Slowly but Surely...
Yesterday we hiked about 7 miles out of Port Clinton. We got a late start because we went exploring around the area for a bit. We found an excellent little PA Dutch Diner to have some brunch at, and had fun looking at all of the Halloween decorations that seem to have sprung up overnight. Pennsylvanians seem to take Halloween very, very seriously. They don't stop at a sign in the yard and a few pumpkins on the porch. We're talking whole houses covered in fake blood and spiderwebs. Very, very impressive.
Giant Inflatable Monsters will eat you!!!
It was another beautiful fall day, so even though there were no exciting vistas or other hikers out, we enjoyed the day and finished our 7 miles in just a few hours. Today, however, was not such a beautiful day. It was MUCH colder, there was a 100% chance of rain in the forecast, and it was already cloudy when we left for the trail at 7:30 am. We did have a most excellent chauffeur though.
Mr. Smith - Banker, Secret Agent, and Trail Taxi Extraordinaire
We hiked about 9 total miles today, and the first few were quite hard. Big rocks to climb over and a steep ascent. But the rain held off and the view at the top was worth it.
Leaves from Above
After we got to the top of the mountain, we were greeted by what can only be described as an interstate by AT hiker standards. It was a smooth, flat gravel road that had clearly been used for some kind of forest maintenance at one time, but was now relegated to transporting hikers. The rain set in about the time we hit the "interstate," but it was such nice walking I almost didn't care.
Leaves from Below
At the end of the 9 miles, I was a little cold and a tad damp, but nothing a nice heated car and a cup of coffee at a local diner didn't fix. The rain got progressively harder throughout the day, so it was a very good thing we got up and did our hike for the day earlier than usual. Timing is everything.
A few soggy steps closer to Maine...
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