Rte. 206 Sandyston, NJ - Nobo 1318

This post is from July 8, 2015.   The GPS tracking of this hike can be found at:

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/827713790

I got up at 5:30am and started hiking by 6:45 as I had to make 23 miles by my 5pm rendezvous with Helen. This is what my campsite looked like at 6am:

The 23 miles varied between easy and moderate going over the summits of many big hills they call mountains:

New Jersey!! - Nobo 1294

This post is from July 7, 2015.  The GPS tracking of this hike can be found at:

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/827713769

NJ finally! Woo hoo! The skies opened up as I crossed the Delaware River around 5 this afternoon. It was almost impossible to get my IPhone to take a picture with all the water.  But, at least I have the blurry picture above to memorialize the event. Amazingly, at the beginning of the long bridge it was dry enough to take this picture:

PA did not want to let me go. The 20 miles I made today were tough in PA. Many miles of this:

This is the first view I had of the Delaware River before descending on the PA side. Other side is NJ:

When I finally reached the Delawsre Water Gap I did reward myself, though:

I am camped tonight in the Worthington State Forest about 5 miles into NJ.

Wind Gap, PA - Nobo 1274

This post is from July 6, 2015.   The GPS tracking of this hike can be found at:

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/827713749

Hiked 27 miles today over a lot of Rocksylvania terrain including the ascent to the Superfind trailhead one of the most difficult individual miles on the AT.  This cane immediately after crossing the Lehigh River:

This is the view down at the top of the Superfind climb;

Only 15 trail miles from the NJ border tonight. In a hotel in Wind Gap which is good as I hiked in the rain this afternoon as was glad to not set up the tent in the rain. 

Unnamed tent site - Nobo 1247

This post is from July 5, 2015.  The GPS tracking of this hike can be found at:

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/827713728 

Hiked 28 miles today through varied terrain that included some of the longest stretches of boulder/hopping I have seen on the trail. There were miles that looked like this:

So I am indeed very satisfied that my biggest mileage day on this thru hike to date (28 miles) was over a lot of that.

Another interesting occurrence today was when I heard a loud crack about 30 feet behind me and then watched this tree fall on the trail where I just walked:

My cellulitis infection seems to be healing nicely. Each day the red color returns s bit more to normal and I feel fine.

I am now about 43 (hard) trail miles from the New Jersey border. 

Windsor Forge Shelter, PA - Northbound 1219

This post is from July 4, 2015.  The GPS tracking of this hike can be found at:

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/827713715

My darling, sweet and beautiful granddaughter Ella Sewell was born Wednesday, July 1, 2015.  I left the trail after my night in the ER on June 30.  The timing was all perfect as we had planned on leaving the trail at the first signs of my daughter Jenny's labor and that was really Tuesday morning.  I would not have hiked anyways for 2-3 days because of the seriousness of the cellulitis. We were there all day long at the hospital on Wednesday through a very trying birth, but everything turned out successful for mother and baby and both are doing well.  So, now Morfar TARman returns to the trail.   (Morfar is Swedish for 'mother's father').

Today Helen dropped me off where we left off last Monday night and I hiked 21 miles to camp near this shelter.  Fue to the drive from DC to the trailhead I did not start hiking until 12 noon and then I hiked without break until 8:30 to make the 21.

The terrain seems to be shifting from the straight and flat ridge lines to up and done rolling hill- ridges. Maybe this is the transition to the Poconos I am not certain.

I crossed the Schuykill River at Port Clinton around 5 pm:

And now I am lying here in my tarp tent listening to the 4th  of July fireworks going off in distant towns. Happy birthday America and welcome home Eleanor.