Days 10 - 16

Day 10 – Wednesday, June 25

Miss Mary gave us breakfast and then dropped us off in town where we could buy some more food. The day was so nice that we thought we would walk on the road some for a change of pace and to try to make it to a train station to go to New York City by the weekend. When we got on a busy stretch of road, first a man named Bob gave us a ride and then two men from Ecuador picked us up. They were on their way home from work and had a small car. My Dad rode in the front seat with a big saw on his lap and I had a huge bucket on mine. We could not talk much with the men, but they had a Spanish Bible in their car with all their tools. After they passed us the first time it took about 15 minutes for them to come back. They must have gone back a long way to pick us up. That night we stayed in the ten mile shelter with a man who just moved away from the Chicago area and a couple from Florida who were camping.

Day 11 – Thursday, June 26

We walked and walked and walked through the woods and passed many people. One group of men was from England and one of the men was wearing a skirt (kilt). After walking across two meadows just as the sun was setting we came out on the road, still about 5 miles from our shelter. We decided to go the long way around on the road because it was getting dark and a retired Brooklyn Fireman who was out on a drive was nice enough to give us a ride. He drove us to a huge oak tree where we could walk a few miles to our next shelter before it got too dark. At the shelter three men were already there. One of the men lives in Glen Ellyn, just a few miles from where we live. His trail name was Willie Boy. After we got some fresh water out of the brook we made dinner and went to bed. Between my Dad and the three other men, I have never heard so much snoring in my whole life.

Day 12 – Friday, June 27

We were still trying to get down the trail as fast as we could so we got off on a winding highway. We couldn’t hitch hike because we were now in New York, but no one even slowed down or offered to help. We did walk by a prison and my Dad thought maybe that was why people were not offering us rides. One time a dog wandered in the road and a bunch of cars stopped. I couldn’t believe how many people were so concerned about the dog when they did not even seem to notice the tired boy. We had pizza for lunch, which was great and after miles on the road a man who had passed us earlier in the day offered us a ride when we walked by his shop. He had a business that sold lawn tractors and said he had the whole afternoon to give us a lift. When we got in his van he gave us both ice cold cans of pop, which tasted so good. Fortunately, the shelter we were going to was right off the road so he took us right to the RPH shelter. When we arrived Blackbeard was there reading a book. He was a guy from South Carolina who went to school to be a Nuclear Physicist, but was going to start blacksmith school in August. There were also two other through hikers who were from Israel. They both just got out of the military and were walking 20 – 30 miles everyday. They were pickle and Raggedy Andy. They would speak in both English and Hebrew. They were from Israel but were also Christians. Two girls also stayed at the shelter who were going to hike to West Virginia like us.

Day 13 – Saturday, June 28

This was our biggest day of hiking because we wanted to get to the trail station to go into New York City for church on Sunday. We started early, but it was already almost 90 degrees on top of the mountain. After about 3 miles we climbed down a steep hillside to a lake with a beach and showers. After we got cleaned up and had lunch, we walked until it was so dark that we could not even see. By the end of the day we walked over 20 miles, but my Dad and I both had blisters on our feet. We stayed at the ball field of a Monastery, but since it was so late and so hot we did not even pitch our tent. We were alone, but my Dad heard noises in the woods all night.

Day 14 – Sunday, June 29

We got up really early and walked to the train station in town. It was right across the river from West Point and we could see all the buildings. The train to New York was full and all the people seemed happy. Many of them were going to see the Yankees play the Mets. We went to church at Manhattan Bible Church and even though we were late the service was still going when we got there. After church we got stuck on a train that had to stop because of construction, a huge downpour, and the Gay Parade. I think I am scarred for life. We met with Mr. and Mrs. Mendez who were shopping in Chinatown and they took us home to Mr. Mendez’ parent’s house in Long Island where we ate Columbian food and stayed the night. They also gave us a new socks and a bunch of medicine for our feet. I got to watch a movie with Nathaniel, Mr. Mendez’ nephew from Georgia.

Day 15 – Monday, June 30

We decided to take a zero day by walking around New York City. Mr. & Mrs. Mendez dropped us off in the morning at the train station on their way to the airport to go back to Chicago. When we got to Penn Station, we went up to the Empire State building. Security would not let us take the backpacks up to the top, so we left our backpacks there all day. It was nice to walk around without the packs. We rode a ferry to Staten Island, walked around Central Park, and then went to Time Square at night. Our bus was not until the next morning so we slept the night at the train station. We did not get much sleep, but it made me remember what homeless people do every night.

Day 16 – Tuesday, July 1, 2008

Instead of going back to the trail in New York where we left off, we took a bus to Delaware Water Gap in Pennsylvania. The bus let us off just a few miles from the trail. Because our feet were still hurting from the blisters, we decided to take a zero day where we only did a little walking. We got a ride in a pick up into town and we found a motel where we could spend the night.

Day 8 & 9

Day 8 - Monday, June 23
The day started off great. It was thundering and lightening outside, but we were cozy in our beds at a hotel. But then we had to leave at check out time and it was still pouring rain. We took a bus through town and the driver showed us a tree that had fallen over the night before right on top of a car. A person in the car was killed. We had just walked down the sidewalk in front of the tree the night before. The bus driver dropped us off at what turned out to be on the wrong road. A nice Christian man named John picked us up. His son had gone to Taylor University, the same school my sister Brittany is going to start in the fall. When we told him where we were going he turned around the car in the rain and took us way out of his way to the place we needed to go. When we got to the trail we had to climb straight up the side of a hill in the pouring rain alongside a huge waterfall. Thanks Uncle Ronnie and Mr. Lohr for the hiking sticks. We would have never made it up the side of the hill without them! It got dark before we got to our campsite and we had to use flashlights to see the trail. My Dad and I both fell down and I got a big bruise on my arm. When we finally got to the campsite we ate peanut butter sandwiches for dinner and set up the tent. Because we could not find the bear box for the food we had to hang our food way up in a tree by a rope so that the bears would not get to it. Though it rained at night we stayed dry in our tent and slept OK, even though Dad said that it stormed through the night.
Day 9 – Tuesday, June 24
As soon as we got up we hiked all day. Yesterday we did not see one hiker on the trail but today there were a bunch. We climbed over the highest spot in Connecticut and all day long was up and down. We passed another father and son who are trying to do the whole trail together. The son is in college and they started when he was about my age. They do a little bit each year. We decided to hitch hike into the town of Salisbury, CT to wash our clothes because our socks are all wet. When we went to the little public library a lady named Mary that we had met a couple of days before at church in Great Barrington saw us and invited us to spend the night at her house. That made me happy.

Week One

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Day 1 - Monday, June 16
Mr. Mendez picks us up to ride in his semi to Syracuse. I sleep on the lower bunk.

Day 2 - Tuesday, June 17
Mr. Mendez buys us lunch on an Indian Reservation in NY. We make a late delivery to a warehouse in Syracuse and watch the Celtics win the NBA playoffs in his truck on a tiny black and white television while the truck is being unloaded.

Day 3 - Wednesday, June 18
Mr. Mendez drops us off at the bus station and after riding four different buses we arrive in Lee, MA, just a few miles from the Appalachain Trail (AT). We hiked about 7 miles on the road and down the trail to the Cabin at Upper Goose Pond. It is a two story cabin with bunk beds and mattresses. It is called the Hilton of the AT. The cabin was packed with hikers and at least one tent outside. In the morning Dave, the volunteer caretaker, made us blueberry pancakes.

Day 4 - Thursday, June 19
We hiked all day and made it to the Shaker Campground. One time we stopped for a break on some rocks and after a few minutes I saw the skin of a snake lying next to my foot. My Dad thought we better get moving just in case the rest of the snake was nearby. It was almost dark when we got to the campground and I thought I heard a bear growl. At the campground there were 5 tents, 6 guys and one dog named Champ. Each morning we have a pop tart for breakfast and Ramen noodles for lunch and dinner. Chicken is my favorite.

Day 5 - Friday, June 20
We only hiked about 5 miles and we were at the South Wilcox Shelter having lunch when a bad thunderstorm came. We had about 5 miles more to go to the next shelter and it was already about 3 pm so we decided to stay there for the evening. Two ladies from Belgium stopped by the shelter while we were eating. They were going in the other direction and had only about a mile to go to get to the next shelter. When the rain stopped they went on. We talked with them a little about Belgium. They said during WW II the German marched through in only two days. they also said there are more pigs in Belgium than people and it is causing a problem for their drinking water. When my Dad asked them about God, they said that no young people go to church there and that they don't even think about God. The water came from a spring that came out under a rock that was split in two. It was like the story of Moses getting water from the rock. The water was very cold and clear, but we treat all the water we drink with Iodine tablets.

Day 6 - Saturday, June 21
We got up early from our shelter and found that five other people had come during the night and stayed at the old shelter that was on the other side of the privy. We had a big shelter with a loft and bunks to ourselves while they were crammed into a tiny old one. They must not have known it was there in the dark. On our hike out we stopped by a pond where a man was fishing in a boat and I sat on a rock and let me feet soak in the cold water. It felt good. On the way to Great Barrington we talked with a 70-year-old grandma who was hiking by herself. Her trail name was Safety Pins. She called us Grasshopper and Chicago. The day before she went the wrong way on the trail almost all day, but now she was going in the right direction. We stayed that night at a hostel on a silent retreat center. We were not allowed to talk to the people who stayed there. We went into town and had a big hamburger. The people that gave us a ride into town was Kevin, Tina, Elyssa and Ethan. Elyssa and Ethan go to AWANA at their church. We also got rides from a mom and her son and another lady. People usually pick you up along the road if they know you need a ride and see that you are a hiker.

Day 7 - Sunday, June 22
We got a ride into town to go to Church. The service lasted about 3 hours and there was alot of singing. I went to children's Church during the preaching. During church it started raining very hard so we went across the street to a hotel. We were able to get a shower and watch the Cubs play the White Sox. We also went shopping for the food for the next week on the trail and we boxed up stuff to send home that we don't want to carry anymore. My Dad said I didn't need the toy cars or extra clothes.