Delps Trailhead 1270.8 to Leroy A Smith Shelter 1276.9 (6.1 miles, 251.45 total miles)
I slept well last night, except for when I started tossing and turning in the wee hours of the morning when my feet and ankles started hurting. It’s weird how that’s happened since I started, I wonder if it’s my body repairing itself or something. It lasts for a bit then goes away, but it’s a deep pain when it’s there.
It cooled off by 10pm, though, and it was nice, breezy, and comfortable in my tent. As usual, the ground was at a slight angle, but it wasn’t bad. I dozed a lot in the morning (really need to get back out of that habit) and around 7:30 when I walked over to untie my Ursack from around a tree, Random Lady and Deacon Blues were heading out.
I was lightly planning on stopping at Wind Gap today, around 10 miles north, or a campsite nearby. There is a tavern in Wind Gap that lets hikers camp in the yard I’d read, but with the weather coming I thought I might just hike the 6 miles to the shelter. The report said chances of damaging winds tonight, which didn’t sound like great tenting weather to me.
I had the pop tarts Gadget and Ironheart gave me for breakfast, which turned out to be cherry flavored, and a breakfast essential. I felt tired already starting the day, but I knew it was only 26 more miles in PA.
The storms weren’t supposed to start till the afternoon, so I had plenty of time to make the 6 to the shelter. The last PA shelter was 19 miles from camp, and I knew I wasn’t making that. It almost seems impossible that I was hiking 20s just a week ago.
The morning was cool and breezy, and I put on a hat and Without A Country and hiked out. I hadn’t listened to anything on my phone in the morning since starting, but my morale was feeling a little low at how long PA was taking to finish, and figured I could use the boost.
My ankles were hurting right away as I hiked, and I thought again how disappointing Cabela’s had been in their knowledge of shoewear and how maybe they don’t sell Altras or Hokas because no one who lives in PA hikes in trail runners because they know better.
I think if I had sturdier shoes, I wouldn’t have slowed down to this extent. This is the slowest I think I’ve ever really hiked, except maybe in the Whites. The White Mountains pay for their slower pace in absolutely beautiful views, though.
However, I know there’s the outfitter in DWG, so I’m holding out hope that they can help me out. That’s another difference with NOBOs, there is an outfitter right near or on the trail down south that most people stop at for an initial pack shakedown and a lot of them switch out gear and shoes. Flip floppers don’t have that experience that I’m aware of.
I hiked slowly along, under 2mph as usual lately, and I got passed by hikers going the same way about five times in the span of the four hours it took me to go 6 miles. Again, a little demoralizing to someone who had gotten used to passing other hikers with much more regularity than initially expected.
I trudged along though, as the trail stayed flat but switched between rocks and not rocks over and over. It wasn’t anything really bad, honestly, I think it is just the accumulation of going over so many rocks and the fast miles I did that are making me struggle on getting my wind back. Each mile is another mile further, I had to remind myself.
The trail was beautiful today, the sun came out, there was greenery all around on the ridges, beautiful PA campsites continued, and I passed the sign for Sherpa Spring, a whopping .6 off the trail. Fortunately I still had plenty of water, as I’d planned on.
I stopped several times, my bladder had shrank again, my ankles hurt, I drank my iced tea finally, and finished the podcast episode, the second Harry Potter audiobook, and I started listening to Prisoner of Azkaban.
Finally I got to the shelter, where I found most of the hikers that had passed me earlier, either leaving the shelter or sitting in it having lunch.
I wasn’t feeling very social, and I certainly wasn’t feeling anything like these hardened, 3mph GA>ME thru hikers who I didn’t know. So I sat by myself to the side of the shelter and ate lunch in a shady spot, listening to them talk, and fart, while I caught up on my email.
It was another 4.6 to Wind Gap, which I could certainly do before the end of the day. However, I thought I would be safer inside a shelter for the weather. I didn’t want to pay to stay somewhere in Wind Gap, because I know I’ll be paying to stay in DWG, even if it’s by donation to the church center. I have a long way to go, and I’d already learned it’s easy to rack up motel bills quickly.
Besides, the last time I hit a shelter 6 miles into my day and thought it would be a good idea to stay but hiked on anyway, I ended up regretting it. Not that I regretted having such a great time with Ray and Michele, but that if I hadn’t had them I would have been in for a rough night.
I went with my better judgement this time, deciding a nearo today would be good for my energy levels, anyway. I set up camp in the shelter with my mattress pad and quilt, and hoped since it was a small shelter, only one or
two other hikers would show up. I wondered where Gadget and Ironheart were planning on stopping for the day. They were still in their tent when I left this morning.
I walked .2 or so to a nice running water source, and cameled up and filled all my bottles again. Then I got ready to relax for the rest of the day. I read the shelter log, stretched, and opened my book, glad I had it. It was 2pm, and the rain wasn’t due till after 3. Only 20 more miles to the end of PA, two more days till New Jersey.
Around 3:30, a NOBO male hiker about my age stopped by for water, named Sandals. We talked for a bit about the rocks and our lives, and I found out Turtle had gotten a name change to Rattle Ass, after she saw a rattlesnake recently.
A little later, several thru hikers and some section hikers came by to filter water and eat, and the shelter crew ended up being Sandals, a thru hiker named Sleepy, and three section hikers doing 309 to DWG. I also met a hiker named Jedi, who is completing his Triple Crown this year. I had lots of questions for him. I saw Gadget and Ironheart pass by at one point as well but didn’t get to say hi.
From the general hiker conversation I heard a lot about partying, trips to NYC coming up, I saw a trail family planning out their next couple days, etc. It seems like the beginnings of the bubble are slowly starting to catch up, which makes sense since I’ve slowed down so much. I’m trying not to feel any type of way about it, and just concentrate on what I’m doing. Sandals has been good company today, and I’m just happy to be putting one foot in front of the other.
The section hikers seemed to have a fun time being exposed to thru hiker culture, as Sandals and I made fun of each other for the way we clean our dishes. (Water rinse and finger lick vs a sock.) I got to chat with Sleepy as well, who is getting off trail for a wedding soon, but still planning on finishing in Maine by August 1st.
The rain started around 9, and it was extremely cozy laying in the shelter listening to it, and watching flashes of lightening illuminate the forest. The rain pummeled hard on the metal roof of the shelter several times, and I felt very fortunate to be inside instead of in my tent. I curled up in my quilt and listened to the rain as I drifted off.