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[at-l] TRIP REPORT: Weekend on the MST [LONG]

a.k.a. SANDY & KAHLEY'S Great Adventure, Volume 1
(Featuring TWO DOGS and a ROPE. In which SANDY gets BADGERED)

HITTING THE TRAIL
Since Kahley and I live within five hours of each other, we figured we
could get together this spring and do a little backpacking. Plans changed
several times, but this weekend worked out for us to meet and do a section
of Pennsylvania's Mid State Trail south of Rt 45/Bald Eagle State Forest.
My car had been acting up for about a week and I found out the night before
it needed a transmission, but figured, what the hey, lets burn the old one
out first :) Four hour drive (didn't lose any gears, thankfully, just
shuddered through shift points) up to Kahley's base camp, a family
fishing/hunting cabin in central PA. We left my car there, put hers at the
midpoint, and her parents loaded our gear, us, the two dogs (TZ & Nicky)
into a smallish car and bumped up and down the state forest roads to the
start point (was it Bear Run? I don't have an MST map) around 1pm Fri.

The day started out warm, blue & sunny but soon turned to cloud cover with
occasional drizzle. The approach trail to the MST wasn't clearly marked,
and was rarely used, based on how close the weeds encroached on both sides.
Little bees buzzed back and forth across it. Kahley had the dogs on leads
and they were very well behaved, both carried packs. Her pack looked huge!
I almost felt guilty that my pack weighed around 40 lbs and was nearly
crushing me...ouch! Tent, multi-day food and mucho water weighs a lot extra.

Found the MST, had a hoagie lunch, and started over the mountain. She sure
knew how to pick a trail! Mostly flats and downhills, rare uphills, but a
lot of rockhopping on the ridgetop overlooking Penn's Valley. Beautiful
views. I was into the rocks at the top of the mountain -- looked like
either orthoclase or flint, and I wasn't sure which. Had to grab samples,
of course!

Also had to watch carefully for blazes as they weren't always spaced within
sight of each other. She'd worried that with the central PA drought, we'd
have a dry camp, so at the bottom of the mountain we got water out of Libby
Run. My first try with a pump (Pur Hiker, I believe)...wow, you thru-hikers
must have awesome upper arm muscles by the end of the trip! <G>

Got colder as we descended into the hemlock forests below, where we found
our campsite. My first time tenting since teen years. Scoped out the spot,
set up tents ok. Fire ring and plenty of creek available, so we had a small
campfire...amazing how Kahley can start a fire without matches! <G> simply
by dumping flaming contents of Zip Stove into the tinder in the fire
ring... on the first try, I got the MSR primed but looked away and it went
out. Got some more liquid in the primer cup, ignite, and it flamed up like
a fireball. Scared the shit out of me. But it calmed down before I could
throw something on it, and the green/blue flames started to flicker.
Success! Just hope I can pull that off again w/o the fireball. Had the
Liptons cooking, no problem cleaning up the titanium pot -- I don't know
that it has a non-stick coating, but it sure acted like it. Had dogs tied
to rope, but no beans...Kahley brought mini-bottles of wine, we sat and
talked, she gave me some camping wisdom (of which I am mostly devoid save
book-learning), and watched the stars come out as the sky cleared and the
air got colder...

Ready to call it a night, we heard a loud crashing noise on the near
mountainside. Figured the dogs would bark if it got too close. I debated
long and hard about bear bagging but my strap on my (new!) bag had broken,
and I couldn't find any low branches, so I decided to stuff the food deep
in my pack and cover the pack with smelly day clothes. Got in the tent and
immediately discovered that I was on a slight downslope .. I kept slipping
down the Thermarest like a slide into the corner of the tent. Hmm. More
noises outside. Tried to sleep but every little noise bugged me. Was a bit
scared. Couldn't tell the difference between the dog noises from Kahley's
tent and the potential "wildlife" noises. 

Then, something started scratching at the wall of my tent. My heart raced.
I grabbed the flashlight and looked. Couldn't tell (with the fly on) what
it was, but it was sure bigger than a mouse. I yelled out to Kahley but she
was asleep. The dogs started barking, and she woke up to shut them up, so I
yelled again. I *was not* about to unzip the tent door with something
sniffling against the wall of the tent near the door. She came over, and it
went away, so I popped outside with a flashlight. Dogs still barking. We
saw the dark, wide back and skinny tailed critter climb over a distant log,
and put our spots on it. A badger! Took me a moment to figure out it must
have smelled the residue of hot cocoa in my cup...I didn't clean it well
enough. But it didn't damage my tent, so after the dogs scared it back up
the mountain, we again retired.

I still didn't sleep well. It got cold, and I just don't know if I have to
gradually get used to sleeping outdoors or what, but I kept waking up, and
I usually don't do that. 
Not sure if too scared or too uncomfortable in the mummy bag. I typically
sleep on my side and to do that, I have to hang out of the bag. Then I get
cold. Gotta figure these logistics out. Hmm. Anyway, I woke up with upset
stomach and near-diarrhea several times. 

Next morn, Kahley told me something (perhaps the badger again) sniffed
around her tent too, but dogs drove it away. We packed up slowly (me a
little quicker because I wanted to keep moving ... it was chilly! Prob.
around 30). I still had the runs, and her dogs did too. Was wondering
perhaps it was the cabin water? Didn't know for sure. Tents were damp from
dew so we had extra weight to carry.

The creek-crossing bridge was decrepit with missing boards, all rotted, so
we had to pick our way across mossy rocks. No wet boots, thankfully. Made
it down the mountainside -- a steep but lovely descent -- and then had to
roadwalk some distance. My feet started getting very hot. I checked, but my
Thorlo's weren't wet, the liners weren't wet...too much friction? Put some
moleskin on my heel where it looked red. Sunshine and blue skies again by
the time we got to Kahley's car, so we ditched some weight (raingear) and
plotted how we could avoid a later roadwalk because that seemed to irritate
my feet and make my ankles sore. We got back on the MST where it parallels
Penn's Creek along a rail-trail...totally flat walking on cinders and
grass. I loved the boulder fields that tumbled down the mountainside...just
seeing that many tons of rock on a mountainside is so awesome. Great views
of the creek, too, and the trout fishermen, since the leaves aren't out
yet. Lots of wildflowers everywhere: trout lily, bergamot, some trillium,
mayapples (not quite open yet), etc.

Kahley is very stringent about keeping her dogs leased, so we had to get
off trail several times to avoid confrontation with loose dogs (a pet peeve
of mine too, pun intended). About a mile downstream, TZ started getting
sicker and barfing, so we thought it best to return to the cabin rather
than camp out. I breathed a little sigh of relief because my 'runs' weren't
getting much better but I figured I could stick it out. We did get up to
the tunnel -- at least I did, while Kahley watched the dogs and the packs
-- that the trail runs through. It is so cool. It's like walking thru a
cave. It was built for a narrow gauge rr, and they dug it right thru the
mountain out of the rocks -- no support walls. Spent a lot of time poking
around in there and looking out at the creek at Poe Paddy State Park, then
walked back. Got a couple weird looks from folks who'd seen us hike out
(why carry backpacks if coming back this way?) but made it back to the car
keeping TZ hydrated. I thought I was drinking enough water but apparently
not, since my skin on my palms was drying out. Drank the whole 64oz by the
time I got back to the car. Near the car, the dogs virtually ran over a
baby copperhead sunning itself on the trail. Ugh!

We drove to the cabin, and it was very much a 'hostel' experience -- tons
of beds, people in and out (her relatives who share it and were up
fishing), mouse droppings to clean up, the whole nine yards...but a very
pleasant place. And most important -- indoor plumbing! No hot water or
heat, but who cared. Good thing we got there because I had a very bad
attack when we got back and was thrilled to use porcelain rather than a
log. Could wash & change, too. And cook on a stove. Simply heaven. Stayed
there overnight to get some good sleep before taking the long drive home.

Glad to say I learned a few good tricks from Kahley ... and a few important
things I need to get in my pack right away, like Immodium D, foot powder,
etc. I broke out with that goofy dark red skin rash again, seems to come on
whenever the sun is out whether I'm in pants or shorts...heat rash? Doesn't
itch but it looks like a bad case of poison ivy.

But had a good time anyway, and looking forward to our next trip. Decided
that she likes to hike, loves to camp; I tolerate camping because I love to
hike. We'll see if that changes -- I'll know when I get a good night's
sleep. And in case you've wondered: Kahley is pronounced Kelly. :)

Your turn to fill in the blanks, Kahley...

Cheers, Sandy
(getting car fixed today and prepping for the LHT next!)












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