AT - Day 53
In the dark of night, Sweatbucket returned from the privy, tripped over his hiking poles, and fell partly on top of me. I woke up with a start, reaching out in the dark and backing off. In the morning, he apologized, adding with a smile, “You were pretty scared there.”
Sweatbucket took his time in the morning. He had a maildrop in Waynesboro, Pa. Across the Mason-Dixon line, I stopped in PenMar County Park for a soda. I visited High Rock on a blue-blaze trail at the advice of a local dayhiker. The AT continued past varied fields, woods, and powerlines. A rocky section near Camp David made me ask, “Would pioneers even take this trail?” The roadway became soft and sandy near Pogo Memorial Campsite. Nobo Mars commented, “Everybody is a section-hiker until they finish.” His words rang hauntingly true. Late in the day, I stopped at the beehive-shaped rock tower built in 1827, honoring George Washington. At dusk I pulled up short to dine and spend the night at Dahlgren Campground with section-hikers Dr. Dick, Phil, and sobo Caboom. I slept on a picnic table. Other campers came in loudly at midnight, walking back and forth with flashlights.
I curtailed my hiking plans in order to meet Caboom, a Canadian nicknamed the “Queen of Trail Magic.” She could ask a stranger for water or directions and soon get a ride or sleep on a screened-in porch. Poof! No bugs at night!
Labels: journal