6/19/06 Monday: High Point Shelter to St. Thomas Episcopal Church Hostel, Vernon NJ (20.6mi)

PICTURES:
1. 0801: Beautiful beginning to the day.
2. 0915: Nice bridgework through a swampy area... mosquitoes are very bad.. I need to buy some repellant soon...
3. 0955: I really enjoyed these nice open trails...
4. 1208: Trail runs along a property line of trees...
5. 1229: I broke out of the woods and onto a road for a mile or so until we I reentered at this nature preserve for a nice long walk around the preserve... Lots of birds and a few snakes too..
6. 1402: I would climb back up to another ridge, get some more views...
7. 1530: A lovely board walk through this nature preserve... chatted with a few locals enjoying their day.
8. 1723: Arrived at St. Thomas Episcopal Church hostel just before a rather explosive thunderstorm hit.

I was up and out by 0630, hoping to get as many miles done in the morning before the afternoon heat set in again... Today temps would again reach 95 with very high humidity... The terrain was a bit easier, helping to ease the burden today... I had 2 opportunities for internet service today as well as a deli for lunch and a shower waiting for me at the end of the day in a climate controlled hostel...:) Sounds good... The mornings 10 miles to the deli were completed by 1030, half the day done and in good shape too... The deli was excellent, I had my usual: 2 liter mountain dew and a foot long ham and cheeze with the works...:)... There was no problem with the bathroom facilities...LOL... but unfortunately the computer normally available for the hikers was being repaired.. The temps continued to soar but the terrain was very nice and flat put together with a couple of key breaks, this day was not quite as severe as the previous one... As I arrived to NJ94, the road to the hostel, a came upon a section hiker named Michelle and we walked the last 1/2mi to the road together... She had done this section before so I was interested in her take on the hostel and surrounding community... She suggested we take a detour .1mi west to a farm stand for some refreshments before she decides if she was going to stay at the hostel... Heaven Hill Farm was a wonderful idea with all sorts of juices, pop, fresh fruits, etc. I indulged in a number of items and sat in a shaded spot for a rest and some conversation... She was a school teacher here from New Mexico for a summer teaching job with a week to spare on the AT... The owner of the Farm stopped by and he inquired as to our destinations and we all chatted for a bit... Storm clouds began to form and thunder was heard and the owner stated that severe storms were predicted for the area... Well at that point we both decided on the hostel for the night... I bought an apple pie to share when I arrived there and we went back out to the road for our hitch into town... We soon secured a ride in the back of a pickup truck with a cap and lots of tools and stuff in the back... I handed my pie to the passenger in the front...with a smile and asked if he would hold it for me on the 2.5mi trip into town...LOL... He looked at me and said only if you dont mind loosing a piece or two...LOL... We soon arrived in town and were dropped off at a gas station, kinda unaware of which direction the Church hostel was... The owner of the gas station came out and directed us next door to the hostel and mentioned to us to stop by in the morning for a ride back to the trail if he was there... We soon arrived at the hostel and I reconnected with Sven and Tailwind, and another 4 hikers... It was a beautiful set up, with kitchen facilities, .25 cent sodas, full bath, and surrounded with restaurants and a grocery store. I went to the A&P and fixed myself a rather large salad, about 2lbs worth...;)... and unfortunately was stuck there during a cloudburst. After a while I asked a woman leaving the store if she could drop myself and another female hiker off at the church hostel... I felt a little awkward asking, but I'm getting over that awkwardness...;)... She thought for a moment and agreed and 5 min later we were back at the hostel...with the other hikers eyeing my salad... After the rain stopped, a few of the other hikers were on their way for their salad ... :)... Unfortunately, the internet at the hostel wasnt working so the blog would have to wait again... Later that evening, a elderly church member named Tom stopped by to check on all of us and stayed to chat a bit... He mentioned that a hiker was viewing porn on the computer when another church member came to visit so the church decided to terminate the internet connection. I offered him some pie, and he broke out the ice cream... He stayed another hour and we chatted about the town, his home in the hills, all sorts of things... He left around 2130 and shortly thereafter we all turned in for the night...