Now in NY

I know it's been weeks since our last post and days since Will's last spot but I will try to get you up to date with a few lines today.

If you have been keeping up with Bowtie you know that he and Will are hiking separately at the moment. They both were glad to get out of PA - the rocks did prove to be everything people had said they were.

Will is traveling with Castor and a few others. They participated in "Hike Naked" Day to celebrate the Summer Solstice. Not exactly sure how long or how many people saw this but Will did say it was "weird" maybe that means he will not be doing it again anytime soon.

The boys crossed into NJ and made light work of that smaller section of the trail. They did experience some great trail magic. Along the trail they found a food box with a note that offered a shower, laundry, food and a place to stay. They called the number and were picked up by a man and taken back to his house for the evening. They were able to watch the Yankees and enjoyed good company for the evening. This is not a real hostel but this man and his wife usually take in about 60 hikers a year. The kindness of strangers still amazes me!

In NY Will has connected with his Aunt Rhonda who picked the boys up (along with I think 3 others) at Bear Mountain and took them back to her place for the night. She of coursed stocked the cabinets and made a great breakfast for the crew. They stayed with her Thursday night then Friday rented a car and headed back to NJ where they met Paul (Will's big bro) and a group of his friends and went to a Phish concert. I rec'd a txt this am and Will said it was amazing. Not quite sure if this will be another zero day with Rhonda or if they are heading back to the trail. I will try to post more often. Thanks for hanging in there with us on this journey.

Day 3 Boiling Springs, PA

After breaking camp the three of us left Pine Grove Furnace and set out for Boiling Springs, PA., our next meeting destination. We were fortunate enough to have a GPS and take all back roads to our next stop. THe scenery along the way was beautiful, with farms scattered along the rolling hills and barns that were all built in the same design. The barns were extremely large with towering silos attached to the ends. Wide grassy natural ramps were on each high side to allow cattle or wagons to enter easily. Most of the crops planted consisted of corn which would be used for feed for the cattle.

Once we entered Boiling Springs we were somewhat surprised to see the ATC (Appalachian Trail Conservancy) nestled in the midst of town right on Main Street. We soon discovered the trail actually comes directly through the town. Boiling Springs was a small, quite and peaceful town that seemed to be one of the best kept secrets in PA. We soon found the actual Boiling Spring from which the town was named - the locals called it "The Bubble." It "bubbles" out over 12 million gallons of water each day. The water temperature in the spring and the lake stays at 53 degrees year round.

As we pulled into the parking lot of the ATC we noticed one hiker already there. He didn't look familiar to me but as soon as Beth saw him she asked, "Are you Chewy?" "Yes, I am!" he exclaimed. Beth introduced us as DarkStar's family and explained she had heard alot of stories about "Chewy" and assumed him to be the one. Chewy is probably the most frugal hiker we have seen. No high tech walking sticks - just two wooden sticks. No expensive backpack with inner frames - just an old green military back pack - one that looks like it came from WWI. No special outer wear - just an old pair of pants with patches and a thin shirt. Chewy was amazing! If there has been anyone we have seen along the way with more passion than Will has exhibited this may be the guy! He loved the trail and was excited to talk about it.

We loved the small town so much we decided to just hang here all day while the hikers made their way in. We expected them to arrive somewhere around 5:30pm. We had about 7 hours to enjoy the town. Beth set up her "hospitality station" out of the back of her truck. As hikers arrived she fed them, each of them. Chewy finished off the Zucchini Bread. Afterwards we met two older gentlemen who were section hiking from Harper's Ferry to Delaware Waters. One was from Alabama the other from Asheville, NC. Neither knew each other and were actually hiking separately. Red Velvet cake for these two. Soon after came Maple and LongShanks. Maple is from California and Longshanks is from Montana. Both knew DarkStar and spoke well of him. Beth feed them as well. No more Red Velvet cake - its gone now! More hikers would arrive throughout the day. The Traveling Circus and their film crew spent alot of time interviewing the ATC director and filming around the lake. Beth fed them as well. Eventually we needed to head into a nearby town to re-supply our food. Beth whipped up some homemade Pimento Cheese to spread on sandwhiches and veggies. Tasty! Around 5:30 pm DarkStar arrived with 3 other hikers. Soon after Bowtie, Castore, Turkey, Thrasher and Spatchula arrived. Tanner and I were trout fishing and all of them stopped to join in. Beth got busy back at the hospitality truck and soon fed all the hungry hikers.

Bowtie and DarkStar said their goodbyes to the other hikers and loaded the truck with us - headed to Gettysburg for a lot of History and a little R&R.

Day 2 of Our Journey with DarkStar (Continued)

Before checking in at the Pine Grove Furnace State Park headquarters we decided to check out the town. First, the General Store - this is the home of the Famous Trail tradition of "The Half Gallon Challenge." THe challenge is for hikers. They must completely finish one half gallon of ice cream in one setting. Legend has it that the fastest time is 13 minutes. This record would stay in tack today as our hikers would finish but most would take three times as long.

We proceeded to the Hikers Museum. A small, older building that had recently held grand opening only yesterday. Volunteers worked the exhibits and had done a masterful job in re-creating some of the trail history and legend. THe most interesting exhibit I saw was of the first woman to finish the trail. She was a grandmother, 67 years old, carried a 25 lb nap sack over her left shoulder and accomplished the feat more than one time.

After setting up camp Tanner and I found a place to fish. We saw plenty but failed to catch any. Our attention turned back to the hikers as they began to arrive at the General Store. First in was Turkey and Thrasher who were well into the half gallon challenge. Soon after the Traveling Circus started the challenge and included this as part of their documentary. THe other hikers jumped in on the challenge soon thereafter with the exception of DarkStar - who never has been much of a sweet eater and possibly the smarter one in this decision. We sat around as everyone finished the challenge. As everyone finished the "Half Gallon Challenge" I commended the General Store on a great marketing strategy - no one in the state of PA sells more half gallon ice cream than these guys!

Will - being the only one without a belly full of ice cream - coaxed everyone into going swimming next. We all loaded into the truck and headed to the local lake that was set up like a beach, complete with sand, lifeguards and people who shouldn't be allowed in bathing suits. The group had a great time swimming and throwing baseball on the beach.

That night at camp we enjoyed a great meal Beth had been cooking all afternoon. Chilli beans with real beef tips, fresh salad greens and red velvet cake and zucchini bread. Will commented we should bless the food to ensure we would have enough for 11 hikers and the three of us. To my surprise we did. In fact some were able to come back for seconds. Perhaps the "Half Gallon Challenge" helped a little.

The evening was spent setting around the campfire listening to the trail tales. Along with Beth, Tanner and myself our guest included;

DarkStar - Will

Bowtie - Brian (Atlanta)

THrasher - (Atlanta area)

Turkey - (Atlanta Area)

Castore - (Boston)

Spatchula - (Boston)

Prophet - (Indiana)

Ring Leader - (New Jersey - Just passed Bar Exam)

Monkey - (New Jersey Ring leader's brother just finished Dartmouth)

Lightening - (New Jersey)

Traveling Circus Editor - (New Jersey)

We sat around laughing and telling stories, jokes, and just enjoying great company by the fire until around 10:30 pm. All at once everyone retired for the evening to their tents. With the weather being much cooler and Tanner's stomach settled this night - we all had a peaceful sleep. I think the ground was even softer here.

Day 2 of Our Journey with DarkStar

We woke the next morning to light rain. I don't think any of us slept very well. While we weren't accustomed to the hard ground, the hikers anxiously awaited the next Tanner episode.........luckily, that never happened.

Beth started breakfast. The hikers woke to the smell of bacon, sausage, eggs fried with onions and tomatoes and peppers, sprinkled with a little cheese. As they rolled out of their tents they immediately began breaking down tents and methodically packing their gear. As I looked on I was amazed at how all this seemed effortless for each of them, almost like they were still in a sleepy slumber, quietly moving around as they prepared for the trail that morning.

Originally, we had considered the idea of Tanner hiking this section of the trail with Will while Beth and I went ahead to Pine Grove Furnace to set up camp for the night. We were sure this would not happen as he was up last night sick. Kids will prove you wrong though as they are quick to recover and bounce back. Tanner wanted to hike and we agreed.

Turkey and Thrasher left first ahead of the others. Soon after Bowtie, Castore, Spatchula, DarkStar and Tanner left. The plan ----- hike to first road crossing somewhere around the 6 mile mark and see how Tanner is doing. If he needed to jump in with us he could, if he felt like hiking on we would meet him at the 12 mile mark. After the last of the hikers departed, Beth and I packed up camp, cleaned up the site and headed for town to re-supply our food.

We returned to Caladonia State Park and headed through the park to meet the hikers at our first check point. Will saved us some time by calling and assuring us Tanner was fine and wanted to continue hiking. We proceeded to the next checkpoint and parked. We hiked south on the trail about 2.3 miles until we came to the first shelter and found Turkey and Thrasher already there. Beth and I decided to hike on further until we met Will and Tanner on the trail. Soon after we crossed paths with the Traveling Circus. The Traveling Circus (Monkey, Ring Leader, Lightening) is a group of hikers who are filming a documentary about the AT and the hikers who experience the trail. Next came Bowtie, Castore and Spatchula. Just behind them was Will followed by Tanner. Tanner made the 12 miles without incident and looking good. Together we all hiked back to the truck parked 2.3 miles away.

On our short hike we were able to experience a part of what Will enjoys everyday and without the hardships the hikers endure. The forest was beautiful, carpeted with fresh green ferns and outlined with mountain laurel in full bloom. In a small distance and a brief bit of time, is all it takes to spark our imagination of what these hikers experience each day they are on the trail. In some ways it is easier to understand what fuels the passion these hikers exhibit. Without full knowledge of the difficulties they face, we often think we too could possibly do this some day.

With Tanner back in the truck and the hikers back on the trail, we planned to meet in Pine Grove Furnace State park for the evening. The three of us would set up camp and prepare for 14 hikers that night. More to come on this evening later.

Our journey from Richmond Hill, Ga to Caladonia State Park in Pennsylvania was a beautiful drive up through 7 states. As we pulled into the park the sight became Spectacular.............our hiker Will, emerged shirtless from the middle of a large group of people who were gathered at the park shelter to celebrate someone's retirement. We witnessed another display of kindness from strangers who do not know our son, but because so many have a love and connection to hikers, they freely extend their hospitality.

The following hour was spent catching up and setting up our campsite in the park. Will scribed a note out to post on the trail for the other hikers............."DarkStar - at campsite #115 come by." Tanner took the note and posted it to a tree along the trail. Before the sun went down for the day we enjoyed the company of several hikers (Bowtie - Brian, Turkey & Thrasher - husband and wife from Georgia, Castore & Spatchula - two bums from Boston and DarkStar - our favorite hiker.) Prophet stayed for a little while but later departed to catch up with the Traveling Circus - a group of hikers you will hear more about later.

Our night was fantastic! Beth had planned an evening meal, breakfast and the next evening's meal and had bought groceries accordingly. What she failed to calculate accurately for were two very important things - A) how many would be joining us for dinner & B) how hungry these hikers would be. The evening meal consumed two nights worth of groceries and would have wiped out breakfast as well if we had cooked it. We decided to save what we could for the morning.

We had envisioned setting around the campfire listening to hiker stories that night but the weather didn't allow. Rain drove us all to a covered shelter where Beth downloaded all of Will's pictures. We all enjoyed a slide show presentation with narration provided by Will. Our laughter must have caught the attention of others as the park ranger came down to check on us.

We packed up and retired back to our site and huddled under Will's tarp and shortly ended our night with everyone turning in. We only thought the night was over. During the middle of the night, Tanner woke everyone up as he staggered around from tent to tent looking for a good place to hurl! He continued to barf everything he had eaten the past week. I am still surprised we all didn't join him in a campsite barf-o-rama. It did make interesting breakfast conversation the next morning.

Reunion in less than 24 hours

I am eagerly preparing for our reunion with Will which will take place sometime Saturday in Pennsylvania. Good news - Will and Bowtie are together again after about a month of hiking with other groups. Brian left the trail for a short time to be in his brother's wedding and Will was able to do some catch up so they would be at the same spot when he returned to the trail. Our plan is to meet up around Caledonia Stat Park and spend one night there. Then Tanner may join the hikers to trek to Pine Grove Furnace for the second night. After that, we will give the hikers a couple of zero days in Gettysburg for a little Civil War history break. Can't wait!!!!!!!!!!!