7-29-12
Yesterday was an ok day. The shelter where I was in the morning was thick with mosquitoes. I later found out that it is notoriously mosquito rich. Walked about 5 miles, then came near a town and I needed some oatmeal and granola bars, and there was a deal advertised on a rock for all you can eat pizza with a soda, 6 bucks, I was sold. I ran into a Ridgerunner I met earlier and he had a truck nearby, so he dropped me off at the pizza place then ran a kid who was getting off the trail to a town 15 miles away. While eating, 5 guys came in and were asking about my hike, I asked if they’d hiked it, and 2 had. When I went to pay, the cashier said they already paid and I couldn’t even thank them because they had left already. That was really nice, I’m definitely going to try and do some stuff like that around trail towns sometime when I’m done. It really makes your day. Then I got some oatmeal at the store next door, and then bought myself and the Ridgerunner some Dairy Queen for running me around. As I started back on the trail with 15 miles left to go, it started pouring. A real frog strangler. Then as I noticed I was nearing the top of a mountain and the thunder and lightning were picking up, I broke into an opening with a fire tower. Great, right by a giant metal tower in a lightning storm. I skedaddled past that quickly, and was happy to be heading downhill soon. Then came my first wipeout. The tread on my shoes is nonexistent anymore thanks to PA rocks. So on a smooth rock, I somehow face planted, and it wasn’t fun.
A highlight though, I saw 2 bears that evening. I spooked a big one out of a hollow to my right, she was maybe 30 yards away at first, and then a cub followed after, both in a direction I approved of…away from me. They stopped to look around probably 60 yards away, but too far for a camera shot. So that was exciting.
Then as darkness was falling and I was expecting High Point shelter very soon, I stepped into a clearing, and this kid Sherbert I’ve been hiking with pointed to the sky ahead. I peered though the haze and fog and dusk to see what looked like the Washington Monument. A giant, tapered, pointed Obelisk was developing in front of me out of the churning fog. I couldn’t believe it. Never expected to see that. I guess it’s a monument marking Jersey’s highest elevation, pretty neat. Later found out it’s 200 feet tall; which is no slouch of a monument.
So not long later, we stumbled into a crowded shelter and although I was soggy and tired, I made some food, and then got settled in. The girl beside me had a snore like a growling bear, I’ve never heard a snore like that and I didn’t sleep well at all.
7-30-12
    I woke up today with no defined goal but looked in the guide and saw a church that offered its roof, laundry, shower, and the internet, so I set my sights on that 19 trail miles away, and then 2.4 road miles. The weather cleared and the trail was great, very few rocks. After 5 miles, I stopped at “The Secret Shelter” a cool place owned by a thru-hiker from 89’, Shooter. He bought 85 acres and built a shelter for hikers, it’s just not advertised as an official shelter, but it’s in the guide book. So that was a nice visit, we mainly talked about photography. Then I proceeded, I ran into Tom & Jerry and Sanchez, I think was his name, at an overlook and Jerry, Tom’s girlfriend, pointed to the mountain on the horizon, and what do you think I saw but that monument, only it looked so tiny from so far away. I couldn’t believe how far I walked in a day. That was cool. Then the other big highlight was walking more than half a mile on a boardwalk over a swamp. There was also a wooden suspension bridge over a river. The sun was getting low and it was a great evening of hiking. I definitely plan on hiking the NJ section again. Its only main problem,which can happen to any state, is that the mosquitoes are numerous and tenacious. I lost my bug net head cover in PA too, and it was my favorite piece of equipment when I needed it. I need to get a new one soon. Well, I’m tired, 8 more miles of Jersey I think, maybe 10. It’s been fun.
       Oh, one more incident that’s kinda funny looking back. I stubbed my toe on a rock at the base of a hill, right on my sore toe with the ingrown toenail, and man it smarted. My dad jokes that sometimes when I get mad, I sound like Yosemite Sam from the Looney Toons. And here I did. I couldn’t help but loudly curse that rock that caused me that prodigious pain by obnoxiously, angrily, loudly, growling at it; and through the woods echoed my voice. After flogging some nearby weeds with my trekking poles, I hoped no one was nearby, but not 2 seconds later, a young guy was coming down the hill. As he got closer, I noticed he was a Ridgerunner probably not over 22 and his eyes were wide and straight ahead. He looked a scared Cubscout. I think he was afraid to pass me because I sounded quite angry and disturbed just moments earlier. I asked him how he was, and got a quick “Good” and as I tried to explain my stubbed toe, he was gone. He picked up some speed I think after he passed me, not in the mood for small talk. But I guess I couldn’t blame him.