Coors and I got to Delaware Water Gap just before 3PM on Monday, June 18th and claimed some free tenting spots at the Church of the Mountain Hiker, just down the street from where the trail passed through town. I took a shower - more like a pressure washer - but it felt really good. There were no laundry facilities, but they had detergent and buckets to hand wash clothes. We were planning on taking a zero at a hotel in a few days so I decided to skip washing my clothes for now. Bird showed up a short time later.
There was a bakery down the road that Coors and I decided to walk to - we each got a mini blueberry pie and ate them in the store. I of course felt sick afterwards - I'll never learn. On the way back to the Church we stopped by the Outfitter so I could replace my sleeping pad. I was on my second pad and it had been leaking for over a week, which had led to some very uncomfortable nights. I bought a Big Agnes ‘warm weather’ inflatable pad - hoped this one would get me to Katahdin.
There were a crowd of hikers at the Church, all very glad to be done with Pennsylvania. There seemed to be consensus that PA was the worst state so far. The whole group went down the road to the Sycamore Grill for happy hour and dinner. It was pasta night and I got lobster ravioli - it was delicious and the raviolis were huge, I couldn't even finish mine. Thankfully Bird was there to help. Lumber sat with us - he's a triple crowner who has hiked many miles on the AT.
After dinner it was starting to drizzle but we still had to resupply. Our only option was the gas station a little further down the road. We decided to do our shopping as quickly as possible - we all had left things outside of our tents when we left for dinner. By the time we were checking out at the gas station it was pouring. We had no choice but to get soaked and walk back in the rain. We had been so lucky with the weather in PA - we had been dry for most of the state - now we were drenched while we were already in town..
When we got back to our tents we found that Lumber had returned as the rain started and put everything inside and out of the rain for us - we were all very grateful. The rain didn't last long
and the sun actually came out for a little bit before setting.
and the sun actually came out for a little bit before setting.
I woke up the next morning (June 19th) early as usual but didn't get up right away - Coors and I wanted to go back to the Village Bakery for breakfast before heading out of town and they didn't open until 8. Bird needed to go to the Post office which didn't open until 8:30. I didn't pack my tent right away, hoping it would dry from the previous nights rain.
Coors and I got back on trail at 8:40 after a big breakfast, Bird was still sitting at the church. The first two miles were a road walk taking us over the bridge over the Delaware River where we entered state #8 - New Jersey! We were very excited to be leaving Pennsylvania but knew the rocks wouldn't magically disappear just yet. It was a sunny day and warming up quickly. The climb out wasn't so bad, there were fewer rocks and they weren't all pointed sharp side up! Of course there were piles of those later..
We found Lumber taking a break next to the side trail that led to the Mohican Outdoor Center, which sold snacks and drinks - we were only 11 miles in to the day and didn't have time to take the detour. We had originally planned on hiking about 25 miles that day but when I got a text from Bird saying he didn't think he would be able to do that many miles that day. We were slightly relieved. The miles were going by slower than expected. Coors, Lumber, and I decided to aim for a campsite a few miles before our intended shelter. The water sources weren't as plentiful as we had hoped after leaving Pennsylvania - the first stream we came to was flowing but brownish. There was supposed to be a spring at a road crossing, we searched for about 10 minutes before giving up and ended up having to do the last 7 miles without water. 
So far the trail in New Jersey was not a whole lot different from Pennsylvania - climb up a ridge and walk along it until descending and climbing the next. But at least New Jersey had views instead of being under tree canopy all day long. Lumber, Coors and I got to a campsite (AT mile 1316.8) next to a stream at around 6:30PM after 22.1 miles - Bird arrived a short time later. We all slept with rocks poking us and the bugs were too bad to stay up very late so we all retreated to our tents early.
We all woke up early and I was up and out by my usual time on Wednesday, June 20th. Rocks and more rocks. My feet were really hurting - the trail runners were comfortable but were not as stiff on the bottom which allowed me to feel every rock I stepped on. My sock had a hole worn through the bottom and was rubbing my foot raw. The morning was cool and cloudy - good hiking weather, but the climbs felt harder than they should have and the cobwebs and mosquitoes were out. The lack of good water left me dehydrated and I didn't eat enough calories because the bugs made it almost unbearable to stop for snack breaks. The first climb was up Rattlesnake Mountain where I found the remains of a nice sunrise.
Within 30 minutes of walking I saw a bear - my 7th sighting! New Jersey is known to have a lot of bears - the most per mile on the AT. I stopped to watch him for a few seconds before he saw me and ran off.
I took a short snack break at an overlook with Coors - Lumber and Bird caught up shortly after. The sun finally came out and the temperature was rising. The 4 of us hiked the rest of the day together but I was always lagging behind. We passed 2 shelters in the afternoon miles but New Jersey doesn't mark the side trails so I passed them without knowing. The bottom of my foot was really beginning to hurt. I was ready for a day of rest to recover, both mentally and physically, from Pennsylvania and from the lack of relief New Jersey was providing.
I arrived at High Point State Park (the highest point in New Jersey) (AT mile 1337.4) around 2:30 after 20.6 miles - the other 3 were already there relaxing. The Visitor Center gave thru hikers a free soda if they signed the registry so we enjoyed a cold drink while we waited for Sixlegs to arrive! He was coming to rescue us and drive us into town to take a zero day. He showed up by 2:40 and Coors, Bird and I piled into the car. Lumber went on to find a hitch into Unionville where he was getting off trail for about a week for a family reunion.
We drove a short distance to the hotel, but unfortunately it was in the wrong direction - back to Pennsylvania! We went to a nearby pizza place for dinner and retired into our rooms early for some much needed rest. 
Thursday, June 21st, was the first day of summer - summer solstice, which is also known as hike naked day. Luckily I was taking a zero day, only my 4th on the trail, so I could avoid seeing any naked hiker butts. We resupplied at Walmart and drove to downtown Port Jervis, NY to a brewery for lunch - Bird kept track of the World Cup scores. Afterwards we drove to the Tri-State Monument, where New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania meet - the river was gross and smelly and the monument (stone on the ground) wasn't too impressive. 
- Stove/fuel
- Nalgene/steripen
- Camelback bladder
- Rain coat
- Buff/small towel
- Long sleeve/long underwear
- Extra hiking outfit
I had apparently been so traumatized by the rocks over the past several days that I imagined there were rocks on the floor when I got up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom. The next morning, Friday June 22nd, Sixlegs drove us back to the trail at 7:30AM. We walked to the High Point Monument, taking a short side trail, and climbed the tower. The views were better from the base than at the top.. wasn't much to see from the highest point in New Jersey. Sixlegs didn't have to head home just yet so he slack packed Coors and I for the first 6.6 miles - Bird didn't want to participate. We crossed several roads where Sixlegs parked and had snacks and cold drinks waiting for us. The day was cool and cloudy, perfect hiking weather, and we were excited for it to be our last full day in New Jersey. The miles were flat, with lots of the boardwalks over the boggy sections. There were some short steep climbs where the trail was confined to narrow strips of land between backyards.
After 6.6 miles Sixlegs picked us up and drove us to a nearby deli for lunch. He thought he could slack pack us a couple more miles to the next road - when we showed up at the road he had found out that he didn't need to work the next day and could stay for another night. Coors and I didn't have to carry our bags at all that day.
We were worried about making it 26 miles to our intended shelter because we got a late start but we were able to get the miles in. We arrived at Wawayanda Shelter (AT mile 1363.5) shortly after 6 but all the good tenting areas were taken by weekend hikers. There was a thru hiker with his tent set up in the shelter so we decided to hike a little further to find better tenting spots and found some flat area about ¼ mile away. A bit of rain started coming down so Sixlegs and I found the Appalachian Inn nearby and picked up Chinese food. Coors and Bird tented - luckily for them the rain didn't last long.
We picked up Dunkin Donuts before heading back to the road crossing where we met Coors and Bird around 7:15AM on Saturday June 23rd. Sixlegs slack packed Coors and I the first 10 miles until we reached a hot dog stand just up the road from the trail. Our original 6.6 mile slack pack had turned into 36 miles! We got to the hot dog stand a little after 10:30AM and each ate 2 hot dogs.
Bird heard from another thru hiker named Strider - they had hiked together in the south until Hot Springs, NC. I had met him briefly on my zero day there. He had been hiking long days to catch up and was now only a few miles behind. We decided to make it an early day and wait for him. We said goodbye to Sixlegs and decided we'd look for tenting spots in the next 10 miles. There wasn't much water on trail today but we did find 2 water caches left by local trail clubs. Some steep rock piles and scrambles made parts slow. We found the NJ/NY border on the top of one of the rock ridges we crossed - state #9! With 5 miles to go we took a break at a waterfall. It was only 2PM and it was nice to break and relax - we were worn out from all the long days and enjoyed the lazy afternoon. The rain had held off all day and at times it was cool enough that I got goosebumps. We found a good tenting spot at around 4PM next to a stream - we had hiked only 18.6 miles that day. The next shelter was 7.7 miles away and had reports of an active bear which had stolen hung food bags. There was no way we wanted to deal with that.
Strider showed up to the campsite around 8PM - we caught up on everything that has happened over the last couple hundred miles and introduced him to Coors. The 4 of us would now be hiking together, possibly all the way to Katahdin.
Strider showed up to the campsite around 8PM - we caught up on everything that has happened over the last couple hundred miles and introduced him to Coors. The 4 of us would now be hiking together, possibly all the way to Katahdin.
We decided we would make up some miles the next day, Sunday June 24th, so I woke up early and was there first one out of camp at 5:40AM. Lots of rocky miles that morning with boulder-filled climbs. Coors passed me in the first 2 miles, and Bird and Strider passed me on the road walk into Harriman State Park only a few miles later. Strider is about 6’3” and I would have to basically jog to keep up with him.
After 5 miles we got to the Lemon Squeezer - a stretch of trail where you have to squeeze through rocks. It was another section of trail that you hear about for miles as you make your way north along the AT. The 4 of us arrived at this rocky section at the same time and helped each other out.
I hiked alone for most of the morning and was moving very slowly. It was so foggy and there was so much moisture in the air that at some points I thought it was raining. I took my pack rain cover on and off at least 4 times throughout the day. I had throbbing shin pain that came out of nowhere and bothered me on and off the rest of the day. I was planning on taking a lunch break at William Brien Memorial Shelter about 12.5 miles into the day, but there were notes left around the area about a rattlesnake sighting (which the guys ended up spotting). Coors and I ended up taking a 0.4 mile side trip down the median to the visitor center on the Palisades Parkway. The trail crosses the highway - we arrived at noon on a Sunday and there was plenty of traffic. The vending machines, bathrooms, water, and trash cans did not make the stop worth it. It is obvious we were in New York - the fast pace cars and crowds of tourists were overwhelming.
The trail became less rocky in the afternoon and some mountain tops offered views of the river and New York City skyline in the distance, very hard to see through the haze though. The climb up Bear Mountain began on an old abandoned asphalt road, then climbed a thousand stone steps - the trail in NY has them everywhere. Towards the top the trail turned into a flat crushed gravel footpath and became crowded with families out enjoying the weekend. I took advantage of the vending machines and then walked up the tower. It was too crowded to stay long so I started the descent down the other side of the mountain - I was dodging people right and left. I don't think many people were aware that the Appalachian Trail walked through this busy park. At the bottom there was a park with hundreds of people, it was almost too much to handle. Coors caught up to me as we walked down the sidewalk, trying our best to avoid strollers and kids on bikes. People were having cookouts and competing with each other to see who could play their music the loudest.
The trail winds through the Zoo, which contains the lowest point on the trail. The sign said the zoo closed at 4:30 - it was 4:36. We were bummed thinking we might have to take the blue blazed side trail around it. But the gate was still open so we walked through. A guy in a golf cart pulled up next to us, we thought he was going to tell us we had to turn around, but he told us to hurry through and close the gate behind us! Sweet, we were the only people in the zoo but didn't see many animals, not even the sad looking bear. On the other side of the zoo we came to the Bear Mountain Bridge over the Hudson River. We only had a couple miles left to hike that day but my body was tired, the shin pain kept nagging me, my hips and back were chaffing because of the sweat and moisture, and the skin on my heels was rubbing off.
The last few miles were easy but I was in too much pain to enjoy them. With about ¼ miles to go I heard thunder approaching. I was able to make it out of the woods and to the Appalachian Store just minutes before it started pouring. I arrived at 7:15PM and found Bird and Strider who had been there for over an hour. I ordered a large sub and sat inside eating and drinking until the rain passed. At 8:15 I left the store and walked the last mile to the Graymoor Spiritual Life Center off of AT mile 1411.2 where thru hikers were allowed to tent on the baseball field for free. About a dozen people were camping there near a small pavilion and taking advantage of the power outlet.
I hiked alone for most of the morning and was moving very slowly. It was so foggy and there was so much moisture in the air that at some points I thought it was raining. I took my pack rain cover on and off at least 4 times throughout the day. I had throbbing shin pain that came out of nowhere and bothered me on and off the rest of the day. I was planning on taking a lunch break at William Brien Memorial Shelter about 12.5 miles into the day, but there were notes left around the area about a rattlesnake sighting (which the guys ended up spotting). Coors and I ended up taking a 0.4 mile side trip down the median to the visitor center on the Palisades Parkway. The trail crosses the highway - we arrived at noon on a Sunday and there was plenty of traffic. The vending machines, bathrooms, water, and trash cans did not make the stop worth it. It is obvious we were in New York - the fast pace cars and crowds of tourists were overwhelming. 
The trail became less rocky in the afternoon and some mountain tops offered views of the river and New York City skyline in the distance, very hard to see through the haze though. The climb up Bear Mountain began on an old abandoned asphalt road, then climbed a thousand stone steps - the trail in NY has them everywhere. Towards the top the trail turned into a flat crushed gravel footpath and became crowded with families out enjoying the weekend. I took advantage of the vending machines and then walked up the tower. It was too crowded to stay long so I started the descent down the other side of the mountain - I was dodging people right and left. I don't think many people were aware that the Appalachian Trail walked through this busy park. At the bottom there was a park with hundreds of people, it was almost too much to handle. Coors caught up to me as we walked down the sidewalk, trying our best to avoid strollers and kids on bikes. People were having cookouts and competing with each other to see who could play their music the loudest. 
The trail winds through the Zoo, which contains the lowest point on the trail. The sign said the zoo closed at 4:30 - it was 4:36. We were bummed thinking we might have to take the blue blazed side trail around it. But the gate was still open so we walked through. A guy in a golf cart pulled up next to us, we thought he was going to tell us we had to turn around, but he told us to hurry through and close the gate behind us! Sweet, we were the only people in the zoo but didn't see many animals, not even the sad looking bear. On the other side of the zoo we came to the Bear Mountain Bridge over the Hudson River. We only had a couple miles left to hike that day but my body was tired, the shin pain kept nagging me, my hips and back were chaffing because of the sweat and moisture, and the skin on my heels was rubbing off.The last few miles were easy but I was in too much pain to enjoy them. With about ¼ miles to go I heard thunder approaching. I was able to make it out of the woods and to the Appalachian Store just minutes before it started pouring. I arrived at 7:15PM and found Bird and Strider who had been there for over an hour. I ordered a large sub and sat inside eating and drinking until the rain passed. At 8:15 I left the store and walked the last mile to the Graymoor Spiritual Life Center off of AT mile 1411.2 where thru hikers were allowed to tent on the baseball field for free. About a dozen people were camping there near a small pavilion and taking advantage of the power outlet.
The rained a little overnight and I had to pack a wet tent the next morning. The new sleeping pad I bought in Delaware Water Gap just a week ago was already leaking. Ugh. The 29.1 miles the day before had left me chaffed and sore. I got up at 5:30AM on June 25th but didn't start hiking until 6:40. The trail was easier that day and even though I was in a lot of pain I made the 8ish miles to Dennytown Road without anyone passing me. There was a large parking lot there with a grass field, water spigot, and trash can. I took my shoes off and had a snack in the grass and everyone else showed up and did the same. After about 45 minutes I pushed on the next 5.7 miles to Canopus Lake Beach, where I took the ¼ mile side trail to the concession stand for ice cream, cheeseburger, fries, chicken tenders, and cold drinks - some other thru hikers made the side trip to swim in the lake.
There were only 5 more miles to the RFP Shelter, which was our initial stopping point for the day. The trail joined a snowshoe trail which was cleared and an easy grade. We rested at the shelter with several other hikers. It was close to a road and hikers were able to order pizza or Chinese food to be delivered. There was a water pump there but the water was contaminated and still had to be treated. I hadn't had to collect any water from streams so far in NY, which was probably a good thing, it all looked pretty gross.
We decided to push on a couple more miles and left the shelter around 5:40PM. The next stretch of trail looked like a tornado had been through it - and apparently one had, only 3 weeks prior. There were stacks of down trees, some so big the trail had to be rerouted around because clearing them was not possible. But the trail maintainers did an excellent job of making the trail passable. At the top of the next climb we found a small clearing where two tents could squeeze in, around AT mile 1432.3 - Bird and I fit our tents there and Coors and Strider continued a little further until the next flat spots they found. The highway was below us and was very loud, with traffic noise echoing up the mountain. However, I was so exhausted I was in my tent by 7PM and slept well through the night.
Tuesday, June 26th, I actually took my time getting up and ready even though I was excited for it to be my last day in New York. I started hiking just after 6AM and passed Coors’ and Strider's tents after walking for about 25 minutes. The miles were going by easy and Bird didn't catch up to me until I stopped at Morgan Stewart Shelter for a snack about 7 miles in. The water pump was on and cold but it tasted very metallic-y. Next the trail descended and went around Nuclear Lake - not too much to look at since you can't swim or boat on the water, there isn't much in the area except hiking trails.
A half mile later the trail passed the Dover Oak, the largest oak tree on the AT - 300+ years old. It was hot and sunny and we walked through some open stretches before coming to the railroad tracks - the station there would take you until New York City. Some hikers take the side trip but I wasn't interested. But I was interested in stopping at the garden center nearby for a cold soda and ice cream. The owner welcomes hikers and allows them to fill up their water bottles with the spigot, which was very helpful since we didn't pass many appealing water sources that day. Bird had walked right by it - I decided to be nice and pack out some extra cold drinks to share with him. I found Strider at a food truck a little bit further down the road. Not sure when he passed me but he looked like he had been there awhile - he can do probably twice the miles in half the time as me.
Several stretches of the trail went through pastures, which was reminiscent of Virginia. The last 5 miles to Wiley Shelter (AT mile 1455.7) were really easy. A few section hikers were there eating dinner when we got there and enjoyed asking us questions about gear and the trail. Several more thru hikers came in - all tenting spots were eventually filled up. It had been a while since I had seen this many thru hikers. I went to bed early - I was excited for the next day, we were only one mile away from Connecticut! Finally New England!
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