I’d like to start with a question, for those of my readers who don’t make it through to the end, because I’d really like to collect answers to this one so please add a comment. What book changed your life, and how?
A few weeks back, Ken and I were able to get away for a weekend backpacking trip. We have been working on closing our gap on the Appalachian Trail between where we are in Pennsylvania and the border of Connecticut (here’s a link to a map of sections we’ve done). Saturday November 4th we started early in a hotel room with the objective to be at Thunderhead Lodge (1246.6) by noon to meet our shuttle ride/host. We got up, did a shake down and drove to Hawk Mountain Road in Eckville (1235.1) It was still dark when we parked. There were a few other cars on the side of the road plus one guy in an old, beat up pick up truck. He was smoking a cigarette and although we had zero interactions with him, I got spooked. Part of it could have been from the strange screaming sound we heard upon getting out of the car, some kind of animal noise we could not identify. Ken led the way into the trail, both of us with our headlamps on and Ken carried a very bright flashlight as well. He kept shining the light behind me, I figured he was making sure the guy wasn’t following behind us. I got the song “I always feel like, somebody’s watching me” stuck in my head. Pennsylvania is a big hunting state, and I know that the hunters want nothing more than to hunt safely and never lose their right to hunt. Still, the times I have seen people on the trail with guns, it makes me nervous. I’ve had some stories shared with me about the dangers of the trail, but I have never been in any danger out there, luckily, so as the song continued on repeat in my head, I reminded myself that statistically speaking, I was in a good spot. We began around 6:30 am and just as we were almost to the top of our first climb, the sun poked the top of its head up behind the distant mountain. The sunrise was beautiful, and true to his trail name, Ken called it a “perfect morning sunset.”
After we got to the top we hit patches of rocks, some boulder scrambling and mostly wide trails. At one point we got off the trail. Now normally I am the one who leads us off the trail, but this time Ken was the one in the lead. It seems to only happen when we are hiking in PA in the late fall, or early winter. Maybe the blazes stand out better against a verdant background? Luckily Ken noticed we were on a blue trail, and to my dismay there were no white marks on the trees when I turned around. The FarOut app is so helpful, we pulled out our phones and noticed that we were to the right of the trail. Rather than walk back to meet it, we bushwhacked and climbed straight up the side of a mountain through thorn bushes. I bought my fleece lined pants awhile ago, and while they are warm, I went for a cheaper option – men’s pants. They fall down and by the time I got back to the ridge, I was scrapped up and my pants were sagging below my pack! We had just under 11.5 miles to cover in under 6 hours so we were under a time crunch. We passed only one other group of hikers who warned us about a bow hunter just off the trail, but we never saw him. We did see a very large buck, with a large antler rack. Again my apprehension about weapons on the trail crept into the back of my head as I hoped being in such close proximity to not only a hunter but a prized kill wouldn’t result in getting pierced by an arrow. To quell the thoughts, I started to tell Ken about the book I was reading at the time, The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles. Towards the end of our first day my feet and upper back started to really bother me. We only had the first climb to the ridge of about 1,000 feet. The rest was rolling ridge walking, but in Northern Pennsylvania that also means it’s very rocky. It is just nearly impossible to avoid the foot discomfort around here. We met our host, Lynn at Thunderhead Lodge a little after noon.
“Wellness is a connection of paths: knowledge and action.” – Joshua Welch
We stayed at The Shanty at Blue Mountain, a traditional bed and breakfast. Lynn was very accommodating. She picked us up from the trail, and we were happily surprised with a warm fire in the stove, and two of the friendliest cats I had ever met, Spicy and Pepper. Ken and I had regretted the 500+ page books we had taken with us during the early morning climb, but spending the afternoon reading by the fire (ok and napping) was delectable. Reading has always been a hobby for me, but this year I have been devouring books. Limiting my phone time has helped me find the time, as has making reading a part of my morning routine. As we read our respective books, we enjoyed sodas provided by Lynn, and we also ordered delivery. There were a few options, but we settled on our favorite – post hike pizza! I had stayed at traditional bed and breakfasts before, but this was a first for Ken. Lynn has an AirBnB as well, not available that weekend, but I enjoyed the homey feel of staying in the main house. It reminded me of spending time at my parents’ friends’ bed and breakfast in the Berkshires when I was young, and watching my parents read by the fire.
“There’s nothing to feel guilty about for being idle. It’s not reckless. It’s an investment. There is nourishment in pursuits that have no purpose – that is their purpose.” – Ryan Holiday
Sunday we woke up to the smell of bacon cooking. We gathered our stuff and headed downstairs for a breakfast of eggs, bacon, blueberry pancakes, OJ and coffee. The pancakes were the best I’ve had in a long time. Lynn informed me that she makes vegan pancakes, you’d never know, but you can tell the blueberries are organic. As we talked to Lynn she told us about her recent 200 mile hike of the Camino de Santiago in Spain. She has also done hiking tours of Scotland and our bucket list just grew a bit heavier. Our original ride fell through, but Lynn was available to pick us up so we were able to slack pack, which was really advantageous with all the rock scrambles we encountered, plus the knife edge.
Sunday morning we began next to Thunder Lodge, and after just a few steps into our hike we spotted a car in the woods, flipped upside down. It was right next to the trail and had to have happened sometime between noon the previous day and 8 am. We went down to the crash to make sure that there wasn’t someone injured in or around the car. Random belongings were scattered everywhere- including a child’s Halloween painting. Thankfully there was no one, nor blood, and we debated calling 911 but didn’t. The car was still dinging, the battery hadn’t yet died. The scene haunted my thoughts the rest of the trip. We didn’t have any lengthy climbs Sunday, just some rolling ridge walking until our final descent into Palmerton (1260.5) . The first few miles were relatively tame – medium rocks along a dead-leaf littered trail. It was dry so not slippery but those small rocks are what tore my feet up. We got to our first bouldering around 2 miles in and saw our first group of hikers of the day. The two men we stopped to talk warned us about the knife edge. They cautioned that we’d have a stretch of a mile with rock scrambles and to be cautious – it is where people sprain their ankles, slip and even die – take your time, they said, and stay to the left on the knife edge. “We” cruised along, as I headed the advice going slowly and cautiously along the rocks, and Ken paused sporadically to let me catch up. We did have a good stretch going over large rocks, and my feet started to bother me. Then, after about 30 minutes of tame trail, we got to the knife edge.
Having exposure to a knife edge at a lower altitude than the one near Katahdin was a good way to get my feet wet. The rocks were luckily not slippery, and traversing it took time and patience to make sure that my footing was solidly placed on the rocky spine. We continued to rock hop further along the ridge to Bear Rocks. I had a terrible fear climbing those. I think the car crash imprinted on me – the accidental misstep that someone took- granted probably drunk – it was still a risk someone believed they could take. I took my time getting up, and focused my attention on the views of rolling farmland beneath us in the valley, and the rolling mountains further off. I decided to FaceTime the boys to show them what I was seeing. Although they appreciated the call, they were more occupied by the video games they were playing with their friends. I took a mental note to get them back on the trail as soon as the weather warms. Fortunately the way down Bear Rocks wasn’t as bad as I has imagined it would be.
As we continued our almost 14 mile hike for the day, my feet once again ached from the rugged terrain. We passed county markers indicating that we were on game lands, passed under a chattering power line or two. Around 2 we stopped to eat near a road. We had 6 miles left to go and I considered cutting our trip short because of my feet. But I laced my shoes tighter and hobbled on. To distract myself, I asked Ken about the book he’s reading about Rockerfeller. Luckily for me, Ken can talk and loves to answer questions. I was able to focus on what he had read about, envisioned the stories and historical facts he retold, rather than think about being in pain. Books are a treasure. They can distract us in a positive way when we need it. They can change lives. The time I have spent reading has influenced my family. Ken and the boys are reading more lately too, which is something I have wanted for my kids for a long time.
“Chase real dopamine. Sun. Ice. Sauna. Weights. Runs. Walks. Hard work. Breathwork. Meditate. Visualize. Design. Serve. Connect. Create. Sprint towards your future -self. Do real work. You’ll never reach your potential if fake dopamine is always within reach.” -Zach Pogrob
After we crossed over PA 476 (which goes into a tunnel in the mountain) the terrain changed to almost a prairie. The trail continues on the edge of the ridge, and to the left there are amazing views of Palmerton, the Lehigh River and even Lehighton off in the distance. Walking on more of the meadow terrain was a nice break from the medium rocks, and my spirits lifted as we neared the end of the hike. We saw a tent site at mile 1256 that would be a great place to camp, albeit cold, but the views of the river would be lovely to wake up to. Until it warms back up, we will continue to platinum blaze. We met Lynn at the parking lot at mile 1260.4 and despite how my feet had hurt so much that I almost cut the hike short, we planned out how and when we will finish the last of the 36 miles of PA this year.
-Liz
Probably the most influential book I read was the Human Comedy by William Saroyan although now I can’t remember what it was about. However, I remember being profoundly moved by it. Does that count?
The other would be Last of the Mohegans which resonated deeply with me and my love of nature.
“The Unbearable Lightness of Being,” by Milan Kundera.
A book that profoundly changed my life is Matilda by Roald Dahl. I vividly remember the first time I could imagine the action in my head as I was reading (much like following along with the hikes!) and that summer kicked off a voracious reading habit. It happened again many years later, when diving into the Game of Thrones series. The effort of that campaign got me back into a regular practice and was a delightful departure reading fiction for fun again.