My last week in PA – Advil, Ankles, and Assistance

Standing on the PA side of the gap, looking across to the NJ side

During our last week in PA we decided to slackpack our way across the worst of the rocks.  My ankles were struggling to get me through the toe grabbing, ankle twisting little buggers! K had been arguing for more slackpacking to get through the area, and I agreed (although I was stubborn about it at first) that it would be better to “platinum blaze” through the rocks if it was going to help me to stay on trail. This meant staying at hotels and hostels and arranging shuttles in order to carry lighter packs during our hikes.

In addition to helping me get through without injury, another benefit was that we were able to cover more miles most days than we had been. We did multiple days over 12 miles, which was a huge accomplishment for me.

Here’s a breakdown of our mileage and some highlights from the last week of PA hiking:

14.5 miles (Rt 183 – Port Clinton)

We found this interesting guy near a power line clearing

The descent into Port Clinton was very steep. I was relieved that I didn’t have a 30 pound pack on my back for that one!

If you look carefully you can see me wayyyyy up above and far away – photo by @keithmetzger78 on IG

9.3 miles (Reservoir Road to Eckville shelter) AND hitting the 200 mile mark just after starting for the day

It was snowing off and on all day. There was an amazing view from Pulpit rock, which is right near an observatory.

Pulpit Rock view by @keithmetzger78 on IG

The snow got heavier when we got to Eckville shelter and it was really cold, but luckily an uber driver we had used before came to get us and brought us back to the hotel we  were staying at in Hamburg. The caretaker at the Eckville shelter came out to talk to us for a few minutes while we were waiting for our ride.  He had just been informed that the shelter and caretakers house (as well as the 501 shelter) are scheduled to be demolished next year. I wonder what will be available to hikers once those shelters have been removed?

11.5 miles SOBO (Rt 309 to Eckville shelter)

A much warmer day; we stopped and had a lunch of PB&J on tortillas at the Allentown hiking club shelter. The shelter was well maintained, and I enjoyed seeing and hearing the Eastern Phoebe birds in the nearby trees.

K waiting for me after lunch at the Allentown shelter

Zero Day: left the hotel and got a ride to Breezy Acres hostel in Lehighton.

My ankles needed a day without miles. Breezy Acres was a great place to zero, with shelves full of books for book dragons like me.

Book bonanza at Breezy Acres hostel

I grabbed a Michael Crichton book (The Lost World) and spent most of the day napping under my blanket or reading.

Meri Poppins, who runs the hostel along with her family, is an amazing resource for hikers!

She knows the local sections of trail, as she is the caretaker for one of the shelters as well as a trail maintainer and sawyer.

She let us borrow rubber tips for our poles to help us get over the rocks the next day, which was great as the rubber tips on my poles were long gone.

She also described the terrain and told us that we’d be facing the worst of the rocks over the next two days as we hiked into and out of the Lehigh gap. She was right!

14.3 miles (Rt 309 to the Lehigh gap)

Lexi (Meri Poppins) gave us a ride to the trailhead and I got some fuzz therapy from her beagle hiking buddy, Summit, as we shared the back seat on the way.

It was warm and sunny, and it was also the weekend, which added up to lots of people out on the trail. It also meant that the snakes were out! A 4 foot long black rat snake raced away from the trail as we passed by.

I enjoyed hiking Knife’s Edge, as it was challenging but not really scary, and offered some great views.

Hiking along Knife’s Edge – photo by @keithmetzger78 on IG

The popular (and extremely rocky) hiking area around Bake Oven Knob was packed with people, so we didn’t stay long even though the view was spectacular. 

I typically spend about half of my day hiking alone and the other half with just K; being around a lot of people and noise while I’m hiking just isn’t enjoyable to me.

After climbing down from Bake Oven Knob (across some pretty big rocks), we hiked on to Bake Oven Knob shelter and decided to stop there for lunch.  Meri Poppins told me that it is one of the original AT shelters, built around 1937; she is responsible for taking care of it  and does a great job!

K decided to go filter some more water for us from one of the springs downhill from the shelter before eating, so I checked out the log book while I waited for him. I was happy to see  another encouraging note from our friend Lucky 7!

I wrote my own entry, drank some water, ate my chocolate peanut butter (thanks to Meri Poppins for hooking us up with that- I didn’t even know there was such a thing!) on a tortilla, and started to wonder what was taking K so long!

Bake Oven Knob shelter at lunchtime

I texted him. No answer. Just as I had decided to hike down to the spring myself to find him, he came half-running up the hill, red-faced and sweating.

He sat down to recover and get his own lunch while he told me that he had just seen a pack of around 10 coyotes!

The pack had come down the same trail he used to get to the spring and then gone back and forth on it a few times while he was getting the water filtered. He decided to wait until they had gone before coming back up the hill, as they had been between him and where I was at the shelter. 

The rest of the day was much less challenging, and we cruised along at a good clip. We passed by the George W. Outerbridge shelter on our way down to the Lehigh gap.  The entrance to the shelter was blocked by an assortment of tarps and garbage bags connected with zip ties, and as I continued past it and down the hill I met a man coming toward the shelter who was obviously not a hiker. I smiled and nodded at him, and he nodded back and then sat on a rock and watched me, apparently for a long time, as I passed him and continued downhill.

K had stayed behind to get water from the spring near the shelter and watched the strange guy who was watching me.

The water source near Outerbridge shelter was very patriotic

We both noticed that he wore a very long knife or machete on his belt, as well as pepper spray or mace, and he just seemed.. off. When he finally got up and walked toward the shelter, he seemed surprised and nervous that K was there by the spring. K tried to engage him in conversation, and found out that it was his stuff in the shelter, and that he was staying there. Nothing more happened, but after we got back that night we told Lexi about it and she made calls to try to get some officials involved in removing him from the shelter. She also made sure that hikers coming into the area knew that they shouldn’t plan to stay at that shelter while he was still there. 

12.4 miles ( Lehigh gap to Smith gap)

The climb out of Lehigh gap was the most challenging I have done yet!

Rock climb out of Lehigh gap – road way down below (photo by @keithmetzger78 on IG)

The view after the worst of the rock climbing – but still quite a bit of rock scrambling ahead

The first part was a normal, steep climb, but that changed to an actual hand over hand rock climb about halfway up! I would never have made it wearing my full pack.  At one point we didn’t know how to get to the next blaze, but just then two young (mid 20s) hikers showed up. They gave us suggestions on how to navigate the section using a 4 inch wide ledge and some handholds, and their obvious ease with the climb helped give me a little more confidence that we would be able to get through it.

Once we made it to the top we spent the rest of the day hiking through a cloud. It would blow like smoke across the trail in front of us, and the hike was very quiet and a little eerie.

There was a flock of Golden Crowned Kinglets around us when we ate lunch- a new bird for my life list!

Later, we hiked for a while a couple hundred feet away from a ski resort, and we could both see and hear the skiers laughing and yelling on the slopes as we continued along our rocky way.

We finally made it to Smith gap and I was very happy when I was able to get into Lexi’s car and relax on the ride back to the hostel. On our way, we stopped and picked up another hiker from Lehigh gap who would be staying at Breezy Acres that night as well.

Jess, from Sweden, is trying to complete a calendar year triple crown!

During the rest of the evening we shared stories and celebrated Lexi’s son’s birthday with her family (we even got to share birthday dinner and cake!). Jess gave me some tips she thought might help me with my foot and ankle pain and suggested wearing compression socks at night, which I will try once I get a pair. She also encouraged me to go ahead and take Advil during the day to help reduce the pain and inflammation I’ve been having while hiking.

8.1 miles (Smith gap to Wind gap)

K had to pick up a package at the post office in Palmerton before we could start hiking for the day, so we got started a little late. Lexi made us great breakfast sandwiches, brought us to the post office, and then said goodbye as she dropped us off at Smith gap. I really enjoyed getting to know her and her family and hope to meet up again one day.

One of the luxury items that K was excited to get in his package from home was bamboo t.p., and our joking about it led to the adoption of his trail name. Yup, K’s trail name is Bamboo!

Once we got to Wind gap we walked a short distance into town to spend the night behind Detzi’s tavern. Shiloh, the owner, has carried on the tradition of the previous owner, Joe, who started letting hikers tent in the field behind the restaurant years ago. I got to meet them both, and they were very kind; we had a great dinner there and spent a few hours waiting out most of a thunderstorm before going back to our tent. We were even invited to come into the restaurant in the morning for hot tea and to use the bathrooms.

I woke up sometime around 2 am with the tent side being blown inwards onto my cheek! The wind gusts made it hard to sleep well, but eventually the sun came up and we started getting ready for the day.

15.5 miles (Wind gap to Delaware Water gap 

We arranged a ride with shuttle drivers Tiedye and Moon back to the trailhead, and they brought our extra gear up to the Deer Head Inn at the Delaware water gap. It was a beautiful day and a great (and long) hike, and we enjoyed our lunch and a Nantucket cookie from Bamboo’s care package at the Kirkridge shelter along the way.

I see you over there Jersey!

The Deer Head Inn is a famous jazz venue, but was completely quiet and empty except for us on that Tuesday night. One of the owners, Mary, was kind enough to give us a ride down to the local pizza place so we could grab dinner, and when we got back to the inn we both fell asleep almost instantly, tired from our long hike and lack of sleep the night before. 

Dreams of NJ danced in my head that night, with the promise of fewer rocks and gentler climbs…