Shingletown Gap, the Roman Tower redux

Erin and I started out at the Shingletown Gap Trailhead (up Mountain Road, off RT45, south of Boalsburg, PA) and the light rain didn't dampen our spirits too much.

I've been wanting to test out my CFP-90 field pack for a while since my shoulder surgery, and this seemed like a good opportunity. We were going to lug our gear to the top of Mount Nittany the previous day to camp, but I read on their web site that they didn't allow overnight camping or fires. Somebody should tell the dozens of folks who do that regularly.

Anyway...I figured I'd just load up some gear in the pack and take a day hike. I wanted to be sure that I could handle a backpacking trip before heading out on one. After I loaded up a good 40 pounds in the pack, I was surprised and relieved that it felt like almost nothing on my back. I could hike all day with that, and no worries. Frankly, I think I could easily pack a 65-70 pound load. This is not surprising, since I lost over 80 pounds after gaining quite a bit from my shoulder surgery.

About the hike...

We started up Cruiser's Run along the Deer Path (blue blazed) and went straight up Tussey Ridge. The trail seemed longer than it did the week before, even though I had trudged up Egg Hill on that hike before heading to the Deer Path. Erin had gear trouble with he shoes, which slowed us down, but we still made acceptable progress to the top.

Since it was rainy and foggy, there was no point in checking out the vistas to the south, so we just trekked on over to the Roman Tower. I convinced Erin to use trekking poles (click for my how-to on their use), but she never really did comment on them. I find them amazingly helpful, myself. We paused for a snack under a nice, dry hemlock, which was nice, because it was getting a bit chilly in the rain, although it wasn't enough to make me put on a poncho.

After the Roman Tower, we continued North (East, actually, on this section) to the Mount Nittany Vista. After pausing to take in the view, we moved along, looking for the Sand Spring Trail, which we would take, since the 1-2 Link Trail has pretty much become a non-option.

Although I've hiked this section of the trail from the other side a dozen or more times, almost none of it looked familiar. I suppose this is because I'm generally looking to rush back to my car after photographing Mount Nittany well into the sunset.

The MST to the Sand Spring Trail was about three times longer than I remembered, but it would make a nice day hike. On this day, with a heavy pack, I really just wanted to get down the hill. Just when I was tempted to start bushwhacking, there was the big sign for the trail.

This trail I remembered well, even though I had only hiked it once before, in the winter, at that. The slope was fairly gradual, with only a few yards where I had to be careful of my footing. There were hardly any rocks, which was nice, considering the ridge above is one of the rockiest sections of trail in PA.

After what Erin described as 'an ocean of ferns' we came to a small path that looked like it was used by ATVs. Knowing that the trail would eventually lead up Bald Knob, I took the path to the west. In retrospect, we should have kept going straight for a good bit longer.

Nevertheless, the little path led us to the Shingletown Trail, with only one minor detour where the path took a sharp right turn before some very soft ground. I suspect this is the route preferred by bikers, and the sharp right was to avoid that patch of 'quicksand'.

After a short while we came to the Shingletown Path and the spring that feeds Roaring Run. Anybody who's hiked this trail knows it is well-trodden and completely overused. I'm not entirely convinced that bikers are to blame for the nasty trail conditions, and I'm sure the pounding it takes from casual and amateur hikers is worse. At some point, somebody should consider hardening the trail with gravel or even pavement to keep it intact. The way it is, it'll kill all the trees around it, erode the hillside and get even more worn out than it already is. There was once a practice of relocating trails that got overrun, but that has long been shown to actually increase the damage to the environment. I vote for gravel and some funding for maintenance, a la a rail trail, but not as formal, of course.

About halfway back, we ran into a pack of seriously depressed kids geared-up for backpacking. I'm not sure if they were bailing out or returning home, but they all looked miserable. Apparently, they didn't have my CFP-90 or the ability to slug 60 pounds on their backs! Ironically, I suspect most of them were made more miserable by their numerous, over-priced GoreTex jackets than anything else. It's my experience that GoreTex is only useful when it gets cold. In a slow and steady rain, it only makes me clammy, pruned-up and too hot. In order for GoreTex to breathe, duh, it has to allow evaporation. When it's 100% humidity, how can it evaporate? My advice--ditch the GoreTex sauna if it's above 60 degrees. Use a poncho if it's that bad. At least you'll get some airflow. On the other hand, synthetics really work well as base layers. I had on my trusty synthetic top, shorts and underwear, and although I was soaked to the bone, I wasn't terribly cold, and when I did get out of the rain, I was quite a bit dryer and warmer than if I had used cotton.

Enough of the tangent! We got back to the Jeep in short order, stopping by my place and then on to a well-deserved meal at Pizza Hut