Last night was hands down my best nights sleep on the trail. I didn't wake up until 7:30am, and the bugs didn't keep me awake at all thanks to my tent. When I did crawl outside I saw that the only people left were Smiley, who was heading on, the SoBo siblings, and a group of three girls who must have pulled into camp after I went to bed.
I threw my gear together and started off without filling my water, because only a mile away was a rest stop. The hike there did a fair job of getting my blood pumping, so when I strolled over to the vending machines I had a powerful hunger and thirst.
The caffeine and sugar helped, because I had a short but challenging climb ahead of me to contend with. About 50 stories over a half mile. It was another cool beautiful day though, with great visibility and almost no bugs. I crossed paths with Smiley a couple times on our way to Bear Mountain. We were already craving another soda, and there were more vending machines at the top.
The hike up was wonderful. The trail was man-made, with tamped down gravel and stone steps placed along the way. It made for a gradual, smooth climb up an otherwise imposing rock face. It also made for some spectacular views, as I wound my way around the mountain on the serpentine trail. As much as NY can frustrate me with its occasional poor blazes and unnecessary challenges, it has had the many of the best views I've seen.
At the top of Bear Mountain I stocked up on beverages and found a bench overlooking NY. Smiley joined me shortly after, and we ate our lunches while telling trail stories. The summit is a popular area, and there were many people milling about. We even saw Apple Butter, who was taking a zero and gave us each a cold bottle of water.
Before starting down the mountain I made a bathroom stop, only to discover that my bowels weren't especially happy with me. That made the decision for me to stay in Ft. Montgomery for the night, just to play it safe.
I said farewell to Smiley and started my walk down the other side of beautiful Bear Mountain. Many day-hikers passed me coming up, and we shared great views of the Hudson below.
As the forest receded behind me I found myself in a very public park around a beautiful lake. People were grilling, picnicking, swimming and boating as I walked by. The blazes took me around the lake, and then across the street to pass by a giant mountainside swimming pool. A few steps further and I was walking through a free zoo that is also the trail. For the end of a beautiful hike to go through a zoo made my whole day feel like some kind of backwater Disney amusement park ride. They could have done without the hornets though, because the one who stung the back of my neck is not a creature I even care to see at a zoo. At first I thought I was hiking, but eventually I realized I was in line to see coyotes look at me menacingly.
After staring down all the animals, I went to get a room at the Bear Mountain Inn. It's a beautiful place and a bit more comfort than I need right now, but aside from the demands of my burbling bowels it also gave me a chance to find a deer tick on my hip that was helping itself to my blood. One full-body tick check later I feel clean again.
My stomach seems to be doing better now that I'm in luxury, and there's a good chance my parents are going to come visit me again tomorrow. Sometimes I think I'm too comfortable out here, but then I remember that I like comfort. I'll take this relaxing opportunity to watch the season premiere of Comedy Bang Bang, and just be grateful for the chance timing.
So that's what fun feels like..
Railsplitter and I got up around 8am today, putting one of the swamp reality shows on tv and lazily wasting the morning. We were both doing 10 miles (plus the 2 to the trail) to a shelter today. With that plan, we figured we should enjoy the comfort of the real world until we had to hike. Eventually we packed up and walked to the gas station for breakfast. I got a turkey egg and cheese with hash browns. Again their food was surprisingly good.
Railsplitter hiked on first, since I'm still slow to eat without my full hiker hunger. Once I started walking along the road I immediately remembered my distaste for it. People are much too comfortable buzzing the hikers.
When I did get back to the trail I was greeted by very open land. No dense bushes or trees, just fields of ferns and the occasional tree. The slope was constantly changing from ups and downs over the densely rolling fields, but there were no painful rocks which made it a joy to walk. I was also hopeful that the cool air and lack of bugs would be an ongoing trend for the day. Surprisingly it was!
I breezed over my first 5 miles of trail, except for one spot called the Lemon Squeeze. You have to take your pack off and raise it above your head, then shimmy through a little notch between two giant boulders. After that section of interesting challenges, I stopped at a shelter to take my shoes off. I was greeted by a couple leaving, and then another 4 hikers and a dog in the shelter. We chewed the fat for a bit while I let the sun dry my shoes, and Lost told me that there was a lake 1 mile ahead with vending machines and showers. Upon hearing this I immediately put my shoes back on and said "I'll see you there".
It was a quick and pretty mile of trail, and then a short hobble down a road to the lake. I found the couple there as I ran past them to the soda machine. Dr. Pepper doesn't seem to be doing it for me this time around, so I've been going with ginger ale. By the time I finished the can, the rest of the crew from the shelter had arrived. The next coin-op under our stern gaze was the Blue Bunny ice cream vending machine. My strawberry fruit popsicle was the perfect thing to consume while looking out across the beach and lake.
I left first, and after the annoying walk back to the trail, I got to see more of the same enjoyable terrain. I also got to see two large black snakes that didn't seem too happy by my presence.
I was quite excited when I found the shelter, because not only had it been a good day, but the shelter itself was in a great picturesque spot. The whole area is actually very big, and that's good because there are a lot of people camping here. So far there are the 6 people I met at the shelter and lake, Railsplitter of course, an older man named Professor, a young (maybe) Swiss guy named Smiley, and two SoBos who are brother and sister.
I got here relatively early, and staked claim to what I consider to be the best camping spot. No bugs for this guy tonight. I may not have seen them all day, but that doesn't mean much when the sun is setting. Professor started a fire to help smoke some out, and I used it to dry the seat of my pants.
Tomorrow has me hiking 15 miles to the Graymoor Spiritual Life Center. They have an outdoor pavilion they let hikers use that have showers and power outlets. Rejoice! There are so many opportunities to shower in this stretch of the trail that it's almost unnecessary. Almost.
Rains, Lanes, and Automobiles
Last night was definitely one of the most sleepless I've ever had, and every other hiker had the same experience. I was bit up all night long, particularly my feet. The rain jacket seemed to keep them away from my upper body, but made my night was a hot sweaty mess, and my feet were still completely drained.
I got moving around 8am, and as soon as I started walking I was able to escape the main cluster of mosquitos that had made their home around our camp. The humidity was awful though, and I soaked through my clothes within 30 minutes. The first water I came to, a stunning little waterfall, I soaked my head in along with my buff that I used to keep cool. The trail continued the trend of going steeply up, and then steeply down, always unnecessarily.
At the 5 mile point I met back up with Railsplitter, who was as beat as I was. The mix of rough terrain, no sleep, and humidity had made us feel weak, so we decided to split a room in Tuxedo NY to clean up and cool down.
I kept hiking, leaving Railsplitter at the road. It was another 5 miles to the highway we needed, and then 2 miles along the road to the hotel. Shortly after climbing away, it began to pour. It took almost 3 weeks, but I finally had a use for my Frogg Togg rain jacket. It kept me dry and cool, as advertised, and even helped with the post rain mosquitos.
I made a scary slippery descent down to the highway, still feeling good but eager for a shower. I texted Railsplitter that I was heading into town and began my walk. Unfortunately hitch hiking is illegal in NY, so there'd be no simple ride into town. The road also had almost no shoulder, and cars driving by hugged the line. It seemed rather strange to see a single car coming toward me on a two-lane highway for about a mile, and when it reaches me the driver decides to drive as close to me as possible. With a whole other lane available it might be nice to avoid the frightened hiker hugging the wall, but what do I know.
Right before the hotel was a gas station, so I stopped in for lunch and was surprised to see Whitespear picking up some beer. He's staying at the hotel too apparently. The gas station had a grill with large menu, so I got a double cheeseburger with fries and went outside to a picnic table to relax and air out my soaked feet.
Railsplitter caught up and got his own meal.
There was of course an insanely steep mountain driveway up to the hotel, but with a shower in sight I hardly noticed. They gave us a dirty room, since they were still cleaning, but we didn't care at this point.
The night should hold all the joys of town. Shower and laundry, electricity and tv, beer and lazy friends. Eventually we'll meet up with Whitespear for a few drinks by the gazebo overlooking the mountains, and probably order some pizza. The days are rough, but the nights always hold some silver lining.
Bugs, bugs, bugs
Leaving Anton's was tough. I thoroughly enjoyed my zero there, and the couple who owned the place were incredibly kind. The husband even gave me a ride back to the trail, although I had to wait until noon before he had time.
I had to take the side trail back up from the lake to the ridge, which made for an arduous uphill mile. I was feeling stronger, but the bugs had come back out. I wasn't surrounded by mosquitos today, instead it was the sand flies. They don't bite as much, they do swarm around my eyes though. Mosquitos upset me, because I know I'll have to deal with their bites for a while, but sand flies are frustrating on a level I have a tough time coping with. I think it's finally time to buy a head net.
I stopped at the first shelter, 5 miles in, and stopped to evade the bugs for a bit.
I was enjoying some food when the rains came. It poured, and I was glad for my timing. A couple ran over to join me under the shelter and enjoy some food, and then a bunch more people came as well. I couldn't get myself back up and moving again, so I spread out my sleeping pad and put together my little nest.
The mosquitos had finally returned, so Whitespear started a fire to try and smoke them out with the wet leaves. We were also joined by Rail Splitter, Mongoose, and Hermes. All of us decided to sleep in the shelter, hoping that mosquitos will abate. It's not looking good though. My plan for sleepwear is this: long johns, socks, underwear, shorts, long-sleeved shirt, buff wrapped around head and neck, bandana over eyes and forehead, cinched inside my sleeping bag liner, with my rain jacket covering me. By morning I'm hoping I won't be covered in bites, but that's beginning to seem like an extreme long-shot. Sleep, here I come.
