Pawling, NY – mile 1448 – 66.0 percent of the trail complete
August 14th – Lower Road to Wawayanda Shelter
Total miles on AT – 15.3
Elevation gain – 2129ft
Elevation loss – 1476ft
Start time: 10:10am
Finish time: 6:45pm
Total time hiking: 6:05
Weather: extremely hot and humid, sunny with late afternoon thunder shower
Jared took off early and the Campbells and I drove past the house where they used to live, then we had very tasty breakfast sandwiches before they dropped me back off at the trail. They supplied me with a lot of their extra food. Yogi-ing at its finest! Thanks guys!
It was extremely hot and I had to drink a lot of water. There was more elevation change than I’ve had in a long time. It felt like the hottest and most humid day I’ve had, more so even than yesterday. I did well throughout the first part of the day but then hit a wall in the late afternoon – “the wall” was actually the 1000 foot climb of Mount Wayawanda, dubbed “Stairway to Heaven”. I broke down both mentally and physically. My knees hurt again. I cursed by knees, I cursed my boots, and the weather, and I missed the guys.
I saw a number of day hikers and a few southbound thru-hikers, but I am alone at this shelter. It’s only the third night I’ve spent on the trail alone. I thought at least there would be some southbound thru-hikers here. I feel very lonely. Almost all the northbound thru-hikers are ahead of me, and I won’t catch most of them.
It’s horribly buggy here and the mosquitos are buzzing all around my tent.
August 15th – Wawayanda Shelter to Little Dam Lake, NY
Total miles on AT – 19.1
Elevation gain – 1532ft
Elevation loss – 1862ft
Start time: 8:25am
Finish time: 7:10pm
Total time hiking: 7:50
Weather: sunny, not as hot or humid
Sweet mother of pearl, what a difficult day! The profile doesn’t show it but there was a ton of up down; it was very rocky and at times very steep. I put in the longest day I’ve done since I got off the trail. But it was painful, mostly my lower back from all the pounding going down hill during the second half of the day.
It’s not an exaggeration when I say I drank about nine liters of water, maybe even more – and my pee was still yellow!
I crossed into New York State in the morning and so far it’s no slouch – very rugged. I am proud to have done 19.1 miles. But I need this back to get better. My pack is a large part why it hurts. I need to get a different one.
I am camping alone yet again tonight. I passed about seven Sobos (southbound thru-hikers) and was hoping that I’d at least camp with one or two of them, but no luck. I’d like some northbound company so that’s an incentive to catch some of them (or be caught by some). I passed a huge group from a girls camp. One of them had just gotten stung by a bee when they passed a bee hive. There have been several bee hives along the trail in the past couple of days.
I stopped and made lunch at Bellvale Farms, then had their ice cream. Two different guys offered to take me into town, but I declined. It’s illegal to hitchhike in New York State so it’s nice that people are willing to offer a ride. Another very warm night.
August 16th – Little Dam Lake to Beechy Bottom Brook
Total miles on AT – 15.0
Elevation gain – 1979ft
Elevation loss – 2209ft
Start time: 7:30am
Finish time: 7:05pm
Total time hiking: 6:50
Weather: hazy turning, mostly cloudy, very warm turning humid, evening thunderstorms
Sore hip, sore back! Lots of breaks including a nice long one at Tiorati Lake for a shower and a swim. But oh what pain – slow, slow progress. I tried to strategize all day what could be done and whether I would be able to finish this trail…until finally a breakthrough – literally! The wire frame in my backpack broke through the bottom of the bag and became much less painful to wear. I had just been about set to buy a whole new one! So instead of doing just 12.6, I snuck in 15 and I am camping at the same exact spot where I camped over 21 years ago when I did an overnight here at the age of 18. There is a couple camping here; the young women is flip flopping. She was just getting a fire going when it started to pour. Another humid night. Ran into four northbounders today including a group of three that I had camped next to in southern Virginia.
August 17th – Beechy Bottom Brook to Graymoor Spiritual Life Center
Total miles on AT – 14.2
Elevation gain – 2406ft
Elevation loss – 2470ft
Start time: 7:50am
Finish time: 6:45pm
Total time hiking: 5:50
Weather: sunny, very warm, lower humidity
It’s gotten to the point where I relish in any moment when I don’t feel pain. But my back and hip were improved today. I picked up a pair of boots a half size larger that I had sent to Bear Mtn. Inn and walked into Fort Montgomery, NY to mail off the extras. I am now wearing a size 10 on my left foot and a size 10 1/2 on my right. I thought I might regret this as my right foot hurt for a few miles and still didn’t seem big enough, but I think the boot just needs to be broken in.
There were a lot of attractions to see. Crossed the 1400 mile mark. The top of Bear Mtn. has a nice tower with views of New York City and the climb down to Bear Mtn. State Park is spectacular with views of the Hudson River. I enjoyed every bite of the food from the snack bar at Harriman Lake, took advantage of the free entry to the pool and got a hot shower before cooling off, enjoyed the zoo and trail museum, got excellent pizza in Fort Montgomery, and felt breathless crossing the Bear Mtn. Bridge over the Hudson River.
After another steep climb on the other side of the river, but the trail started to level off a bit and wasn’t as rough. I hope this is a sign of things to come.
Another bite to eat and a resupply at a pricey roadside stop and then camping here at the ball field at Graymoor Spiritual Life Center with three southbounders and three northbounders. Another shower, albeit cold. Two showers in one day? What luxury!
August 18th – Graymoor Spiritual Life Center to RPH Shelter
Total miles on AT – 18.8
Elevation gain – 1839ft
Elevation loss – 2001ft
Start time: 9:30am
Finish time: 7:55pm
Total time hiking: 8:00
Weather: mostly sunny, very warm, lower humidity
My hip hurt throughout the night and I had half-awake dreams that my thru-hike was over. When I went to see the doctor for my shin weeks ago, she prescribed me steroids that I never took. But I took steroids for my back five years ago so… well I didn’t want to have to, but I started taking them this morning for my hip and back. My hip still hurt during the first half of the day and I made very slow progress over hilly and rocky terrain. They call these PUDS – pointless ups and downs. I am worried that once the steroids run out I am going to be in even more pain!
I ran into two people I had not seen in a long time. “Friskie” – I had not seen him since Hiawatha, GA – my fourth night. It was his group that gave me my trail name at the Hiawatha Diner. He is the only one left on the trail from that group. I also ran into Lando whom I had not seen since central Virginia. When I saw him last he was talking about quitting. He and a few others “aqua blazed” down the Shenandoah River and Lando had a nasty fall and needed a bunch of stitches on his face. He took three weeks off the trail.
We ordered pizza from the shelter tonight. It’s right along a roadside – lots of road noise in NY.
August 19th – RPH Shelter to Tony’s Deli on NY 22
Total miles on AT – 19.9
Elevation gain – 1632ft
Elevation loss – 1473ft
Start time: 9:00am
Finish time: 7:40pm
Total time hiking: 7:35
Weather: sunny, very warm
Day two of the steroids. Minimal pain, but what’s gonna happen in four days when I run out? Easy terrain and I felt strong. Ate lunch at the Mountaintop Market Deli in Stormville, got a soda at route 55 at a tackle and bait shop, took a swim in a lake called Nuclear Lake, dubbed so because of what they used to put in it decades ago – looked clean to me… I booked it through beautiful farmland and on a boardwalk over swampland to NY 22 where sixth tenths of a mile down the road is Tony’s Deli with camping right along the railroad tracks. Connecticut tomorrow!
