Sat Sept 1:  Am feeling sore which is unusual as well as a slight sore throat-I have little appetite for the food I’m carrying and am taking it slow today.  I stopped at a house to fill up my water and was invited in.  This couple had let the Cottrells sleep in their yard and invited me to stay the night.  I asked if they knew any Catholics because I want to get to mass and do not feel the energy to walk thru the night to get to town.  They knew of a couple living across the hill, we called them and they’re leaving in 45 minutes for church.  I showered and they picked me up on their way-it was a ½ hour drive-I was lucky because they said they’re the only ones around here that go to the Catholic Chuch.  After mass they dropped me back off at Marshall and Glendoras.  Glendora made some chicken noodle soup for me, perfect for how I feel. 

 

Sun Sept 2:  I knocked on a door to get my water filled and was told to come on in.  The family had extended family over and had just sat down at the table.  After filling my water they invited me to eat with them.  Home grown beans, corn, squash, and tender roast plus watermelon-it feels great to eat a real meal. 

 

Mon Sept 3:  I am so very happy that the donkey waited till this morning to Hee Haw-oh my goodness it is loud.  It first sounds like a foghorn trying to clear the area.  It was so loud and goofy sounding I started laughing in my tent.  I was brought breakfast out on a ‘silver’ platter along with a lawn chair, chatted away and was told to pick what I wanted from the garden.  Keyser is 2 miles off the trail but I am going there for a couple days because there are 4 service clubs I’d like to speak to. The first place on my way into town was a meat market; I stopped for a break and met an old man who invited me to stay at his house.  A couple minutes later I heard my name and turning around saw Cindy-who was at the house I was invited in to eat at yesterday.  She invited me to stay with her and Larry in town; they live only 2 blocks from the library, how perfect.  Spent the week at their home, gave 4 talks to local clubs.  They gave me a key to their house so it worked great coming and going as I needed. 

 

Fri Sept 7:  On my way out of town I stopped at a restaurant where the owner had told me to come for a meal before I left town-it was almost 3 miles in the opposite direction that I was headed but it was a good warm up.  I was also told by another restaurant in town to stop there so I walked the 3 miles back to town and got filled up.  So many generous people!  Spent the night in the yard of a couple that told me about their farmhouse.  It had been in the family for generations-in the early 1900’s an epidemic (typhoid?) swept thru the house and even killed the doctor who came to help the sick, leaving 11 dead due to the well water.  Since I had gotten water from them I jokingly asked if it had come from the well.

 

Sat Sept 8:  At the town of Fort Ashby I attended mass and met a couple that introduced me to a couple other parishioners.  They invited me home we stayed up late sharing stories. 

 

Sun Sept 9:  Read away the day J

 

Mon Sept 10:  Paula walked a couple miles with me before we even got out of town I walked past a sign and it snagged the side pocket causing it to tear.  Stopped to ask a lady sitting on her front porch- while I sewed we all chatted-she handed me some extra thread-I normally have some but I used the last of my floss on my teeth.  A mom and 2 puppies began following me-they walked with me for about 7 miles until I had stopped in a park and someone picked me up.   I crossed into Maryland and am on the C&O Canal paralleling the Potomac River.  I’ll follow the Canal till Washington D.C.   

 

Tues Sept 11:  Walked thru the longest tunnel yet-over 3100 feet.  I have a better light with me for this tunnel.

 

Wed Sept 12:  Perfect temps for walking-a cool breeze caresses me-I am so happy to be right here!   Have seen a family of turkeys, deer, and 2 snakes.  One of the snakes was in the river about 5 feet from me as I was rinsing out my clothes.  Camped by the river and cooked-now that it’s getting cooler I’ll be cooking dinner at night for extra warmth and calories.  There was a section I greatly enjoyed that was in the sun and during the ¼ mile stretch lots of turtles were out sunning themselves-shiny black turtles and dull green ones that blended in with the top of the water.  How can the moss affect them differently?  It was fun to walk by and watch them dive into the water making their plop, plop, plopping noises.  It’s so easy to be entertained by nature.  It’s a bit of magic to watch the seasons change. 

 

Thur Sept 13:  Walked into Hancock straight to church and asked Father about speaking.  There were bunches of people in the church hall making apple dumplings for this weekend festival so I offered to help them.  Next went to police to see if I could sleep by the river.  

 

Fri Sept 14:  Fr. offered to put me up in the local motel for tonight so I’ll stay and that way I can go to mass tomorrow instead of hiking quickly to the next town in time for church.  I helped the ladies make some more apple and dumplings before settling in at my room. 

 

Sat Sept 15:  Towards the end of mass a lady sits down next to me & asks if I’m the girl who is walking for Kenya.  It turns out that she is the town reporter and has sleuthed me down.  She looked on my website and I had just posted that I was in town and helping to make apple dumplings.  She printed out my photo and went to the festival and found an apple booth and showed them my picture asking if they knew me, they didn’t so she went to the other apple dumpling booth and they told her she just missed me that I went to mass in Little Orleans.  She drove here and staked me out at church.  She invited me to stay the night at her house and go to church in the morning.  She called her pastor and I’ll be able to share my mission tomorrow. 

 

Sun Sept 16:  This morning after speaking with her pastor I spoke to the women’s bible study group.  After service Norma invited me to lunch where we met a very interesting man.  Daniel was excited about my mission and told me how he and his wife are in the stages of deciding how they can distribute 50% of their income to helping others.  Of course that caught my attention!  He gave me his contact information and I pray that he or someone he knows may want to give funds towards the library.

 

Mon Sept 17:  Clear but chilly day-today has been my lowest mileage day, only 6 miles but totally relaxing-woke up later-and waited for the sun to warm me and dry the condensation off my tent then slowly saunter down the trail stopping numerous times. I made a steady blazing fire and ate some cheddar broccoli rice.

 

Tues Sept 18:  Woke earlier and cleaned up the campsite, carrying out plastic bottles from previous users.  Why can’t people carry trash out?  It’s lighter than when they carried it in.  Walked into Williamsburg, historic canal town-many of the canal users and mules would stay in Williamsburg over the winter.  Walked about a mile out of town to where the Rotary meets in the morning.  They meet at 7:15a.m.so I wanted to be sure I was close enough to get there on time.  I received permission from the Red Mar Lodge to sleep in the back.

Fri Sept 21:  There was a 6 mile detour yesterday, nice to see the countryside, but harrowing narrow roads to walk on.  Many neat stone fences bordering the fields, the fields have rocky outcroppings and cedars.  I heard someone yell to me across a large yard a man stood on his porch and waved.  He offered a soda and candy bars J, so I strode across the yard-turns out he is the art director for Ranger Rick.  He told me how the barn next door was built in the 1700’s (before the canal) and was a place slaves would be brought to for selling.  In the back he said are some foundations of slave quarters.  Crazy to imagine all that has changed since the barn was built.  Stopped at a campsite at dusk, 1^st time to share a site.  As I lay in my tent I listened to owls calling each other. 

 

Sat Sept 22:  I walked past sunset and came to a site for group camping.  I found a comfortable place to set up but unfortunately was unable to fall asleep till 2:30 because a group next to me was getting drunk and being very loud and obnoxious.  Today is quite warm.  I swam in the river and then lay on a big rock to dry off-the heat coming off the rock felt so good. 

 

Sun Sept 23:  After mass a man came up to me and invited me to lunch with his wife and his mother.  His wife prepared a feast and we sat around telling stories for several hours before I continued hiking.  Gloria sent me off with a bag of goodies to eat.  Back on the trail I met Tatianna and Kurk bicycling from Washington state-then passed them later taking a break.  I shared some awesome choc mint brownies from Gloria and they gave me some ‘barnyard’ a mixture of peanuts and shredded wheat-it tastes better than it sounds. 

 

Mon Sept 24:  Woke before sun came up and started walking-I have told Susan Helley (ADT director) that I’d meet her today so I have a 20 mile day to get to the ferry to meet.  Crossed a gorgeous aqueduct as well as one that had collapsed and will be repaired (cost 3.4 million).

 

Tues Sept 25:  I helped fold and stack some ADT papers.  I went roller-skating with Beth, Butch’s daughter-in-law.  A bit about Susan “Butch”-she hiked with the original Hike-A-Nation group in 1980? that was created in order to bring more awareness for the need of more trails.  She has hiked all over the country and is extremely active in promoting trails.  Oh and she’s 75 years old! 

 

Wed Sept 26:  Went swimming with Butch and then continued walking.

 

Thurs Sept 27:  Before I left the campsite a bicycler stopped to talk.  He bikes the 330-mile Alleghany trail (C & O canal is 180 miles of it) from Pittsburgh to D.C. every month to visit his grandson.  Met a guy walking towards me with a backpack…the 1^st backpacker I’ve seen on the C & O (other than AT hikers in Harpers Ferry). Turns out that Ryan isn’t backpacking the canal-just out on a training walk so he turned around and walked 6 miles with me till he got to his car.  A really nice guy in his mid 30’s who is a lawyer but doesn’t seem like the lawyer type because he’s laidback and doesn’t look haggard.  The time flew by having someone to walk with and converse so easily with.  From a distance the leaves from the trees look like red, yellow, and brown confetti.

 

Fri Sept 28:  Camped last night at a group site.  It rained and my tent leaked…sopped up water throughout the night and stayed as dry as possible-the unfortunate aspect of campsites that are well used in that its bare dirt and when it rains it doesn’t soak up the water well, plus it splashes the mud all over the tent.  Walked 11 miles into Georgetown and another couple miles to Michelle’s work.  What a busy place D.C. is-found a library to check e-mail and met up with Michelle when she got out of work. 

 

Sun Sept 30:  Went to mass and spent the day seam sealing my tent, figuring out maps, reading and even had time for a nap!