Date: 2004-06-15
From: 501 Road

To: Port Clinton, PA
Miles today: 23.8
Weather: light rain

Day 107 Start: 501 Road Dest: Port Clinton Miles: 23.8 Total: 1202.7 Today was a really ruff day after having 5 days off. I should have planned 2 days from 501 to Port Clinton. My feet must have really softened up over the last 5 days because I could feel every little rock under them as I walked. I took a lot of short breaks to let them rest and contemplate exactly why I was punishing them like this. My feet have never been that sore and full of pain. I am hoping that it is all from the rocks and not a foot issue. I think all but about 2 miles of todays hike was rocks. Lots of little pointy rocks with no real flat spots to put your feet. My ankles got pretty sore as well from all the twisting and turning over the uneven rocks. I am told that the rock only get worse from here through New Jersey. I hope the feet and ankles hold up. I saw my second rattlesnake today. He was just a tiny one, only about 2 feet long. He was right in the middle of the trail about 3 feet in front of me when I spotted him. He was already heading away from me and off the trail but he rattled just to let me know he would be taking his time ad not to rush him. I fumbled for the camera, preesed the button to take him picture only to find out the memory card was full. So by the time I erased the card, they were old pictures that I already sent home, the snake has slithered behind a rock. All I got was a picture of one tiny section of him under a rock. Oh well, I am sure I will see more. I also saw a turkey today and some other funny looking bird that reminded me of a dodo bird. It just ran down the trail swerving from side to side like it had a few to many sips of nectar. It was a very funny looking bird. I made it into Port Clinton at 8pm. I had every intention of staying at the Port Clinton Hotel even though the town offers thru-hikers a very large pavillion to stay at for free. My feet hurt so bad all I wanted was a warm shower and a soft bed to lay in. Well, when I went into the bar to ask about a room they were already full. There were 4 other thru-hikers already sitting at the bar each eating the biggest burgers I have ever seen. I just had to indulge myself so I ordered a cheeseburger with a small fry and a pint of Yienguling Lager. The burger was a good inch thick and close to 10inches in diameter. It was big! And the "small" fry was a large saucer plate stacked high with homemade fries. It was a massive dinner. Somehow over the course of about 15 minutes the burger and pint of beer disappeared. It took another pint to put a dent in the fry platter but alas I had to give in and leave half the platter of fries. This meal is definitly in the top 5 for best meals on the trail and the whole thing was only 10 bucks. I wandered off to the pavillion after leaving messages with the wife and parents who weren't home waiting for my call for some reason. The pavillion is a huge strucutre owened by the church and they let hikers stay for free. This is a good thing since the hotel was full and a storm was fast approaching and it was already dark so I wouldn't be hiking out of town to find camping. There were closeto 8 thru-hikers here. Trail angels had left several galons of water, bags of chips and fruit for all the hikers. We all sat around snacking and talking while the storm blew in and dumoped a lot of rain very quickly on the ground. Within 45 minutes the storm had passed. Sure was nice to be under a big roof without leaks. A short 15 miler planned for tomorrow. This should be good since the feet hurt so bad today. ~Dances With Wolf Cookie