So overall this was a last minute decision. I had debated it for a week or two, I planned and tried to figure out where to go. I had no idea where to start but I clearly got it figured out with some research. I really wanted to just get away because I feel like I was living the same exact week every week. Monday through Friday I got up, went to work, came home and fell asleep. Then weekends I usually did something with my friends like go to Denny's, which I love but I felt I need a change of scenery for a bit. So rather than complain about how dull my summer has been, I went and made it better.
So Friday after work I headed right home and I got there around 1:15. It was an hour later than usual but I stayed for some overtime. I added some finishing touches to what I would bring in my bag then I headed out the door with a two and a half hour drive ahead of me. Surprisingly I was not tired at all despite it being quite late. Once I got off the highway I started to enjoy the drive there. I was driving down roads that were going up and down hills. They seemed to stretch forever as I passed field after field. I kept my windows down the air felt good and smelled good(Is that weird to say?). I finally got to the site to park my car around 4:15-4:30. It was still very much dark. I couldn't really see and it did make me quite nervous. I was all alone, in the dark and two and a half hours away from home. It was exciting but frightening at the same time. I waited around a little bit to let the sun rise but with that time I read everything on the bulletin board. It had a few helpful things to look at, like a map and a few rules. Mainly the one about not drinking the water was helpful. So five o'clock rolls around and I head out.
I was pumped and so excited that I didn't even realize I had yet to sleep. I also did not realize until one mile into it that I was going the wrong way.... I started to head South instead of North but thankfully I brought a compass with me to show me my mistake. So I turn around and head in the right direction. The path was very simple to follow as every few yards was marked by a white tag on a tree or rock. I had no trouble at all finding my way along the trail. The beginning was mainly wide open fields but that only lasted a short time before I started making my way up the mountain. Within an hour or two I already made it to the first view point. It was beautiful. I wasn't tired but I just sat there for a little while and looked out. I am only a short time into this trip and I would already deem it a success. A view like that was exactly what I was looking for.
Finally I got up and continued walking and around 8:30-9 I came across the first "shelter". There I met three hikers that were just waking up. It was a father, his daughter and her friend. The father and daughter were experienced hikers having done many trails and even this one before. They explained a lot of things to me, like describing the area, tips on how to make it out here and just general things about hiking. Eventually they left but I stayed to rest a bit as I just scaled the mountain and I was still running without sleep. While I was hanging around the shelter I started to read the journal there. It was a book where people would write about their journey so far and how their day went. I wrote a short entry just saying how it was my first time and whatnot. Some of the entries were very enjoyable to read such as "I took a huge shit. Happy St. Patty's Day" but there were others that were actually serious and great to read. One thing that the people I met explained to me was "trail names" which were what you signed the book with. So pretty much you had a second identity. I didn't sign with a trail name as I didn't want to give myself a name. Later I meet people and it seems everyone gets them from other people due to experiences. Like one guy called himself "One-Eye". Why? Well because he only had one eye. Another many was called Fire-Hydrant. He earned that name because as soon as he bought a new backpack to go hiking with, a dog peed on it. As soon as that happened a man with an Australian accent came up to him, laughed in his face and gave him that trail-name. They were definitely something I found interesting but I wasn't going to give myself one so I just signed Jack.
After about 15-20 minutes of rest I got up and continued on. I caught up to and passed the people I had met the shelter. The two girls were making good time but they had to wait up for the father. From the shelter it was about 3 miles until Duncannon and about half way there I came across my favorite spot on the entire trip. The name of it was Hawk's Rock. It had a view that would easily take your breath away. For some reason I forgot to take a panoramic view so I have several pictures of the view along with a video. You could see for miles and you could see Duncannon with Susquehanna River just next to it.
I made my way down the mountain and finally into the town of Duncannon. First thing I did was walk into the gas station and buy two Gatorades. As I continued walking I noticed that the South side of this town was very poor and almost seemed run-down. As I walked down the sidewalk a dog ran up to me and started barking, followed by his owner. The dog had almost no fur, the man had only two teeth and the house behind him looked horrible. All I could think was "Where the hell am I?" I made a guess at Hickstown, PA. Obviously I had always heard about country folk like this but it was my first experience meeting someone from out here. Appearance aside, Kenny was a great guy. Was a very hospital man and gave me directions all over town. He would of offered me a lift but he did not have a car or a license. He offered me a few Natty-Ice cans but I declined. I wasn't about to take something from a man who seemed to have less than I. He rambled on quite some time about nothing and his life here. It was interesting at times but he really started to lose me after awhile. Eventually I said my goodbye and parted ways and headed further into town. I finally came up to a place called Doyle Hotel which I have heard stories of from the hikers I met before but also from Kenny. As I walked up there were about 7-8 hikers just hanging around outside. I didn't introduce myself but I set my stuff down not too far from them. I am not really that outgoing to where I would go up to them but instantly the saw me and included me. They asked about where I was from, where I was going and all that. It turned out they were "thru-hikers" which were hikers who started in Georgia and went up the entire Appalachian Trail into Maine. It would take them about 6-7 months but they were just past the half way point. They were stopping at Doyle Hotel for the night to give themselves a days break. I walk inside the Hotel to get my water bottles refilled and instantly you could tell it would be lucky to be considered a one star hotel. From what I heard the rooms had to AC and you shared a bathroom with other people. That sounds bad but I am sure the hikers loved it compared to sleeping in a tent or in a shelter. The place was a mix of a dive bar and a hostel. The bartender/owner looked the part of the area just as Kenny had. Like I said it isn't a bad thing as they were all nice and welcoming people. So he filled up my water bottles and I headed back out.
It was a mile or two walk through the town. The North side of town was much nicer than the South with houses that had many plants and flowers around them and some large churches. Eventually I crossed over the Susquehanna River. That is were I began my climb to the second mountain I would walk up but also considered the second trail that I linked at the beginning. This was a bit more challenging than the first but still very simple. It was just constantly steep and with many more rocks. Sadly I did not finish this part of the trail completely, I stopped about halfway at that shelter and turned around. My phone was dying and I had lost my charger. I also had to get back to my car by 9 AM Monday and I was unsure if I could do that if I continued going down this trail. I made great pace my first day as I was fresh but towards the end of Saturday I was about ready to collapse. Keep in mind I still have yet to sleep and by this time it was about 6 PM. Nighttime was coming soon also so I had to figure out where to sleep. I hurried back down the mountain and back into Duncannon. I visited the hotel again in search of my charger but there was no luck. Though one of the hikers let me use his for about 35-40 minutes until he went up to his room. So I had enough to get me through the night and the morning. Now it was time to decided where to sleep. I figured why not sleep at my favorite spot the whole trip? I scale the mountain back up to Hawk's Rock. Hiking up there was one of the hardest things I have ever done. Fatigue was starting to get to me, my backpack was over-packed, my legs were tired and I was generally tired and wanted sleep. I finally got to the top and set up my tent. I ate of the Meals Ready to Eat that my brother had given me. It was awful but it was better than the peanut butter bars or pop-tarts I had been eating all day. There was a bit of daylight left so I sat down on the rock, looked out at the view and opened up Paper Towns by John Green and read for a little while. The light faded quickly so I had to stop reading sooner than I hoped but I took a few pictures of the sky as the sun set. It was an amazing site to see. I passed out as soon as I got inside my tent. It was cramped inside because I had to stuff everything in there as there was a chance of rain and I didn't want anything getting wet.
I woke up nice and early around 6 AM. I got changed, had a small breakfast, enjoyed the view for one last time and then headed out around 7 to make for my car. The hike back is easy as it was mostly downhill and I had passed it all before so I knew where I was. At this point my body hated me but my mind loved me. My shoulders were ready to fall off and I had lost count of how many bug bites I had. Though I did it and I made it back to my car. I completed my adventure alone and it was great. I got to my car around noon.
I found it funny how many people though I was insane I went alone. My Mom was ready to beat me when she realized I was alone. I knew I could take care of myself. Could something bad of happened? No doubt. I could of slipped and hurt myself with no one to help me. There were a lot of "what ifs?" that were negative and told me not to go. Sorry but I would not rather sit around and be afraid of something bad that MIGHT happen. I wanted to do something so I did. I wanted to go alone so I did. No I would not recommend going alone to everyone because it can be dangerous but I sure enjoyed my time. It was really nice to get away. The past few weeks I felt like I couldn't control a lot going on in my life. That weekend I directly took control of my life and I took it out to the woods in Pennsylvania.
I will leave you with probably my favorite photo from the trip. The rest are on Facebook if you have yet to see them.
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