[at-l] Hike Report DWG->HR Day 9 ending

[orangebug74@yahoo.com (Orange Bug)]

Sunday May 5

I had stayed up late as the next door neighbor loudly phoned his
significant other, concluding with "Open up your hard cold heart and
shut the %$#&^ up!" I found the logic to be too close to my usual work.


I wandered the street of Ft. Montgomery seeking information on escape
routes into NYC. The policeman guarding the Catholic church advised me
that the bus stops right at the fire station and goes to Grand Central
Station. 

I grabbed my gear and ran down the street, first stopping at Fox's
County Deli for a bagel and juice for the trip. The clerk tells me she
has never seen a bus there. Immediately, I turned around and watched it
pass. She was surprised and expected me to be upset with her. Life is
like that, from time to time.

$15 and 45 minutes later, the taxi takes me to Garrison, NY, across the
Hudson from West Point. The commuter rail costs $7.50 to Grand Central
and then down to Franklin Street on the red line. Up 5 flights of
stairs, and there is Martha and company.

The hair dryer does nothing for my phone, and the recharger indicates
no sign of life. A few calls teaches me that Liz is tired of being
alone, and the airline will charge bundles of bucks to change plans
before Tuesday. This leaves me an opportunity to view NYC with my
youngest, to see Spiderman, to shop, to see the changes in Southern
Manhatten since October, and to chill out. Martha helps me create a
photo album of the trip. I learn how to take AirTrain 2 stops from Penn
Station and get to the Newark Airport for less than $18 from her
apartment. Re-entry is a chore, but has its rewards.

Gear and Conclusions:

Food & Culture - I had enough food for another 2-3 days, especially if
I had simply bought a few noodles for the dehydrated meat. There is
very convenient resupply in Unionville, NY, Mombasha Rd and before Mt.
Wawayanda in NJ. Culver Gap is probably better west than east. People
were all friendly, other than Bear Mtn traffic.

Gear - I brought 1 or 2 shirts too many. Capilenes are ideal camp/sleep
wear. Patagonia socks out performed Smartwools, Asolo boots did well,
but Gortex failed quickly in rain and mud, even with gaitors. I might
have done okay with 11 1/2's as Phil Orens suggested, but my left
Achilles tendon is sore and has nodules suggesting a tight fit and wear
even without blisters on that foot. 

A combination of hats (Peruvian wool Aztec style and nylon sun hat)
worked with cold and rain. Marmot Precip jacket was good. Rain pants
used only Day 2, but were worth the weight. My REI convertible pants
failed after 4 years and are discarded. My ExOfficio travel shirt does
better in city than the woods, but dries quickly. 

2 bandanas are all I needed.

A seam sealed silnylon clothing bag avoided even more water problems as
well as compactor bag for my sleeping bag. WM PUMA bag did very well,
and I learned that others also use their bag to help dry out clothes
overnight. 3/4 length Ultra guide mat does well with pack at my feet.

When a Platypus bladder or tubing goes bad, it is very bad. My repair
of the leak at the cap and bend in tubing with silicon sealant held
well for 4 days.

The Nomad was fine for my tent. The hole repair on the first night was
simple with a bit of patch and silicon sealant. 

The phone and each camera should have been in its own stand up Ziplock
bag. These bags have yet to fail me. Seperately typed trail info really
helped with maps. PapaBear has an excellent system and I greatly
appreciate it. 

I liked Conquest sports drink, using 1 liter in Nalgene each AM after
breakfast and another 1 liter water in the Platypus. There was never a
need to carry more than 1 liter before getting toward the evening's
campsite.

First Aid - Bio Occlusive is fine in the city, but useless in the
woods. It does not have the ability to stick in wet conditions or stop
bleeding. There was better help with gauze and either stretch bandaid
or duct tape. Duct tape always sticks, at least to itself. This
includes blisters and cuts. Hippie Longstocking showed me use of Lamb's
Ear leaves over a blister. This worked very well and is a nice natural
remedy.

The Kelty Flight 4500 backpack is excellent. Once you figure out how to
conform the stays to the shape of your back, it fits like a glove and
wears comfortably.

Pre-trip Prep - I was in much better shape this time than I expected. I
had been working the Nordic Track more routinely, trying for 2 miles
within 18-20 minutes. This let me do 12-14 mile days much easier except
when weather combined with distances to slow things down. The distances
between shelters made some 16-17 mile days necessary, but weren't
nearly as demanding as I would have expected. Of course, this was not
the degree of ups and downs of North Georgia. I don't think I could do
Unicoi to Dicks Creek Gap in one day, even if that is only 17 miles. I
had real trail legs by Thursday in spite of my falls. I never used
poles from Agony Grind to the Hudson. Yet, stairs still hurt in NYC.

Resolve did a great job on stains and hiker stench, even on gear I
could not put into the washer.

I never missed the weather radio or other media.

Currently, the next 2 years look very meager for hiking opportunities.
I am very busy with work schedules, and have been elected President of
my Rotary club '03-04. The biggest part of that work will be next
winter and spring. Maybe I can do Pine Mountain next Febuary, and north
from Hot Springs a bit for HATT this Labor Day, but otherwise, a few
weekends here and there without chance for longer distance walking
seems likely. I sure hope I can keep up the training and physical
preparations. I don't see many gear changes needed.

OrangeBug

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