2.5 million steps

Welcome back to WATC, broadcasting live from the AT... this time in Delaware Water Gap, a place I have an old connection with... old being relative, 1o years ago was the last time I was here... and at that time I was working with the Pack Shack crew on the Delaware River... but that was then... and this is now:

Let's dive right into this... it all started with beer and angles... not the typical duo, but why would typical have anything to do with this story?

In my attempt to leave Harpers Ferry, I became sidetracked by writing some correspondence and a feeling of loneliness in the absence of Safety Patrol. So I began to wander around the town and was corralled by a nice couple for a glass of ice tea... I felt like an impostor... I hadn't hiked in almost 7 days and these people wanted to know about life on the trail. We chatted for a few minutes and they mentioned that they were both Christians and wanted to spread the word of the Gospel. I had encountered this before, but this was the first time that I felt uneasy in the presence of missionaries trying to share the word of God with me. I thanked them for the ice tea and went on my way, not really in the mood to think about God and such. After I dropped off a package at the PO, I grabbed a 40 oz of Mickeys and walked down to the river and sat on a tall wall next to the bridge that crossed the Shenandoah River... after all, nothing displays gross heresy like afternoon booze drinking in public!

And so began the walk into Maryland and PA. The terrain was flat and easy, no mountains. I walked with InTents and Sawman with short cameos from other thru-hikers but nothing long lasting. We began to miss our friends L-Train, Andy, and SnakeEyes... good companions in debauchery... as we continuously found ourselves amidst beer drinking opportunities; pubs, inns, biker bars, and liquor stores. We spent a night in Waynesboro, PA where we met an old thru-hiker, MacGyver, who shared stories and gave us rides around town and back to the trail. Miles were easy, but our will to complete them was weak. Perhaps the trail experience was getting in the way of our hiking?!

A few days later we crossed the Mason-Dixon line, officially in the North! It felt good to know we walked all the way from Georgia to that point, and our pace picked up a bit. They say we walk about 5 million steps over the 2185 miles (by no means an exact science) and so when we crossed the official halfway point, our feet had made contact with the ground about 2.5 million times, left-foot right-foot... all the way to the "half-way half-gallon challenge" which takes place at Pine Grove Furnace State Park. Some hikers will buy a 1/2 gallon of ice cream from the camp store and fill themselves full of creamy icey goodness of a flavor of their choosing. I did not choose to participate in this challenge, I don't like ice cream enough, and the cheeseburger sub looked much tastier... but Tents and Sawman did take the challenge and both completed their 1/2 gallon in under and hour... with looks of possible stomach evacuation in the future, but I was unable to work either into projectile ice cream displays.

The first few days in PA were great... Pizza, pools, lakes, flat terrain... and we were sober for all of it. This was my attempt to regain control on the hiking part of the adventure, and it worked great...we wandered into Duncannon earlier than expected, sans InTents due to a "cowshit mission" detour, and got ourselves the corner penthouse room in the Doyle hotel.

The Doyle hotel is the old Budweiser Hotel built almost 1oo years ago with a bar in the lobby. The beer was cheap, but the room was a sad display of clean, in fact it lacked any qualities of clean, new, or sterile... but hey, the beer was cheap and Pitsurg (aka "No Budget") was buying so capturing some snooze time was easy regardless of the ragged conditions of the quarters.

The next morning we engaged in a Lions Club campground search, and after many miles and terrible intel, we found the object of our search, a stove where we could cook some cowboy stew; eggs, bacon, corn, salsa, cheese, potatoes, and toast. We enjoyed breakfast to the entertaining antics of the "Jerry Springer Show"... with no sound, just closed captions. This was a strange TV experience, strange strange experience. But not as strange as what was to happen next.

As we crossed the Junianic River and down an off-ramp on the Clarks Ferry Bridge I spotted a kitten crouched in the gap between two Jersey Barriers. The kitten was 1/4 mile up the ramp and not looking so hot. We dropped our packs and grabbed our cameras and headed over to this odd scene to investigate and possibly offer help. The kitten did not follow us with its eyes as we got closer, and we could see blood on its bottom lip... it barely moved or seemed disturbed by our presense... until suddenly it jumped off its perch and raced scantily down the ramp. We donned our packs and headed in the same direction of the cat... I was looking off the bridge at the river, scoping a possible jump, when I noticed an animal swimming in the river just below us about 30 yards off the bank. It was the crazy kitten!! It was swimming but not doing so well, and heading for a rapid. We watched it head into the rapid and disappear. We stood there stunned, disbeleif.... had we just witnessed a cat's suicide? Did the cat jump the 30 foot distance from bridge to water? It had to have, in order to be as far off shore as it was directly below us. But why? Do animals kill themselves consciously? What a trip... it looked like the cat saw something so terrible that it didn't want to be a part of the living anymore... what it saw will always be a mystery that I will not think about... too messed up. Maybe it was just rabid and crazy?!

I can't say it didn't affect me, or us for a few days. But we walked it off, as any good hiker would do! 20+ miles each day on some nice flat ridges, knowing that we would soon be at the dreaded PA rocks! Many good things happened along the way and I want to talk write about it... perhaps in the extended version! Right now I'm tired and need to get some sleep before we get back on the trail tomorrow. Mom and Dad have been here acting in kind as "Angels" and with them they brought Lex! It is great to see her and I have to decide if she is up for hiking... if only she could talk!

Tropical Thunder (formerly known as SpaceShip)

P.S. At the half-way point I decided to change my name to Tropical Thunder, mostly because of a pair of bright orange hiking shorts that I picked up in Waynesboro, PA and also because there is another hiker named Spaceman, and we can't have that kind of confusion.