Days 80-84, September 10-14: Nice New Jersey

The rock outcrops were dry early in the morning which helped me reach the New York / New Jersey border without stress. At 7:50am it was too early to be concerned about poisonous snakes warming themselves on sun-heated rocks. I was optimistic about the next five days of hiking in New Jersey. With a feeling of newness I enjoyed the music made by the wind blowing playfully through the hardwoods, bringing cooling air across my face. It was a good sign. Cool wind meant the mosquitoes might be grounded, but before long they took flight and attacked aggressively. I planned to resupply later in Warrick with insect repellent on the top of my shopping list. Before shopping for food and repellent I set up my tarp at the Warwick, NY Drive-In Theater, which allows AT hikers to camp free and watch the movies on three screens.

See my real-time location produced by the InReach unit I carry and a daily log of my progress on the trail.

The trail was kind the next day, September 11. I noted in my trail log: “Excellent trail, nice grade. Mix of pastures and hardwood forests. Excellent weather.”

The next day was equally pleasant and my feet moved freely with the absence of steep, unnecessary climbs to nowhere. Several deer ran in front of me as I entered High Point State Park. In this area the AT follows a ridgetop that slopes steeply to the east and opens up for views of the extensive valley. High Point State Park features a tower that rises from the highest place in the entire state of New Jersey.

An open-walled pavilion built with rocks is on an overlook that begs for rest and reflection. Two large birds, possibly vultures, soared nearby. Despite the airshow I did not linger. My focus was on logging 19 miles that day, with a goal of arriving in Deleware Water Gap on the 14th.

It feels like I have been looking forward to DWG for weeks. I had ordered a new, lighter tent and looked forward to streamlining my backpack. I started tracking my speed because I wanted to know the impact the easier terrain had on my ability to hike 18 to 20 miles per day in southern Pennsylvania and Virginia. I will pick up the pace in those states to ensure I can finish this thru-hike by mid-December. The lighter pack weight will contribute at this goal and enhance my image as an “expert backpacker”. See my recent post where I discuss this. The miles I logged were encouraging: 18.9 and 19.7 for the two days. Nice!

My focus on September 13 was to observe what I see on the ground. I planned to hike only 14 miles to the AMC Outdoor Center and I could afford to linger on the things I have been taking for granted.

“Rocks, stones, fallen leaves, pieces of tree limbs and branches, berry bushes, grasses, fallen pine needles, slugs, frogs, large segmented worms, acorns…thousands, falling from trees.   It is surprising none landed on my head yet.  Mushrooms.  A beaver dam and a black bear running away near the trail to Mohican Outdoor Center.” The species of frog that are about 1.5 inches long seem to change color depending where they are. Green if near live foliage, grey if on rocks, etc.

At the AMC I shared a very nice bunkhouse with one AT section hiker. One on one conversation between strangers who share the passion of long distance hiking are good. But I was dismayed when he described renewable energy as a “scam.” Oh well.

I left the AMC Center in the dim, early light of the morning in anticipation of my arrival in Deleware Water Gap. Some northbound hikers warned me of very rocky trail on the way to DWG. It was true, and one rain-slickened rock took me down briefly. Was this a preview of “Rocksylvania?” I was more curious of Sunfish Pond, a small lake influenced by ice age glaciers and deserving of its protected status as a Registered Natural Landmark. Curiously, it looked much like most other ponds along the AT except for the rocky shoreline I was walking along.

I reveled briefly at the crossing into Pennsylvania parallel to the Interstate 80 Bridge across the Deleware River. I was not sad to exit New Jersey, which encouraged me to appreciate some of the small things that I observed while hiking with a positive, focused attitude that recognizes my own hiking style and unique definition of “expert backpacker.” More on that topic in a later post!