Day 13 – When will it warm up? Part deux

Summary:

May 8th

Pine Grove Furnace State Park to PA 92 (Mount Holly Springs)

NOBO mile #1112.8

Tom’s miles today 10.5

Tom’s total miles: 89.1

It did get cold last night, even at the hostel. I found a second blanket in the bunk room, which was just about right. The other guys were quiet; it’s always a crapshoot.

I got up fairly early, around six thirty, to start getting ready to get back on the trail. Breakfast was at 7am; Eggo waffles and mini bagels w/cream cheese. Lots of coffee and orange juice. As I was finishing and getting my second cup of joe, Bubblegum showed up, and shortly afterwards so did Meeko. The hostel guy was very friendly (doesn’t that sound like the first line of a short story?), and wanted to talk about his storied life, as a sound man for rock concerts, and the time Mr. Rogers gave him a hug after he (HostelGuy, not Mr. Rogers) fell off the stage when his chair collapsed.
Poster describing the history of the Ironmaster’s Hostel (Ege Mansion)

After buying a roll of toilet paper for a buck, I finished packing and started off.

I immediately came upon Bubblegum, who was waiting for me to go on ahead. We talked about seeing each other at the Holly Inn at the end of the day. Then it was time to make miles. 

The walk out of Pine Grove Furnace Park was flat and even and easy. A good time, I thought, to do a check-in video. Wrong, the camera battery was dead. Sigh. I have to look to see whether I got anything yesterday, or even the day before, on the thing. I have been recording short snippets of video every day since I started.

But the walking felt good, the pack riding well, and I probably developed a healthy pace. After about an hour, after the trail left the groomed paths for higher elevation, I heard something behind me and it turned out to be Meeko. I told her I planned on taking a rest stop at the James Fry shelter. That was her first milestone, as well, so it looked like we might have a chance to chat.

I felt good, I felt strong; each step nibbled away a bit more of the trail, a bit more of the morning. I started thinking about how the actual experience of hiking like this met, or was different from, the expectations I developed during the planning stages.

The comraderie is very much what I’d hoped. There’s no test that one has to pass to be accepted; it’s sort of clear by time on trail and miles hiked who is serious. Long distance hikers are an eccentric group. There’s this odd combination of inner vision and an outer drive… 

I haven’t gained my trail legs as quickly as I’d hoped. There’s this feeling, often echoed by other hikers’ obsession with weight, that the pack could and should be lighter. Even if I had the lighter base weight that others have achieved, would I still feel so tired after a prolonged uphill? Will my shoulders strengthen enough to get beyond the profound ache at the end of three hours of hiking?

I gained some insight today. I’ve been unable to recover my energy levels after lunch, with this molasses feeling pulling at my feet and legs. It suddenly made sense that I should be adding in some quick energy source to my more substantial lunch items. I tried that today, and it made a huge difference, or maybe I just continue to get stronger.

As noontime drew nigh, I saw Meeko sitting a short way down the trail. We were about .8 miles from our lunch shelter stop, but she had just seen a bobcat, and wanted to take advantage of the cell signal to let her friends know. We continued on to the shelter for our rest and lunch. It was as great to be able to talk, cuz I knew she was heading for big miles today. When we left, I told her the hills would be slowing me, and wished her well.

Now I am out of the cold, staying at Holly Inn in Mount Holly Springs. Next few days take me through Boiling Springs into uncertain camping. The backpacker’s campground in Boiling Springs is right along an active railroad line, and has a bad reputation. Still it may end up being my only option. There is no other camping options besides that one in between the next couple of shelters and it appears there is no camping at all the shelters.

Oh, so I’ve begun introducing myself as “Tolmann”. Had one of the hikers from Ironmaster’s Hostel meet me on the trail near the end of the day address me by my official trail name! Cool!