So, I left off with me reaching Harper's Ferry the day before my birthday. I zero in town for the 8th and then get driven to Silver Spring on the 9th to celebrate my birthday with my mom, my sister and my grandfather. On the evening of the 10th, I attend my younger brother's wedding and then start right back on the trail the following morning. I get started around maybe 10 AM and was only going to do 15 miles...but I was chatting with someone who was going to do 2 more miles to a campground in the hopes for a good shower. What's two more miles after how easy most of MD was so far? It wasn't bad at all and we get rewarded for going the extra two miles. We had come upon a group of 4-H campers and their families providing trail magic.
They were making a nice big dinner of spaghetti with sauce, garlic bread and even a couple desserts for all the through hikers there. This group had made a strawberry pound cake and a chocolate cake with cherries in it and actually baked them over the fire. And yes, they also brought us smores! In exchange for the magic, we were to tell stories about the trail and why we started it. Apparently, the counselor leading the "Bug Patrol" kids has been doing trail magic at this campground for a number of years, close to 20 if I remember correctly, and we just happened to get there on just the right day and I just happened to change my plan by a couple of miles. Plus the magic didn't even end with dinner or desserts...they all stayed there the night and cooked up a breakfast of pancakes in the morning.
The next day, I decide to relax and do about nine miles instead of my normal 15 to 20. This gave me a chance to enjoy the views from Black Rock and Annapolis Rocks...they may not have occurred in that order but I know I went past both of them that day. My mom and my grandfather met me in PenMar Park the following day and I complete those 16 miles by 1 PM and hang out to wait for the picnic I know is coming. I purposely ignore the hunger pangs so I can fully enjoy the turkey pesto sandwich from Whole Foods.
Next state. Dreaded Pennsylvania aka "Rocksylvania". No, it is not neccessarily the rockiest state but it is the most painful rocky state to go through because of how many small sharp rocks there are jutting out of the ground. People have compared them to shark teeth. Many of us suffered from new pressure blisters on our heels. Little did I know that rocks would be the least of my worries in this state. I was introduced to the phenomenon of prickly heat; a heat rash that felt like bee stings up and down my back and that would come and go from Pennsylvania all the way up until Vermont.
The last 2 days of Pennsylvania were pretty crazy. I was hiking with someone and we had planned a 20 mile day into the town of Wind Gap followed by a 15 mile day into Delaware Water Gap, the town just before the bridge to New Jersey. And I will save this crazy story for tomorrow.
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