Miles Hiked Today 13
Total Miles Hiked on this Section: 39
Total AT Miles Hiked
Dan: 508
Sage: ~500
Note: Once Sage and I hike from the north side of SNP to Blackburn Trail Center south of Harpers Ferry we'll have the same total AT miles and will be completely synced up on our section hike.
Today's hike completed a continous AT segment for Sage from Penmar Park (near the Pennsylvania border) to Blackburn Trail Center, south of Harpers Ferry. Once we connect the top of SNP to Blackburn Trail Center ( which will take a few days, not a bad section hike), we will both have from the bottom of SNP to the Pennsylvania border complete.
The night ended up not being as cold as I expected, and I slept reasonably well. We went to sleep around 8pm and didn't wake up until about 7 am today. I'm always amazed at how early we go to bed and how many hours of sleep we can get on the trail. Nothing like walking all day to help you get a good rest.
We were moving slowly...ate some breakfast and strolled away from the shelter around 8:20am.
Heading south out of Rocky Run, we were greeted with a nice long climb. When done as the 16-18 mile point of the 20 mile "insane hike" schedule, the guys in Batallion refer this as "The Hill that Never Ends." When hiked at the start of the day, it is not very difficult, and just helps to warm you up.
We make it to White Rock Trail by 11:20, and began the long decent down to Crampton Gap Shelter. At Crampton Gap, Sage insisted that we eat a warm meal. I didn't want to take the time, but I've found that it is usually "faster" to take a break, eat a warm meal, and resume hiking refreshed and with food in my stomach. So I went digging in the foot bag to see the options.
Not much to choose from...last day of hiking, so there was almost nothing left. I found half a summer sausage, and some mashed potatoes. Ahh...just what I need for one of our favorite trail recipes:
Dan & Sage's Greasy Potatoes:
Ingredients:
1) Cheap Summer Sausage from Aldi
2) Instant Mashed Potatoes
Steps:
Measure enough water for the quantity of Mashed potato flakes used
Cut Summer Sausage into little chunks, or large chunks if lazy
Bring Water AND Sausage to a boil. Watch as the grease and flavor cause the water to get shiny with yummy flavor
When water hits a good boil (or earlier if really hungry), mix in potato flakes. Stir.
Eat
Once we had woofed down our potatoes and summer sausage, we hit the trail. The remainder of the hike is a ridge walk, and i was expecting an easy walk to the car. It wasn't difficult, but the hike dragged on a bit. After passing Garvey Shelter, we saw multiple groups hiking up to celebrate New Years at the shelter. Not a bad plan, our family celebrated 2015 Thanksgiving at that shelter, It has a nice view, a good table and is a nice place to spend the night. But Sage and I had one goal in mind...get the car and call this hike done.
I was moving pretty slow since my foot was hurting a bit. Sage got plenty of "waiting for Dad" time...but she doesn't seem to mind. We made it to the car by 3:30pm. This allowed us to make it home before 5pm. Oh...the joy of a nice long shower after a few days in the woods.
And by 7pm...we were heading out the door to attend a New Years Party with some friends. A very long day, but no regrets.
Total Miles Hiked on this Section: 39
Total AT Miles Hiked
Dan: 508
Sage: ~500
Note: Once Sage and I hike from the north side of SNP to Blackburn Trail Center south of Harpers Ferry we'll have the same total AT miles and will be completely synced up on our section hike.
Today's hike completed a continous AT segment for Sage from Penmar Park (near the Pennsylvania border) to Blackburn Trail Center, south of Harpers Ferry. Once we connect the top of SNP to Blackburn Trail Center ( which will take a few days, not a bad section hike), we will both have from the bottom of SNP to the Pennsylvania border complete.
The night ended up not being as cold as I expected, and I slept reasonably well. We went to sleep around 8pm and didn't wake up until about 7 am today. I'm always amazed at how early we go to bed and how many hours of sleep we can get on the trail. Nothing like walking all day to help you get a good rest.
We were moving slowly...ate some breakfast and strolled away from the shelter around 8:20am.
Heading south out of Rocky Run, we were greeted with a nice long climb. When done as the 16-18 mile point of the 20 mile "insane hike" schedule, the guys in Batallion refer this as "The Hill that Never Ends." When hiked at the start of the day, it is not very difficult, and just helps to warm you up.
We make it to White Rock Trail by 11:20, and began the long decent down to Crampton Gap Shelter. At Crampton Gap, Sage insisted that we eat a warm meal. I didn't want to take the time, but I've found that it is usually "faster" to take a break, eat a warm meal, and resume hiking refreshed and with food in my stomach. So I went digging in the foot bag to see the options.
Not much to choose from...last day of hiking, so there was almost nothing left. I found half a summer sausage, and some mashed potatoes. Ahh...just what I need for one of our favorite trail recipes:
Dan & Sage's Greasy Potatoes:
Ingredients:
1) Cheap Summer Sausage from Aldi
2) Instant Mashed Potatoes
Steps:
Measure enough water for the quantity of Mashed potato flakes used
Cut Summer Sausage into little chunks, or large chunks if lazy
Bring Water AND Sausage to a boil. Watch as the grease and flavor cause the water to get shiny with yummy flavor
When water hits a good boil (or earlier if really hungry), mix in potato flakes. Stir.
Eat
Once we had woofed down our potatoes and summer sausage, we hit the trail. The remainder of the hike is a ridge walk, and i was expecting an easy walk to the car. It wasn't difficult, but the hike dragged on a bit. After passing Garvey Shelter, we saw multiple groups hiking up to celebrate New Years at the shelter. Not a bad plan, our family celebrated 2015 Thanksgiving at that shelter, It has a nice view, a good table and is a nice place to spend the night. But Sage and I had one goal in mind...get the car and call this hike done.
I was moving pretty slow since my foot was hurting a bit. Sage got plenty of "waiting for Dad" time...but she doesn't seem to mind. We made it to the car by 3:30pm. This allowed us to make it home before 5pm. Oh...the joy of a nice long shower after a few days in the woods.
And by 7pm...we were heading out the door to attend a New Years Party with some friends. A very long day, but no regrets.
