop box waiting for me inside the locked Ranger Station), I chose the ¢easier softer way¢ and hitchhiked down from High Point to Port Jervis, NY to avail myself of the luxuries of the Comfort Inn at I-84. Where I enjoyed a hot shower (aah!), laundry service, restaurant to order-in Chinese food, and a king-size bed (double aah!) waiting for me. The two off-duty Park Rangers who gave me a lift to the Hotel told me that they had recently had to put down a bear at one of the shelters I had passed earlier today. The bear had "attacked a sleeping camper in his sleeping bag which is definitely a "no-no" of park etiquette. The fact is though (and this is what really pissed-off the Rangers), the camper had smuggled crackers into his sleeping bag for a late-night snack and the bear tugged at the motionless, nice-smelling "lump" on the ground (remember, bears have notoriously bad eyesight and very keen noses!). It got hold of the child's foot but never even broke the skin. What angered the Rangers more, however, was the fact that the camper's counselors saw the whole incident and rather than try to prevent it by startling the bear, they stood there taking videos to see what would happen next. The end result was one scared kid and one dead bear.Well, time to turn the lights (electricity!) out now. I can¢t believe that I did almost 17 miles today on the heels of yesterday¢s 20. It actually seemed quite effortless.