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Rocky Raccoon

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Rocky Balboa, the famous Sylvester Stallone movie boxer, came from Philadelphia. Then it should be no surprise that the main feature of the Pennsylvania trails we're finding are rocks. The trail is very rocky for long stretches and difficult to negotiate. One of the other hikers I met described them as bear's ears and knife edges which is pretty accurate. Bill Bryson says in his book that Pennsylvania is the place boots come to die. On this point, I guess I agree with him. Hiking the trail here I have the Beatles Rocky Raccoon  stuck in my head. This turns out to be pretty apt as you will see as you read on.     5/29 Swatara State Park to Pine Grove, PA - 13 miles It's time to get back on the trail and for a short day. The weather is overcast and a bit foggy in the morning, but it's not supposed to rain so we should stay relatively dry. Angelika and I set out from the trailhead. We start climbing to the crest of Blue Mountain which is a relatively short climb but ste...
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Pennsylvania 6-5000

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There are 229 miles of the Appalachian Trail in Pennsylvania. I'll be hiking in Pennsylvania for a while now. The southern part of the trail passes through Cumberland Valley.   5/22 South Mountain, PA to Big Flat - 15.9 miles Another rainy night and continued rain when we got up in the morning. It's supposed to rain all day, but calling for less rain than yesterday, so I'm planning on hiking and getting a little wet in the process. Angelika drops me off at the trailhead, but has no interest in joining me for a rainy hiking day. It's just drizzling now and very cool, so it's comfortable to hike in my rain shell. The trail takes me right through Caledonia State Park where we're camped. By the time I get there, the light rain has gotten distinctly heavier. I stop under a picnic shelter to get out of the rain for a while and decide if I should call it a day and just go back to the van. Just then, the rain stops and so I decide to forge ahead. Of course, about 30 min...
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Half Way There, Living On a Prayer

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After leaving Shenandoah, what remains is finishing off the rest of the trail in Virginia and then crossing into West Virginia and Maryland. The halfway point of the trail is very close now. Harper's Ferry, WV is the unofficial halfway point, but the halfway point by book mileage is actually further up the trail in Pennsylvania. It will be satisfying to reach both these milestones in any case. 5/15 Manassas Gap to Ashby Gap - 12 miles There was more rain again last night, but just 30% chance of rain in the forecast this morning.  Nonetheless,  when we got to the trailhead it was already drizzling. I thought it would be a good idea to put my rain shell on when I set out to avoid getting too wet, but within a few minutes my opinion changed. It was so humid out I was quickly getting soaked from the inside. I hiked the rest of the day in shirt sleeves. The trail now skirts the ridge and follows the slopes across public land. There are a lot of short ups and downs along the way wit...
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