Mid State Trail Backpacking Hike, July, 2009 by Daryl Warren

Of the six men who started at Penn Roosevelt State Park , only three finished, counting me. The scoop: Thursday we camped out at PRSP - a zero day. Because our plan was to do 14.8 miles on Friday, we were on the trail early - 6:56 a.m. The first six miles of trail were in half-decent shape. After crossing under US Route 322 it was a different story. Many times we had to guess where the trail was, and sometimes we were right. The laurel, especially, became a man-eating menace, grabbing, poking, tripping, and so on. It started raining at 2:00 p.m. and poured hard until about 4. With the brush at chest height and blocking the path, you can imagine how soaking wet we got, especially the leader (me).

Our destination campsite was at Panther Run, an intermittent stream. "Intermittent" was an improper term. Non-existent would more properly describe it. Our plan B was to continue on another .60 miles to the next water source. Arriving at this rocky, swampy place, now 15.4 miles from our point of origin, we were faced with another rather heart-wrenching decision. Three guys would have to set up ground tents on the rocks or in the swamp while the other three swung comfortably in their hammock tents, OR, hike on to the next possible camping area. We opted for the second choice. So, hike on we did. Another 2.9 miles later we merrily skipped into Big Poe Valley State Park . THE PARK WAS CLOSED! Undaunted, we checked the water fountain and, voila, it worked. With not a park ranger in sight, or anybody else for that matter, we commandeered the pavilion. After 18.1 miles of backpacking, and darkness closing in, our freeze dried meals were scrumptious.

Five of us set up our tents in the pavilion (actually three slept ON the picnic tables). Roger strung his Hennessey between two trees, where he contended with a long-lasting thunder storm that came blasting through at about 11 p.m. I know I'm stretching this out, but it's just so darn interesting, eh? Well, Bob Ulmer, our representative hiker from Elizabethtown , PA , had been more and more troubled by his bad knees. Something or other about ligaments, the ones on the outer sides of the knees. I forget what they're called. I appreciated the pain he was in because I've had that problem with my right knee occasionally. His became so bad he could not descend without excruciating pain. He'd try not to bend the one knee, putting all his weight on one leg and swinging, stiff-legged, the other. Our progress was very, very slow. To make a long story short (too late), when we resumed hiking on Saturday morning Bob decided to walk the road instead of the trail. That turned out to be a wise decision because the trail was extremely difficult with many rock fields, steep descents and, of course, ascents. The course was, by far, the most difficult I have hiked. Oh, did I mention the rattlesnakes. Two beautiful creatures; one very large black phase with nine or ten buttons and another yellow phase. We were warned of their presence when the black one rattled as we approached his rocky lair. The smaller yellow snake was hidden well enough that we were unaware of her presence until we spotted her under the protruding rock that one of the hikers was standing on.

If you're still with me, I'll continue with my prattle. If not, I'll continue anyway. Bob and Roger walked the road about four miles to the next state park - Poe Paddy State Park , where we caught up with them about noon. Bob could go no further. He was absolutely done. It was painful just to watch him hobble on level ground. Roger was having trouble with his feet and decided to opt out also. Because Bob had brought a friend with him from southern PA, he also said, "I'm leaving with Bob." They called the DCNR office and arranged a ride back to PRSP. The three remaining tough guys had a pow-wow. Pete and Brett were right on the edge of calling it quits, but they had one motivating factor: pride. Their cohorts back at Citizens National Bank, where they are employed, had chided them, saying, "You'll never finish the hike! You're both out of shape." Soooo, we decided to push on, with one change. We'd finish the hike TODAY! No camping out near a plush, cool stream, and resting up for a short six-miler tomorrow. Nope. We'll get 'er done now! Well, by this time is was 1:00 p.m. By my astute calculations, we had 11.2 miles to go. At my normal plodding pace we wouldn't be done until 7:40. That did not seem to be a deterrent, so off we went. With Brett in the lead we averaged 3.0 mph for the first four miles. That's before the trail started up. The four miles was basically on a rails-to-trails section. After that the MST returned to character with it's climbing of rock fields, traversing rock fields, and descending rock fields. And in between there were rocks. However, I must say, the trail was wonderfully maintained from Poe Paddy to Hairy John's, except for a few short sections.

My car was parked at Hairy John's and was thankfully not vandalized. I'd been hiking over 34 miles for two days in wet socks and shoes and my feet were a mess. I'm glad we didn't have further to go because I was starting a blister on the ball of my left foot. Plus, a "canyon toe" on the left big toe has left me with an ugly nail that will drop off after some weeks. All of this sounds like we didn't appreciate the MST. NOT! We had a memorable time and I'd do it again in a heart beat, except it'll be on a section I haven't yet hiked.

Daryl Warren is an active hiker and part of the Asaph Trail Club.