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Fireweed - An Older Woman Who Hikes Solo and With Friends

Too Cold and Too Windy

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Having left the trail at Wind Gap we started into town. The locals stared with blank faces and we were grudgingly allowed to fill our empty water bottles at the home store. If this had been a B grade horror film we would check in at the local hotel and wake up dead. BUT, it isn’t a B grade movie so we did a 180, stuck out our thumbs and hitched into Palmerton, one of the friendliest towns on the entire trail.

Our ride, two great folks from the area, deposited us at the Town Hall in Palmerton which was at least 20 miles out of their way. They are true Trail Angels. The town hall has a free hiker hostel in the basement of what was to have been the jail. Now the walls are lined with bunk beds built by the local boy scout troops. Upstairs is the gymnasium with the required basketball hoops as well as a raised stage at one end complete with maroon full length curtains. Exactly what you would expect in a 1920’s school house.

The gym has a tiled shower with three shower heads, two of which work. The water is hot and the water pressure could peel paint off a Pontiac. The shower is communal. Back downstairs we found clean towels and no other hikers. Thus we had the place to ourselves. I’m sure in full hiker season the place is filled to the brim and much more fragrant and noisy. We were just glad to be warm and out of the 20 degree temps and 25 knot wind. The hostel registry listed folks we'd hiked with last spring: Stats, Shanti, Fruitloops, Rook and others. It was like finding letters from home.

The library, in an old bank building with amazing architecture, welcomes hikers and has six computers as well as marble entrance and arched windows from the 25 foot ceilings to the chair rail on the walls. Absolutely beautiful.

Dinner at Bert’s Steak house was excellent as was the home made pie. As for hiking, we are waiting for the weather to get above freezing before venturing further. So, we will be tourists for the next 24 hours or so. This gives me time to repair my tarp, replace the ridge line with something a bit more stout, resupply for the coming 5 days and seal some of the rips in our trail shoes. Next stop? Little Gap to Port Clinton.

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