It's done!

I weighed in at 187 lbs at the ATC Center.  This is what he weighed on the last Day 1 (on Sept 8):  "what do you weigh?"  213.4 LBS  

Last full day. Washington monument. I am dragging.

76° Sunny
Appalachian National Scenic Trl, Boonsboro, MD, United States

It's done. Last day started at 0400. We hiked under an almost full moon. Pretty cool. Thanks family.
75° Sunny
Shenandoah St, Harpers Ferry, WV, United States

so now, some texted news in real time: "I'm a BOBO LASH"

Damn auto-correct........

Oct. 16-18 - gray squirrel sleeping on his chin? you decide:

OCT 16
17.1 miles. There's a fair going on at pine grove state park. Stop at the store for lunch. Decline to do the half gallon challenge. Pass the 2016 AT midpoint but see no notice of such. Fescue celebrates and I share nips Melanie sent with last resupply with everyone at birch run shelter. Fescue and I are on charge to get to harpers ferry Thursday night.

43° Clear
Dickinson, PA, United States

Oct 17

19.6 miles and a mile into the diner. I had creamed chipped beef on toast just like mom used to make. Half a dozen SOBO hikers at Tumbling run shelter tonight. Really? They think they are going to beat winter to Springer?
72° Sunny
Appalachian National Scenic Trl, Quincy, PA, United States

Oct 18
Long day lots of ups and downs. Had to carry water a lot. 18.1 miles Cowall Shelter. MARYLAND! I have now hiked in every state that the AT goes through. Got up to 80 degrees today. We are planning on arriving in harpers ferry with no food left in our bags. We are about there. There two cans of sardines in the shelter. If I didn't have to carry the empty can I would open one. Just made reservations at the Teahorse Hostel for Thursday and Friday night. At this point I'm hoping all the gear and my body hold together until I get to HF. seems like a lot of aches and pains.

76° Sunny
Appalachian National Scenic Trl, Smithsburg, MD, United States

October 13,14,15 - "purging food"--I don't like the sound of that

OCT. 13

55° Mist and Fog
Appalachian National Scenic Trl, Reed, PA, United States

Oct. 14 

21.5 mile day. Albeit a slackpack. Back at the Doyle. Dreaming of buffalo wings all day. Even with a near empty pack I'm sore st the end of the day. Somehow wings and a beer turned into supper. Lumpy mattress, thin sheets, wool blankets

64° Sunny
Appalachian National Scenic Trl, Penn, PA, United States

Oct. 15

Planned out the mileage for each day left to get into Harpers Ferry Thursday afternoon. Today stopped for breakfast cafe 101 in Boiling Springs. Something like 26 springs make up the river and lake gin clear. Then supper at the green mountain store and deli at mile 1078.9. Past the original half way marker plaque. We are purging excess food to lighten packs. Tonight in James Fry shelter.

39° Mist and Fog
2300–2398 Spring Hill Ln, Hampden, PA, United States

The legendary Doyle

Looks like Judd made it to The Doyle yesterday.  That's in Duncannon, PA where his box #4 (and absentee ballot) should have been.  He's been booking it with the Fescue guy... 14-18 miles a day. He thinks he'll be on a plane next Saturday. 

The "legendary Doyle" Hotel is:

" a welcome respite to hikers and paddlers, offering good food, drink and a place to rest before continuing on their journey. Duncannon is also the home of several great restaurants and unique small businesses who welcome you to the town. Local Boy Scouts provide maps of local attractions and hiker services to help orient and welcome visitors to town."       from: 

http://www.appalachiantrail.org/home/conservation/youth-community-engagement/a-t-community-program/at-community-partners/duncannon-pa


Looks like he has about 124 more miles to go:

Oct 10-12 -- trickles of water and pizza from the trash

OCT 10
Bust butt to get to 501 shelter. Pizza delivery place is closed on Monday. So the care taker came over and said order your pizza from ''this menus and I'll take you in to pick it up." He wanted us to be sure to get two coupons for the two pizzas we ordered. Collect 10 and you get a free pizza. The pizza guy wanted to know why a guy from Maine wanted two of his pizza coupons. I told him it was for the guy in the car. Couldn't eat the big salad and the large pizza. Two pieces left that I had to throw away. Ten minutes after dark a hiker comes in and we break the news to him that there's no delivery on Monday's. but there are two pieces in the trash. I retrieved them with no discoloration and he wolfed them down.

40° Clear
Pine Grove township, PA, United States

Oct 11

It's cold at 501 shelter. It will turn out to be a 18.5 mile day. One mile further than we had expected to go we are camping without water. It's 2.5 miles down the trail we'll get there tomorrow am. We are finding tolerable trail conditions. As far as the rocks go. Fescue and I are pushing hard for harpers ferry. He thinks we can fly out of Dulles on Saturday 21. We shall see. It means averaging 14.1 miles a day. Doable until you factor in hills resupplies and rain.

35° Clear
Pine Grove township, PA, United States

Oct 12
17 mile day. Saw a bear today. Just the back side as he was skiddadling away. Water still an issue. Staying at Peters mountain shelter and went down front for a trickle of water. Way down front. “300 rock steps” is an understatement.

66° Mostly Sunny
Middle Paxton, PA, United States

red is the new yellow......

10 minutes ago

2 hours ago

jmthompson79@gmail.com	4:26 PM (2 hours ago)
to me

Just resupplied in Port Clinton. Still hiking with Fescue. Did ten miles to nearest shelter. Wind is blowing and temp is dropping. I'd just as soon not sleep in a hammock with all the blow downs I saw today. Fescue is watching football on his phone. To get to Duncsnnon we have planned a 15 then a 16 then a 17 mile day. Although we seem to think we can order pizza at the shelter tomorrow. Just did about 15 minutes of the yoga stretches I could remember. Feel a little better but there are a few aches and pains that aren't going away. The PA River of stones seems to be giving way. We'll see what tomorrow brings. I've heard that the last third of PA AT is very accommodating.
64° Mostly Sunny
South Manheim, PA, United States

"No Pizza" and "shower hair"

Oct.6 - Have started hiking with “Fesque”. He does grass for golf courses, all over the world! We went 17 miles. Including Lehigh Gap. Supposedly the last big obstacle between here and HF. I'm beat.
55° Mostly Sunny
Lower Towamensing, PA, United States

Oct.7 - Another 17 mile day with Fescue. We wanted to get to Eckville shelter. Right on the road with a cold shower no towel and a flush no TP and a grumpy care taker who doesn't like to pick up pizza boxes so all the signs say “no pizza”. Trying to organize a stop in Hamburg or Port Clinton to resupply. Looks like a 15 miler tomorrow. Fescue says if we do 15 miles a day we'll be in Harpers Ferry on the 20th. Doubtful that's going to happen. Supposed to get down to 45 tonight. My feet are sore but I took a shower and there something to be said for that ---see my shower hair. I can't remember the last time my clothes were washed.


72° Mostly Sunny
1368–1398 Hawk Mountain Rd, Albany, PA, United States


.............but what does "do grass" mean?

[fes-kyoo] 

 

• Word Origin

noun

1.

Also called fescue grass. any grass of the genus Festuca, somespecies of which are cultivated for pasture or lawns.

2.

a pointer, as a straw or slender stick, used to point out the letters in teaching 

children to read.

Shower Hair

Got water?

jmthompson79@gmail.com	6:05 PM (51 minutes ago)
to me 51min ago

Water is still an issue. Camping tonight. First night out of Wind Gap. Pack is still really heavy from resupply and two day supply of water. Do I have a pointy nose? Baggy eyes? Spoke to another south bounder “Fesque” he said he moved a 5 foot rattle snake out of the trail today. Great, for a boy from the state that has no poisonous snakes. Them again. I can hear partridge thrumming all around me. I've seen more deer in PA than in the whole rest of the trail.
71° Sunny
Appalachian National Scenic Trl, Eldred, PA, United States

Is it me, or is he looking less enchanted with the magic of the trail???

More wet.

56° Mostly Sunny
Appalachian National Scenic Trl, Walpack, NJ, United States

The sun came out. My boots might dry. Found the lost box#3. Slack pack to Mohegan Center. PA tomorrow. Rock statues?

61° Mostly Cloudy
Appalachian National Scenic Trl, Hardwick, NJ, United States

Yeah, we've had some texts in the last couple days. First he got to Mohegan and his Box #3 wasn't there.  So he "liberated" some Knorr soup and tuna's from some homeless hiker's box.  I had discarded my post office tracking receipts (the ones which prove than I mailed his box days ago priority mail) but the next day he found "Box #3" at the post office...... thank goodness, because that's the box where I included his underwear, long pants and extra candy bars and whisky nips.....  I would be uber-annoyed if some strange-hiker benefited.    And tonight,  I see he's made it across the Facebook bridge to Pennsylvania... although I just got a text that he is a bit distressed that the "el cheapo" hotel he was counting on is no longer in business.

He texts that the salad is mostly goat food, "but soooooo goood."

trying to ditch the Boy Scouts

It's cold. I collect box 3 tomorrow. I might have a tuna fish packet and a granola bar left by the then. Pretty good planning. I don't really want to spend the night at the Mohican Center. I really want to spend the night in Delaware Water Gap. More likely to find red meat and draft beer. I have been dodging about 20 Boy Scouts all day. They are camped out front of this mile 871.3 Brink Road Shelter.

58° Mostly Sunny
Bevans Rd, Sandyston, NJ, United States

It's cold. Getting down to 39° at night. Heater kicks on. Hot tub kicks on. Sweaters come out. I found an on line AT distance calculator and, from Judd's location, it looks like he's been 288 miles since Sept. 9. Only about 300 more to go! And Delaware Water gap is about 10 miles further than those boy scouts, so better get going.

50°  mostly rainy

China, ME United States

Why would they carry a bottle of Mountain Dew?

Judd texted last night and said he was going to help the Ohio boys with their fifth of Dew.  I thought is was a peculiar choice.  I see this morning he meant Tullamore Dew. Not Scottish whisky but Irish whiskey is a close second.

Great day for a hike. Cold and rain. Tomorrow is more of the same. Holed up in Mashipscong shelter with a couple of Ohio boys. They have a fifth of Tullamore Dew and about six bowls of smoke. One of them is heading home for chemo. It's wet and cold. My tactile gloves work great on the phone or my fingers would be cold. One more full day of hiking and the next day I should make it to Mohegan center and box#3. I realized I have been hiking got two weeks. That's why my legs feel strong.

53° Light Rain
Appalachian National Scenic Trl, Wantage, NJ, United States