An Epic Day: September 2, 2009
Am I on TV?
On the night of Tuesday 1 September I had hoped to reach Black Walnut, but as I crested another hill in the Endless Mountains there was the Maplehurst Motel, just before Meshoppen. What I wanted to do was to see if I was on the television.
Unfortunately, there was no channel 6. I confess I got sucked into watched a bizarre programme comparing Samurai and Viking weapons, which ended in a simulated fight between actors dressed as Samurai and Vikings. It was bizarre, but I was fascinated.
I watched some more TV, wrote my blog and then finally fell asleep around 3AM.
Yes, I was on TV!
That morning, around 9AM, I headed off. Up ahead was a sign for a detour and I hoped that it wouldn't mean I had to walk extra miles. It wasn't long before Meshoppen appeared. Marty's Market was a big store on the edge of town. I walked in.
“Hey, you are a big celebrity...we've just seen you on the news!'”
Behind the cash register was a bubbly blonde woman called Shelly. Checking the stock was a second woman, with dark hair, called Sherry. They posed for pictures with me and I got orange juice and chocolate milk and some pens.
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Several people who came into the store said they had seen the news and asked me about the walk. So the TV interview had been on!
A Bit of Stomach Upset
I thanked Shelly and Sherry and headed into town for breakfast. Luckily there was a diner close to Marty's Market. I say lucky, because my stomach was feeling strange. I ordered coffee and dashed into the restroom. It may just have been the heat and strange diet of fast food, but my stomach felt weird. I went out and ordered a western omelette, home fries and toast. When it came I struggled to eat the omelette and left the home fries and 1 slice of toast. Half way through the food I had to dash to the bathroom again.
When I'd finished the food I used the restroom a third time. I could see that today was going to be fun.
As I left my stomach still felt bad and I felt weak. I wondered if it was some sort of food poisoning, but it was probably just from the heat and bad diet. There are only so many omelettes and home fries that a man can take!
It’s Fun to Be Recognized…
Luckily the detour only took me about a block or two of the small town out of the way. Soon I was back on Route 6. The road was hilly and the early morning mist burned off to leave a hot sun.
At Black Walnut a roadside diner with a Western theme...signs saying Howdy Partner and the like showed up...but it was only open from Thursday to Sunday. I was thinking I wouldn't be able to get a drink, but just down the road was a placed called Kirsty's. In the doorway stood a tall lean man with a baseball cap, checked shirt, denims and boots.
“Hi there...just seen you on TV. The name's Fred. I'm from up near Bath. If you want a drink it's on me!”
I thanked Fred and walked in. I had an orange soda thanks to Fred that was cool and felt good.
There were two men in their 50's and an older couple inside and Kirsty herself. They had all just seen me on the TV and were excited to see me there. I asked Kirsty if she knew a man called Sam B--- in Black Walnut. I had stayed with Sam back in 1988.
One of the men at the table, with a grey beard, longish grey hair and an old red baseball cap, said Sam had moved to Meshoppen. Sam had owned a garage at Black Walnut, but it had been sold and a new Gulf gas station now sat where Sam's place had been. I said that if he saw Sam he should say hello from me.
Memories of 1988 – and How Things Seemed to Have Changed
I headed off. Route 6 was set back from the Susquehanna, but had roads numbered Black Walnut River Road 1 to 4 going down to the river.
There was a historical landmark sign saying that General John Sullivan's men had camped at Black Walnut on their march to Tioga Point on their mission to wipe out over 40 Native American towns.
Back in 1988 I had been reading this same sign when Sam had offered me food and a place to stay. Now the sign was next to a shiny looking white and blue gas station.
It was strange that 20 years had bought more conveniences, but I missed the hospitality. I wondered when I would have my first invitation to stay at someone's home. When you are on your own and travelling the chance to stay with someone can really pick up your spirits.
Destination: Towanda, But….Stomach Troubles Continue
My destination was Towanda, but I wondered if I would make it. What with a late start and feeling strange, things didn't look good.
At Laceyville I stopped in Bluhm's Store which boasted it had thousands of items in stock. It was good. I bought orange juice and chocolate milk again and some oatmeal and raisin cookies. I used the restroom, which was about the fifth time that day. Something definitely wasn't right.
Browntown and Wyalusing were the next towns. As I entered Wyalusing I passed Miller's Garden Produce Stall. I had gone a few hundred yards when a young woman came running up to me with a bottle of cold water. Her name was Kay and with her husband Daryl she ran the produce stall. Both Kay and Daryl were keen runners and they had seen me on the TV. They liked the idea of someone walking across the U.S. for hospice. The drink that Kay gave me was water with a strong lemon taste. On the hot day it was fabulous.
I gave Kay the Web site details and said goodbye.
Further on in Wyalusing was a Subway. Inside I ordered a 6 inch turkey and ham sub and milk and cookies. I had to use the restroom again...fir about the 7th time that day.
With food done it was time to go. There was a hotel in Wyalusing and I was almost tempted to stop there. I figured, though, that I might as well push on. Towanda was 16 miles away.
At Least the River is Healthy…
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As I climbed the hill out of Wyalusing it was almost 8 pm. The sun was going down across the Susquehanna. I stood at a scenic overlook and looked down on the valley. A sign at the overlook said that runoff from farms into the river was now being strictly regulated. Back in 1988 the river had a lot of weed in it, probably due to phosphates, nitrates and manure draining into the river. Now the river looked much healthier.
8 pm came I put on my coat and made ready to walk into the night.
It was dark as I reached Lime Hill. There was a monument talking about how a mother and her three children who had been taken captive by Native Americans had been rescued by some settlers back in the 1780's. In the rescue bid the battle lasted 4 hours. The children were rescued, but the woman was killed.
Beyond Lime Hill the turnoff for Camptown appeared in the dim light from my torch. I started to sing the Camptown Race Song.
“…Track's 5 miles long...doo-dah.” There was a sign saying that the town had inspired Stephen Foster to write his Camptown Race Track song. By the turnoff was a sign saying Towanda 10 miles. By now it was gone 9 pm. A full moon was at my back and the Big Dipper again hung in the black sky in front of me.
Avoiding trucks and cars in the dark, on my way went on to Rummerfield.
Marie Antoinette?!
Just a small collection of houses set in amongst trees, it just showed as twinkling lights. Another overlook had been built for the French Azilum.
This was a broad flat area across the Susquehanna where supporters of Marie Antoinette built a grand house and planned a town, where the French Queen would live in exile. Unfortunately for her the guillotine caught up with her and she and her son never came to love on the banks of the Susquehanna.
I was overjoyed after the French Azilum overlook. The road sloped steeply down, through a chasm with black rocky sides in the moonlight
Scary Animal Noises = Incentive to Keep Moving
The steeply sloping gorge meant that I moved fast. It was like the earth itself was pulling me along, with the moonlight from behind pushing me forward.
The road levelled and the way passed through dark farmland. I started to think about a good place to set up my tent.
As I was thinking about this I was walking past some dense woodland. My heart lurched as I heard a noise in the woods. It sounded like something large moving through the undergrowth. It may have been a deer, but the sound and the knowledge that there was a big animal just a few feet away from me made me scared. I moved to the far side of the road. I wondered if it was a bear or something else out under the light of the full moon.
As a couple of trucks sped past me I hoped they would help deter the animal from coming out of the woods. A short while later there was something that sounded like a fox calling out and also a mysterious sound of a dog barking, which echoed eerily through the valley. It was good incentive to keep on walking.
An electricity supplier had offices set amongst beautifully kept grass.
I contemplated camping there, but thought I'd go a bit further. Ahead I could see lights that came from the town of Wysox, which is just a few miles from Towanda.
Camping for the Night
By now it was around midnight. A huge black cliff, etched with fine relief in the moonlight, stood to my right. To my left was a concrete wall placed to stop cars or trucks driving into a drop of about 200 feet into the valley. Beyond the river were the lights of Towanda. It was now so close. Again the road sloped down. A road sign saying the next several miles were a danger spot for drunk drivers.
At Wysox I decided to stop for the night. A small patch of grass with a few trees stood off to my right. Slinking into the shadows I first put on warm clothes
I cleaned my teeth and drank the last of my water. I set the tent up in the shadow of a tree and propped my pack against the tree. By 1 am I was inside the tent and feeling relatively comfortable. I was just falling asleep when I heard a noise. It sounded like somebody standing on an aluminium can. In the tent I kept still and listened. No other sound came.
Whatever had made the noise had hopefully gone. Tire and exhausted, but with Towanda only a couple of miles ahead...it had been an epic day.
