Day 3 Slack Pack #1 PA: Pollution and politics

«Oh, things ain’t what they used to be, no, no
Where did all the blue skies go?
The poison is the wind that blows.
From the north, from the south and from the east” Mercy Mercy IMarvin Gaye

(November 15) Today’s plan was to backtrack and walk the middle section of the original plan; American route. 11 Carlisle to Valley Road Trailhead, PA Route. 850 for 8 miles. We were able to get some sleep today as the drive to the starting point from the Fairfield Inn was short and the trail was expected to be easy. Arriving at the breakfast room at 7:30am, I was very happy to find sausage gravy and biscuits on the buffet! Another cold but sunny day, I was walking along the American Trail. 11 catwalk at 8:30 am. I have to say, it didn’t take me long to decide that the stretch between the PA Turnpike and Interstate 81 is the absolute ugliest part of the AT to date. I’m still surprised the builders of the AT didn’t skip the Cumberland Valley entirely. Camping is not permitted from Boiling Springs to Darlington Shelter. Water sources are muddy or suspect due to agricultural runoff. No scenery and the constant hum of multiple interstate highways. Surprisingly, since it was Saturday, there were several hikers and a couple trail runners. Seriously, folks, couldn’t you find a more scenic spot to walk or run on your day off? I felt like I was walking along the median strip of a highway.

Gradually, the trail returned to agricultural fields and eventually began to parallel Conodoguinet Creek. The dichotomy was quite noticeable. This stretch was beautiful with golden maples and English ivy (invasive) along the creek. The creek’s name comes from a Native American language meaning «A long road with many curves.» Something like the AT itself. Unfortunately, with farming, the creek is not very clean, and as it flows into the Susquehanna River and then into the Chesapeake Bay, my home, I have mixed feelings. If we can leave out the backstory, the few kilometers along the Conodoguinet Creek. They were calm enough to remind me why hiking is my therapy. The trail eventually crosses the creek at ATC’s Scott Farm Work Center. I can’t help but have mixed feelings again about this landmark in the OT. Without water. No Camping. Yes, there is a port-a-potty and a picnic table. But this is a wasted opportunity in the wilderness of the Cumberland Valley for hikers. I can’t understand why ATC doesn’t develop this site as a «destination» for hikers. A historic and beautiful place; Much more could be done with this space. Maybe like the Iron Masters lodge and the AT Museum in Pine Grove. I can only imagine that bureaucracy and politics somehow muddy the already polluted waters of Conodoguinet Creek, next to Scott Farm.

I surprised SOBO Bear Bait at Scott Farm, who I met yesterday near Cove Mountain Shelter, when I was walking north. We had another good chat about the elders’ reflections on hiking, life, and the world. On the way again, I started thinking about a lunch break at Darlington Shelter. But I had to climb a ridge on Little Mountain. This was a pretty decent workout, even with the curves, and ended on a rock-like bench overlooking the Cumberland Valley. I said goodbye to this unnecessary stretch of the AT. At the top of the ridge, before the shelter, I came upon the north end of the Tuscarora Trail. I’ve read that the Tuscarora Trail was established in the 1960s to be an alternate route to the AT, traversing VA, WV, MD, and PA. Much further west than the current AT. I haven’t climbed the Tuscarora, but I will say this should be the AT. Avoid the Cumberland Valley. Policy. At Darlington Shelter, I met a couple hiking the Darlington Trail. Good people. Hikers. Sharing the dream. Another twist in politics; The Darlington Shelter is maintained by the Mountain Club of Maryland. But we’re in PA. The PATC maintains the trail throughout Maryland. A Virginia club. A powerful Northern Virginia hiking club. Policy. Most of us simply walk the trail and are oblivious to the politics behind its maintenance and control. Yes, controlling the road. Most hikers, many section hikers, and many day hikers are free spirits. But the ground they tread is a network of politics and control. The same things that many of us try to escape along the way. Another oddity about the Darlington shelter on this day. Both the hiking couple and I commented that we smelled the toilet. However, the wind was blowing from the shelter towards the toilet. I entered the shelter to get the log book. And then I realized… the shelter smelled like someone had mistaken it for the toilet. People. Policy. We walk down the path to escape this nonsense. But upside down doors are everywhere. Even in the AT shelters.

Leaving Darlington Shelter, I realized that I would be arriving at the Nightingale connection point well before the scheduled time of 4pm. But unfortunately I had no mobile service to contact her and set up our connection. From this point it was all downhill, except for a small «bump» in the terrain. On the ridge, mostly mixed oak forests, but as I descended, I once again entered the fields and hedgerows of Pennsylvania farmland. About a mile from the trailhead, I got cell service again and alerted Nightingale that I would be arriving fairly early. Luckily, she is very flexible during these adventures and being only 20 minutes away, there were no problems. I still arrived at the trailhead about 30 minutes before arrival. I passed the time putting on warmer underwear and taking pictures of strange plants in the trailhead parking lot.

Once it arrived, it was a quick trip back to the Fairfield Inn, a beer, a shower, and a discussion about where to have dinner. Walnut Bottom Family Restaurant in Carlisle was five minutes away and it was hard to pass up a little more PA cuisine with roast turkey over stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy and lima beans. Yes, filling. I grew up in Pennsylvania and we always called the bread inside the turkey «stuffing»; not filling, not dressing, but stuffing. In some ways, this is a great hiker’s dinner – you can almost make it on the trail! I added some beef and barley soup and pickled beets in homage to my Pennsylvania Dutch roots. My mother would have had tears in her eyes. I’ve written it before; But this slackpacking thing is schnizzel.

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