Diana, my daughter, drove me back to the pick-up point yesterday. We left as dawn was breaking. Here’s a shot taken at Camp Iroquoina:

and another on the way to the start of today’s hike:

and at the actual start of the hike:

It was a chilly morning; I layered with a long-sleeved shirt over a tee-shirt, but ditched the former pretty quickly. Here are photos along the way, with a few comments. (Remember to click on the picture if you want to see a higher resolution version.)

I’ve seen these little lantern-like flowers before but I didn’t realize they turned color in the fall — can anyone name them?

There were a number of businesses along Highway 171 that were shut down; this is just one example. Is this a product of the economic down-turn, perhaps?

This vine is yearning for a transformation:

This guy loves his country:

Apple tree at the side of the road:

Some structural problems here:

Lake Comfort:

Shale for sale:

The Starrucca Viaduct:

Moat?

Entering the town of Susquehanna:

Meet Bob:

Bob is one of two letter carriers in Susquehanna. He’s the one who gets the walking route and walks about 11.8 miles per day. We had a great discussion about walking and I mentioned to him that I’ve often thought letter carrier was the ideal job — being outside, getting exercise, and done at the end of the day.

A few blocks later I went into the Main Street Cafe for a “Mushroom Swiss Burger”, cooked by Don and served by Tracy:

It was fun talking to them about my walk and they were able to fill me in on some local geography. They also recommended taking the 1010, south of the Susquehanna River, rather than continuing on the 171 to the north. This turned out to be GREAT advice.

On the way out of Susquehanna:

1010 is a very quiet road. I felt pretty smug hearing all the 171 traffic on the other side of the river.

During the hours I walked on this road I only encountered about a dozen vehicles. And Mel:

Mel’s father bought a piece of land between 1010 and the river back in the 40’s and Mel has lived there his whole life. Part of the land is an airstrip; Mel has an airplane and an ultralight. There are a number of buildings on his property, one of which is an empty house, which he offered me for the night. What a sweet offer! If I hadn’t made a prior arrangement I would definitely have accepted.

It had started raining a little so as he drove off on his four-wheeler he suggested I find shelter in his hangar:

Lovely new plane:

Mel is currently building a new hangar:

This because the river has flooded his existing one twice in the last decade.

After a bit more walking, 1010 sidled right up to the river:

It wasn’t long after this that Diana drove over from camp and picked me up. Here is the little cabin I have to myself:

I conclude with a picture of me with my lovely, kind-hearted, generous daughter Diana:

Terri dropped me off this morning at the spot where she picked me up yesterday. Very soon after that this old-timer stopped on the shoulder to ask me for directions:

This is not the first time this has happened and I’m always happy to oblige with my google maps iPhone. I think this guy was Jim and the look of delight on his face when I explained what I was doing was priceless. We decided that he should go left. He immediately got in his car and peeled off to the right. Go figure.

What follows is a set of images of what I saw today, often without comment — the beauty speaks for itself.

Lots of drinking water in them thar stainless towers:

A creative idea if you have a guard rail outside your home:

I couldn’t figure out what this water structure was; note the massive retaining wall on the left:

Here’s where it flowed out:

and this close-up shows a murky, oil-like substance being mixed in:

I have no idea what that is, but a little further on this sign at least clarified what the water structure was (I was glad not to have fishing tackle with me!):

“The road that stretches on ahead …”

A turret for you, Alison:

All of these pictures were taken during the first half of today’s walk, when I was on 670, heading for Pleasant Mount, where 670 joins with 371. It was a LONG slog uphill to get to Pleasant Mount and I was expecting great things. Instead, I got barked at by half a dozen dogs and all the shops were closed and for sale.

I had almost reached the 10-mile mark by this time. I have been finding that I reach a bit of a wall at this point, and that further progress requires more of an act of the will. This was especially true today when I turned north on 171 and all the earlier beauty was replaced by a series of (mostly) trashy shacks, albeit intermingled with a few nice farms.

My daughter Diana is to be in the vicinity this weekend for a “Fall Teen Getaway” at Camp Iroquoina, and is bringing with her a few things I’ve asked for (as well as taking home some things I shouldn’t have packed in the first place). She has promised to drive over from the camp on Saturday night to wherever I am and bring me to the camp for a shower and good night’s sleep.

So at midday today I thought — why not do the same tonight? I phoned over to Joe Plantz at camp and asked him a big favor — would he be willing to pick me up and drop me off tomorrow? It ended up being a 30-mile drive (each way) for him, so it was a big sacrifice. I probably shouldn’t have asked in the first place, and just camped out on the property of the first trashy shack owner that would have me. But I’m sure glad to be here now; familiar ground and plenty of familiar faces. Here are a few that some of you will recognize; the indomitable Joe Plantz is on the left:

So it was a super day today — a record nearly 18 miles, terrific weather. The only real downer is that I developed a blister on the side of my heel, probably because I didn’t heed the advice of several people to switch my shoes every day. But I’ll deal …