Date: 2011-05-02
From: Delaware Water Gap Area, PA

To: Mohican Outdoor Center, NJ
Miles today: 11.0
Weather: light rain

Awoke early and waited until thru-hikers Ryan and Paul were off to get cleaned up. After a leisurely breakfast and shower, we took some time to sweep down the outside picnic table and visit with the church secretary. We saw some deer just behind the church.We set off down the hill and across the Delaware River at about 10:00 a.m. We passed a really nice rest area with indoor toilets, trash cans, and picnic tables. A bit further up we stopped by the ranger station and asked about camping at Camp Ken-Etawa-Pec. The ranger stated the YMCA had ceased operations there and there was no back country camping.After crossing under I-80, we found ourselves at the true trail head up Kittatiny ridge. The trail in this area is wide and easy to hike.Around noon, we found ourselves at Backpacker camp #2. The camp is at the intersection of several trails and just a few minutes hike from Sunfish Pond, the nearest water source. The site was clearly burned from an illicit fire that got out of control. (Note: No open fires are allowed anywhere along the AT in NJ.) There were plenty of tent and hammock sites available. We wandered down to the ridge runner's tent platform and had a quick lunch. We familiarized ourselves with the BearSaver bear box, which we would would find at all legal camping locations in New Jersey.About 15 minutes after leaving the backpacker camp, we were at the beginning of Sunfish Pond, a glacial remnant lake. The trail runs along the western side and consists of boulder hoping for about 1-2 miles. This was a prelude as we discovered much of the AT in Western NJ is extremely rocky. We grabbed a liter of water from the pond and dropped some iodine to ensure we had adequate water for the final ridge walk.A few miles north, we were surprised to walk out of the woods onto an open ridge and discover a large rock cairn. There is a beautiful view of the Delaware River valley from this vantage point. A few hundred yards north and the trail exits the state forest and re-enters the Delaware Water Gap Recreation Area and legal off-trail camping.We continued on and late in the day began our descent to a creek and foot bridge with a gravel road just beyond. A quick look to our left showed a sign announcing the Mohican Outdoor Center just a few hundred yards away. We turned onto the gravel road and walked a gentle descent into the MOC. No one was at the visitor center, so we topped off our two water bottles at the faucet next to the garage and took a seat on the benches out front. Eventually, John returned from some cabin maintenance and checked us and another section hiker into the center. We opted for the $9 tenting option and decided that tent area #3 had the best trees for hammocking. We also bought a canned Mt Dew for an extra $1. For an extra $3, hikers can use an indoor toilet and shower. We opted for the complimentary privy.After dinner, we placed our Ursack and backpack into the nearby bear box for safe keeping. We took a few minutes in our hammock to update our log book and review the next days trip plan. We fell peacefully asleep about 8 p.m..Thus ended the first day.