Start: Church of the Mountain Hiker Hostel, Delaware Water Gap, PA
It was HOT today!!! Most people at the hostel were zeroing today, but we knew we needed to hike on. Since it was going to be 100 degrees out with high humidity, we knew we needed to get out early! We woke up at 6:20 an left the hostel at 7:40. It was hot already. By the time we walked out of town and over the Delaware River Bridge to NJ (our 4th state!), I was already sweating! Now it was time to climb. We climbed about 1000 feet over 3 miles, so it wasn't overly steep, but it was still hard work in the heat. Just about 1 mile from the top, Brian was rattled at!!! Our first rattle snake (timber rattle). By the time I caught up (he doesn't get the name daddy long legs for nothing), the snake had stopped rattling but I was able to see it... In case I was unsure, I definitely don't like snakes! At the end of our climb, we reached Sunfish Pond. It is the southern most glacial lake. Since there is no camping or swimming at the lake, it looked so beautiful and pristine. The walk around the lake was ROCKY! We stopped half way around and pumped water. We were only about 4 miles in and I already drank 3 liters of water! At the north end of the lake, there are a bunch of rock sculptures that other hikers have made. We've seen pictures and videos of the sculptures, but it was so cool to see them in person. We continued on to climb Kittatinny Mountain. Beautiful views at the top, plus our first huge rock carin. At the top of the mountain is where I really started to feel the effects of the heat. I was sweating, hot, weak, and dizzy. Brian and I took the 2.5 mile descent easy and got to Camp Road. We had already planned to stay at Mohican Outdoor Center (a 10.7 mile day) because of the heat. I was SO happy when we arrived at the road. We walked another .3 miles to the AMC Outdoor Center. They have deli here, so we ate some sandwiches and snacks, got a much needed shower, and relaxed. We cooked mountain house meals for dinner and ate with hiker No Direction Home. Great company. It should be a bit cooler tomorrow, so I am looking forward to that.
End: AMC Mohican Outdoor Center, New Jersey
Peace Be The Journey
~Flicka
Once again, nice job with the blog. Yesterday I thought about you guys with those temps. Sounds like water availability is no problem. How are the climbs? I have A-Fib now and it's hard to run or climb. I wonder if I can still do it. I'm living my hike through you guys I guess. Tell your husband he's slacking on his blog and posting pictures. I know it's because he's doing all he can trying not to kill you. He's really probably too tired trying to keep up with you. Just remember, shut up once in awhile and give the man a break. Pretty soon he'll pass you off to a south blunder in exchange for some water. Happy trails! Wenk
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