Days 124 + 125
Day 124: Mile 1274.6 | Leroy A. Smith Shelter
We woke up late because of the fiasco by the road the night before. Supersize had left us a nice pile of blueberries on a rock outside our tents. The view from camp was beautiful and a nice breeze blew through as we got up. We packed up slowly and agreed to walk together for a while. My poles had been a problem since Neel Gap in Georgia (a long time ago at this point). The locks wouldn't stay and the poles kept collapsing. I tried tightening them and loosening them and tightening them again. They wouldn't stay tight anymore. I didn't really have enough money to get new ones and I didn't want my parents to have to pay for them. Unfortunately, My tent couldn't be pitched without trekking poles and I was a mess walking without them. I posted about them on Facebook, not thinking anything would happen but hoping someone might be able to help. I turned off my phone to save battery and walked with Miles.
We had planned on only doing 16 miles that day, but we realized we were pretty close to Wind Gap (our next town stop) and decided to push ourselves. The Pennsylvania terrain was sharp and rocky this day. My feet hurt terribly and my body was tired. Miles and I made up to Lehigh Gap, the most daunting climb of Pennsylvania and the biggest rock scramble we'd seen yet.
We made it to the base and slowly started climbing over the big rocks. Hand over feet we climbed for almost a mile up out of Lehigh. The climb turned out to be more fun than hard. The clouds provided nice shade for a while as the impending storm rolled overhead. Thankfully it didn't rain while we were climbing. The views from the climb were so cool. We could see further than we'd been able to at any of the views before in Pennsylvania.
After Lehigh we stopped for a snack near the new Superfund site. We powered through the day, taking in some of the views:
We pushed ourselves into the dim evening light. We could be in town the next day if we just keep pushing. We were thirsty and there was no water to be found. If we made it to the next shelter we could find water. In the evening light we made it to the shelter before sunset. 20 miles in 9 hours. A fire burned near the tent sites and we headed toward it with a small "Woo!" We'd caught up to the Woo Crew again! They told us the water was almost a mile away. Mile and I were far too cooked to get water. We agreed to just share his tent. We split the liter of water I had left and ate some snacks instead of making dinner (which would require water). I went to bed hungry and thirsty.
Day 125: Mile 1279.2 | Travel Inn @ Wind Gap
We got up around 8am. Biscuits had already headed out but Krafty, Blackbird, and Supersize were just getting up. They were going to get breakfast in town. Miles and I headed out with two bottles full of water, thanks to Supersize who had extra. It took a lot of restraint to not drink the whole bottle right there.
Miles and I were both grumpy when we woke up. We were hangry and tired. I had an odd sense that something was wrong at home, but I couldn't tell what, and I didn't have cell service. I was fully exhausted and I just wanted to get to town to shower. We were only 5 miles from Wind Gap and we got going quickly. We were bothering each other. I was being negative and he didn't want to hear it. Miles sped ahead of me and told me he'd meet me in town.
I slowed down on the pointy, Pennsylvania rocks and turned my phone on to see if I had reception. I had a few bars but no one at home was answering the phone. When my phone finally connected to LTE I started getting all kinds of notifications.
My parents' friend Davey wanted to send me a spare pair of poles he had (thanks Davey)! A few of my other followers had donated to my blog! Trial and Error, who we met back at Woods Hole Hostel, had also made a sizable donation and wanted to take us out for dinner when we got to Wind Gap! My day was turning around, thanks to the generosity of all of my followers! I still didn't have enough money to finish, but the trail provided at least up to Vermont with these generous donations. I couldn't believe it. I felt like I worked hard out here and on my blog but it was so much more kindness than I ever could have expected. I walked and listened to some podcasts to distract myself from this underlying feeling of uneasiness. But I was happy with all of this good news.
About two miles outside of town, my phone rang. It was my dad. I told him all about my day and what happened with my poles and the blog and everything. I could tell he needed to tell me something, though. He paused and said, "Clyde had to be put down this morning." Clyde was one of my two cats. He was an older cat who I found at a shelter. No one really knew how old he was but he showed all the signs of being very old: bad teeth, poor eyesight, he could only hear out of one ear, sensitive stomach, hair loss. I guess his health began to decline rapidly over the past two weeks and he had a hard time eating. He walked around at night screaming in pain but nothing they did made him feel better. He had lost 2 out of 7 pounds. He was emaciated and couldn't even purr anymore.
(Clyde shortly before he went to the vet)
Mom took him to the vet early that morning and the vet recommended he be put down. They couldn't reach me at the time but they knew it was the right decision to help him be more comfortable. There was no way I could have made it home to say goodbye to him. The cost of the time and the ticket to get home would have been exorbitant and thru-hike ending. My love for him and my family's care for him was far better than anything he could have had before I adopted him. He had a good two years with us.
At first, I was just shocked. It didn't feel real. Tears formed at the corners of my eyes but it felt like I couldn't cry. I could hear my mom crying in the background. She loved Clyde as much as me and had diligently given him his medicines, made him special food, and took him to the vet for me while I was gone. My dad felt bad, I could tell. I got to town as I said goodbye to my parents and walked with my thoughts. I tried to call Miles and find out where he was but he wouldn't answer. I was anxious, upset, and hangry. I went to the post office first and got a care package my mom had sent. I took my box and walked toward McDonald's and the motel we had reserved a room at. I called my aunt, who had gone with me to adopt him and let her know what happened. She comforted me.
I arrived to McDonald's where I had planned on getting lunch, and found Miles there waiting for me. I told him what happened and apologized for being grumpy that morning. I got food and ate there. Miles had already gotten food somewhere else. After I ate, we went over to the motel and checked in. This motel was weird. It had all kinds of junk around outside and looked run down. The owners' apartment was clearly visible from the office and their cat glared at us from inside. One of the owners checked us in and took us to a maintenance closet to give us towels and full size bottles of body wash and shampoo. She told us to bring them back when we checked out.
When we got to the room we found a semi-updated bathroom with improperly installed faucets and a Jacuzzi tub that clearly didn't work. There was one light that barely lit the room. I was so tired I didn't even care. I plopped down on the bed and Miles showered first. I showered after him and then we took a well-deserved nap.
We woke up around 5pm and Trial and Error came to pick us up by 5:30pm. They took us to WalMart and waited while we resupplied. Then they drove us over to Texas Road House. We picked out our own steaks and they took us to a table. We talked about trekking pole mishaps, their hike, their amazing story of how they got married in the White Mountains, and all of their hiking adventures. It was a lively dinner and Error had a lot of funny stories to tell. When we finished eating, they took us out to get ice cream in Wind Gap. Error was a good driver, unlike most of our Pennsylvania car rides thus far! It was nice to be in good company, especially after the news I got that morning.
I finally felt a little bit stable. I knew what I was doing as far as backpacking was concerned. My blog was finally taking off. I had, on my own, procured enough money to sustain me a little bit farther just as I was about to run out. I was with Miles. I was content, even with the twinge of sadness that Clyde moving on had brought.