[at-l] Hike Report DWG->HR Day 8

[orangebug74@yahoo.com (Orange Bug)]

Saturday May 4

This is the last day and a long, long walk is on the agenda. This is
probably the longest of the week.

I got up early but visited longer the the scouts, listened to turkey
gobbling and watched deer wand the area between the shelter and lake. I
walked out and down to Tivoli for water - brownest piped water yet but
"potable." Two servings of hot Instant Breakfast with whole milk finish
my breakfast supplies and fuel my legs. Since packing my Leki's away
for Agony Grind, I've gone without the poles and I'm moving faster than
I expected. I love getting trail legs just before finishing my
sections.

The trail started fast and easy until William Jennings Bryan shelter,
occupied by inner city kids, burning anything in sight including hiker
library, candles and eyeing the register. No adults are around. I let
myself get upset and took a wrong turn, losing the trail and an hour
going down hill. Finally I get back on track, but with very hot steep
climbs with lots of day hikers. There are a few long distance folks in
the AM out of Mass, telling me how they enjoyed snow on Thursday. I
exchange photos of "Dreamwalker" - a hopeful for '03.

 I lost the trail briefly with poor blazing north of Pallisades
Turnpike, although the blazing is far more frequent that much of NC and
GA. Much of this trail is long and boring and dangerous - primarily to
get to memorial on Bear Mtn. I suspect much of the routing may be
related to the huge parking lots and numbers of visitors in summer. The
location of the AT helps to keep 'em seperated.

Bear Mtn is a tragedy. Rather than keep us seperated, Perkins Drive is
1/2 mile and narrow road walk with cars, trucks, vans, motorcyclesand
the occasional hiker. It is hard to find where the AT re-enters the
woods. With the late hour, I "yellow blaze" and hitched to the top with
a couple who had never heard of the AT or considered the possibility of
a hiker as myself. I enjoyed their Beemer and John Mellencamp tunes.
They got the last parking place in the lot - directly in front of the
white blaze. I took a few photos of bikers and memorials to dead white
guys. I try to speed down the hill to get to the museum and zoo prior
to 5PM. I fail. The routing over paved path above Bear Mtn Inn is
frustratingly indirect and full of Flatlanders.

The grounds of Bear Mt Inn look very interesting, along the lines of
the Grove Park Inn but with a very mixed client base. I thought I saw
my first bear, but it was just a very rotund guy with more hair than is
socially acceptable.

I made my way to the bridge for my last photo and start calling for the
motel. The were full but had my clothes. The could have helped me with
a call yesterday. They referred me to the Holiday Inn Express (further)
or the Old Oak Inn (closer). The Old Oak Inn is little more than a
boarding house with a basement bar and a club room under construction.
My room consisted of a single bed with bottom sheet and a blanket, a
dry sink, TV with HBO, thin walls, and access to a community toilet and
shower. The manager offered to wash my clothes as part of $45/night,
but disappeared. He gave me a number for a taxi in the AM. I got a ride
with a bar patron to my clothing and walked back. The Bear Mtn Motel
looks like a very nice option but is well north ("west") of the trail.
I would suggest future hikers plan on either the Bear Mtn Inn or
Holiday Inn Express.

While I prepared to walk to supper, a NYC couple comes and looks for
BBQ after watching some PBS show on frontier life and corn bread. I
suggested my plan for the Trading Post Bar and Restaurant ($14 Prime
rib with soup, salad, veggies and dessert). This gets me a ride, talk
of Yankee expectations of BBQ, more 9/11 stories, a fine meal and other
conversation. They even offered me a ride into the city and calls to
Martha since the phone card would not sork again. I declined the trip
as I didn't know Martha's plans, but probably screwed up. The yelling
through the walls all night suggested I am an idiot.

Finally, with trail and road walks and Ft. Montgomery - I suspect today
was about 20 miles.

OrangeBug

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