Date: 2007-07-04
From: Darlington Shelter

To: Duncannon, PA
Miles today: 11.4
Weather: overcast clouds

The morning started off with a bang. I realized I had lost my fanny pack containing my thru-hiker companion pages for PA and the map for the Cumberland Valley to Duncannon section. I knew I had it when I stopped for water last night at the spring about a mile below the shelter. So, I must have left it there. After emptying my pack and repacking it again to be sure it wasn¢t there, I decided to run back to the spring. It took me about 15 minutes to reach the spring ¢ and there it was lying in the leaves next to the spring. It had fallen off the top of my pack and I hadn¢t seen in lying there before I left. 20 minutes later I was back at the shelter, with an extra 2 miles under my feet that weren¢t necessary.I finally got under way about 10 and hurried to make up for lost time, down a switch-backed trail to PA 850, then a climb up to the crest of Cove Mt. It had become a hot and humid day that was very hazy with very limited visibility. There was nearly no view from the pipeline corridor due to the haze. I stopped at Cove Mt. shelter briefly for water, then pressed on. Coming out of Cove Mt. Shelter I joined Chapsticks and hiked with him to Hawk Rock. He is a true go-fast, go-light hiker, and a Ray Jardine devotee. His pack base weight is 9 lbs and much of his gear is homemade from RayWay patterns. He was great company and I enjoyed the time I spent with him. I stopped at Hawk Rock for for a snack and photos and Chapsticks continued on into Duncannon. There was a very nice view from the rocks over Duncannon and the Susquehanna River and I spent about an hour there, not wanting to descend into the heat and humidity of town. I finally left Hawk Rock about 2:30 and arrived at the Doyle Hotel about 4.The bar at the Doyle Hotel was filled, mostly with thru-hikers. Just as I was about to order a beer the bartender announced that the shuttle would be leaving soon for the grocery store so I decided to catch a ride so I wouldn¢t have to walk later. General Tso, Birdman and Seriel said I could sleep on the floor in their room and the hotel was long since full so I gratefully accepted. I ran into Sven and Uff-Da at the grocery store! I didn¢t expect to be seeing them any time soon but they had been at the Doyle for 5 days because Sven had been too sick to hike. He was tested for lyme disease but wouldn¢t know the results for a while yet. However, they had started him on antibiotics anyway because he had found a gorged deer tick imbedded. Sven appears to be on the mend now, and I really enjoyed seeing these 2 wonderful folks again!For dinner, Trail Angel Mary hosted a hiker feed at her house a few blocks from the Doyle. She laid out a huge pot luck feed in her back yard for about 20 starving hikers! Soon the rain began and the party moved inside. Before dark we all headed back to the Doyle and spent the remainder of the evening hanging out on the 2nd floor balcony that overlooks Main Street watching the neighbors light off fireworks in the crosswalk! The evening reminded me a lot of a Mardi Gras night, complete with an observation perch in a covered balcony overlooking the zoo in the street below. It was a very memorable night and a great 4th of July!