Date: 2011-06-23
From: Backpacker Campsite, 5.7 miles before the Mohican Outdoor Center

To: Brink Road Shelter
Miles today: 20.0
Weather: moderate rain

(In which I am drenched by rain, break my iPod and am eaten alive by mosquitoes)I start hiking midmorning, and the sky, having already fully lightened, slowly darkens back to the dim glow of dusk. I consider getting out my headlamp, and when I pass a day hiking southbounder, he comments, "The sun sure set early today! Either that or we're about to get a big storm." Sure enough, a few minutes later the skies open up and thunder booms in the not-too-far distance. I am fully soaked within the first minute, but luckily the weather is warm enough for it not to be a danger.After the initial downpour, the rain comes and goes in spurts, keeping me wet, and the trail has become a river several inches deep in spots. I walk past a pond and a fire tower that I had been looking forward to, but the lightning and clouds make resting by the pond or on the tower impractical at best. I think how individualized everybody's hike is simply by the weather they get in each of the places they pass, and imagine another thru-hike in which this section is one of my favorites.In between the bouts of rain the mosquitoes come out in full force. I reapply deet repeatedly, but every time it is washed off by a brief downpour and then the bugs return.Copying a trick I learned from Tom, I listen to my iPod in the rain by putting it inside a ziplock bag that is folded over several times to protect the small hole in the top where the cord comes out. It's a surprisingly effective technique, even in repeated downpours, and I don't have any trouble until I go to remove the bag after the rain has let up. I'm not used to the wrist straps of my poles, and the dangling poles make my hands clumsy unless I take the time to remove them, and the iPod Touch slips through my hands. It lands face down on a rock, and I wince at the crack of breaking glass. When I pick it up I see that the glass face of the $400 device has indeed shattered, and small slivers of glass fall out in my hands. I swear at my clumsiness and for not taking the time to remove my pole straps, but on reflection am grateful that at least it wasn't my camera.* * *I arrive at the shelter shortly before dark only to discover that the area by the shelter rivals Deer Lick Shelter for the worst mosquito infested hell hole on the trail. Everyone else is safely in their tent or bug net and since it's too late to find another spot I try to set my tent up as quickly as I can. The mosquitoes descend upon me as I stake out the tent and I am bitten once every second or two. I slap myself spasmodically whenever I can free a hand, and come away with a smear of blood nearly every time. After a couple minutes of this I begin swearing profusely, cursing the evil bugs. Humpty Dumpty offers his condolences from the next tent over and tells me that everything will better once I get in my tent. I tell him that if the trail were like this every day I would definitely quit. He laughs and says that it would only take three or so days of mosquitoes like this for him to quit, and I have to admit that that's a more accurate estimation of my tolerance as well.The brief seconds that my tent was unzipped to insert the trekking pole and then for me to enter are enough to allow dozens of mosquitoes inside. It takes me fifteen minutes and several more bites before I finally eradicate them all. For the first time on the trail I eat dinner in my tent. This is bad practice, since the crumbs and food odors attract animals (including mice, which will eat through the tent in hopes of food), but having already skipped lunch because of the rain I can't afford to skip dinner also, and I would sooner sleep in a bear's den than eat than outside with the mosquitoes.After eating, flossing and dry brushing my teeth (I don't want to use toothpaste and have to unzip my tent to spit) I make a quick dash to store my food in the bear box and to pee. Another dozen mosquitoes come back in the tent with me when I return, but when I kill them all I can finally breath a sigh of relief, knowing that I don't have to leave the tent again until morning.Of my 83 days on the trail so far, today does not come close to making the top 80, and New Jersey so far seems about as pleasant a state to hike through as it is to drive through. If there's any consolation it's that it's a short state, and if the bugs keep up I will likely put the slow train on hold for the get-the-hell-out-of-Jersey train.