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I went to bed sore, and woke up
miserable. The almost thirty year old muscles and bones were trying to tell me that they had
had enough - and a small part of me wanted to listen. I slept in late
again this morning - my camp partner and his dog were up and at 'em at what
seemed like the crack
of dawn. I think I eventually rolled out of my bag at around 10 am.
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8/22/02
11:30 am - Buckhorn Pond: Sitting down for a lunch and
quick break at the bridge near Buckhorn Pond. Last nights sleep
was light, mainly because the husky (Kia) was restless - but also
because my camp partner snored. As soon as the dog would settle
down, he would snore, which would then wake up the dog. So the dog
would bark and wake him up. The dog would fall back to sleep and
he would follow soon after and I'd have about 10 minutes of peace, and
then he would snore again and the dog would wake up and bark. And
so on and so forth.
Anyway, I'm in poor shape
right now with my right
big toe tender and swollen... I guess from overcompensating for the
outer arch that is still hurting. My back is very sensitive, primarily where the pack is
rubbing. At this point I have to be honest, I am just thinking
about making it to Piseco. The thought of quitting has actually
entered my mind at this stage, but I am trying to decide how much shame
there would be in doing so. I cant believe I am flirting with my
breaking point 3 days in!!
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Piseco, RT 8 crossing and the General Store.
I didn't get to enjoy much of this small hike, as I was pretty miserable
from the aches and pains. The thought of pushing on was starting
to gain momentum until I found out it was supposed to rain in a few
hours. Suddenly the prospect of a hot shower and a warm bed won
out. The OxBow Motel and Restaurant/Bar are about a half mile to
the right of the General Store seen above - I made a bee line in that
direction.
*Trail tip - If you are hiking through to the post
office and on to Spruce Lake, be aware that this store is the only place
to re-supply between here and there. So if you are thirsty or
craving some ice cream, this is where you must stop.
8:00 pm - OxBow Motel: Reaching Piseco revitalized my
spirits, but not my body. I decide the best course of action is to
take a day off, try the motel on the road here and rest. I can
also use this opportunity to re-evaluate my pack and lighten it up a
bit. At the general store I see that my lean-to partner from the
night before has left me some water. I buy some odds and ends and
an ice cream bar. A passer-by notices my hiking gear and mentions that
it is going to rain tonight. Well that does it, Motel me!
Before I take off up toward the OxBow, I run into two older gents who
are very interesting and friendly. They tell me tales of their
hiking days from when they were younger. One of them almost
completed summit attempts on all 46 of the Adirondack high peaks!
I get to the motel and the owner, Ginger, hooks me up with a room and
offers to drive me the short distance to the trail head tomorrow so I
wont have to pound the black top. I call the folks to tell them
I'm pushing the schedule back a day, and since they are not far away
they decide to bring me up my new boots. The old ones have had it
and my feet are paying the price. Although this now means I have
to break in a new pair on the trail... the lesser of two evils I guess.
I get in 2 hot showers and a great meal at the Oxbow restaurant before
they arrive. I am a bit restless now but feeling better. After
going on a weight cutting mission I manage to send home lots of extra
stuff with my folks, including my tent and tarp. It will be
lean-to's from here on out. If the new boots
hold up I should keep pace over the next few days, if not, I may have to
take another day in Blue Mountain Lake - or worse case, call it quits.
But I am positive and looking forward to the next stretch of trail as I
hear it is some of the best.
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Photographs
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| Priests Vly |
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