Aug 21st, Day Twenty-one

Small creek waterfall.

Today we woke up early to attempt over twenty miles of trail, with a stop at about mile fourteen to resupply.  Miles had ramen for breakfast so he would not have to get the stove out again, and we departed.  The trail started going by a big bog pond on top of a ridge, then we followed the outlet stream down from it.  There were some gorgeous little waterfalls as we descended. 

Vroman's Nose from the bottom.

After this we continued on a seemingly endless section of ups and downs.  They seemed pointless, and were therefore very annoying.  They brought us to a highway which we then followed for about two miles till we reached the trail for Vroman’s Nose.  This was a huge cliff that jutted out above the highway, and looked a lot like a nose.  It was a pretty prominent landmark in the area; people back at the biker bar had talked about it, and told me I would probably hike over it. 

Vroman's Nose at the top.

The trail up to it was pretty much straight up hill, it probably climbed faster and steeper than most of the Catskills.  When we finally achieved the summit however, the view was spectacular.  We could look up the entire valley below us all cover with corn fields and such.  Looking the other way we could see the edge of the town were we would resupply. 

Can't get the food!

Got the food!

Food is gone!

After walking down the other side of the mountain we walked around the edge of a corn field to reach town.  The trail was so over grown that Miles chose to walk between the rows of corn instead, much like he used to back when he was a kid.  We finally break out of the corn field, and reach a road.  Across a bridge is the town, and the first thing we see is a gas station / subway; that immediately becomes our destination.  The last of our food was used up on the mountain so we were completely out.  Miles went hog wild once he got in the gas station.  He ordered a large pizza, and as it was being made he bought out the entire store, or close enough.  The one thing he did not want was to have to worry about food as we finished out our trip. 

Mmmmmm, Pizza!

When the pizza arrived we believed ourselves in heaven.  Miles sat down with the whole pizza and a mountain dew, and got to work.  There were a couple people who made disbelieving comments as they walked past, no one thought little old Miles could actually put away that much food.  He did though, he was even most of the way through before he even remembered to take a picture of it.  After the pizza, he ate two ice cream bars and we continued on our way. 

This is where the story gets rough.  The ice cream and mountain dew and pizza all started rolling around in a confined area.  Miles goes climbing out of town as the sun is getting low, and his stomach feels as though it became the battle ground for world war three.  It was the only time during the hike where thinking of food was not pleasurable.  We made it about five more miles in that condition before light ran out.  There was no need for dinner that night, we just went right to sleep.  

Traveled 19.6 miles of trail.

 

-SM-

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Aug 20th, Day Twenty

Miles put on his clean socks.  (pictured)

Breakfast in front of the waterfall.

This morning early we ate breakfast in front of a very beautiful waterfall.  Once again our food is running low so we are trying to eat as little as possible.  Miles thought he was going to get some more supplies today around noon when we walked by a concession stand for a local swimming pool.  He looked inside the windows and saw a bunch of snack food for sale, but it was closed, and we waited a bit but no one showed up to open it. 

The Gilboa Fossils.

After we left there the trail was uneventful for most the day.  Some sections were the worst we had encountered so far; it was more like bush whacking than hiking but we made it to the lean-to we were trying for.  It was one of the nicest lean-to’s we had seen on the trail, even nicer than the ones on the Appalachian Trail.  For dinner miles treated himself and made a Raman dish and a pasta side’s dish.  This left us with a meager amount of food to hike the fourteen miles to town the next day, but it would have to work. 

Some squirrel has been living off this tree for a while. 

Since today was a little boring we wanted to take this opportunity to discuss Miles thought process while hiking.  We had been told by other hikers before we started that, since you had so much free time you always were mentally going through your pack and figuring out what you didn’t need so you could get rid of it and make your load lighter.  Well Miles is from the Miller family so for him it was a bit different.  Miles would start by mentally evaluating all of the food that was in the backpack.  Next he would figure out how long it would last him, and when he could eat each thing.  He would figure out how much he could eat each time, and still be able to reach the next resupply without starving the last day.  After that he would figure out what he wanted to get when he resupplied.  Then he would start thinking about what he wanted to eat when he was in the next town.  That would evolve into what he just wanted to eat in general.  He would often think of things he had never actually had before and would be like, “Oh yea, I’d love to have one of those right now.”  And from there he would go to wanting two of everything.  “Man I’d love to have two large pizzas right now.” 

My shelter for the evening.

That is a brief look into the mental process which would occupy hours of our hiking time, and would often repeat several times a day. 

Traveled 19.00 miles of trail.  

-SM-

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Aug 19th, Day Nineteen

We have noticed that our distances have gone down in the last couple days, so Miles put some thought into it.  The one option is that we are just getting worn down by the hills and duration of the hike, but Miles thinks it’s due to the sleeping pad he bought in Phoenicia.  He is no longer cold in the morning with rocks sticking into his back so he sleeps longer; it is logical.  This morning however with a great distance to travel we forced ourselves to arise early. 

It was our first day out of the Catskills, and would include road hiking as well as the trails.  Towards the midday we were hiking along an old country road when an old timer in a pickup truck pulled up and asked if we needed a ride.  Miles told him we were hiking a trail and would not feel right if we didn’t hike the whole thing; the guy got very excited at the idea.  He talked about how he loved young people adventuring and enjoying life.  He also offered us to come have lunch if we liked, now that was tempting for Miles; we all know how he loves food, but he was afraid he would not make the campsite we needed to get to so had to decline that too.  We stood around and talked with the old gentleman for about fifteen minutes then took off on our way. 

Trail through the woods.

Trail through the meadow.

The trail slowly deteriorated into a deer trail by the end of the day, we were simply going from mark to mark on the trees in the woods, and fighting our way through overgrown fields occasionally.  With about three miles to go, the trail went by a really beautiful waterfall.  As we took some pictures, Miles noticed a building on the other side of the river which had restaurant style table in the window.  We had been really conserving food all day and were very hungry, not to mention an extra meal could really spread our rations a bit better.  We decided to go check this place out.

The overlook for the waterfall

The bar, Nicks Waterfall House

Cheeseburger.

As we walked up a huge shepherd and two yip yap dogs came out and heralded us in.  We walked inside and pulled up a stool to a small bar alongside the other four occupants.  Miles ordered a bud light and people started talking with us asking us about what we were doing and such.  The bar was a biker bar and they all seemed to enjoy the excitement of adventure.  The crowd seemed to be split at this time of the good ol boy locals and a couple bikers; each equally curious about the expedition to this point.  After a bit, Miles asked the bartender if they made any food.  She was a sweet, good natured lady; and her reply was, “Well it’s my first night on the grill, so I’ll do what I can.”  Miles reassured her that he was starving and had not eaten real food in a while, so anything placed in front of him would probably seem like the best thing ever. 

Parmisan Chicken Cutlet Sandwich.

After looking over the menu and some suggestions from the local experts, Miles decided to get the ten ounce cheese burger with fries and pasta salad.  One of the guys said that if he got that he would not need anything else.  Now I know how Miles eats, and we both doubted that to be the case; but decided to try anyway.  The burger came out with all the sides, completely covering and hanging off of a regular sized plate.  Miles tore into it, rapidly reducing it to nothing.  When the bartender asked if we were ok Miles ordered up another beer, and a parmesan chicken cutlet sandwich with a side of fries.  When that meal arrived the disappearing act was again repeated; much to the amazement of the other patrons.  The bartender remarked, “Well I’d sure rather board you than feed you.”  Miles thought that was quite a compliment. 

Got to sleep on a bed!

During all this time, Miles had been chatting off and on with a gentleman beside him.  When the guy finally inquired where we planned to stay that night, Miles informed him that we were going to the campground down the road.  He said they would over charge us and that we should stay above the bar instead.  Miles got a big grin on his face at that suggestion, it turns out that for less money than we would have paid at the campsite we could rent a bed and shower above the bar.  The idea of getting to sleep on a bed after enjoying a nice hot meal seemed like the closest thing to heaven we were gonna find.  It was certainly an exciting day, we fell asleep listening to the waterfall shortly after.  If any of you ever happen through West Conesville, stop into Nicks Waterfall House and have a beer and a burger. 

Traveled 16.00 miles of trail.

-SM-

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