What a lovely day today! It was freezing last night, so today I scraped ice off of my windshield with a gift card. But it was supposed to warm up, so I was fine with that. I met Heather, my trail angel for the rest of my hike, at the Emlenton trailhead. She then shuttled me to Brandon Road and I began hiking backwards.
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Leaving Brandon Road Behind
This part of the NCT piggybacks on the Allegheny River Trail. It’s a flat, paved trail that traces a portion of the Allegheny River and includes two tunnels. I was glad to have a day where I didn’t have to worry about rain, downed trees or soggy trails.
During the hike, I passed several small clusters of homes, all of which called themselves “camps.” As in “Camp David,” “Camp Bear,” etc. I remember learning about these Eastern “camps” from my older brother, who moved to Massachusetts many years ago. They’re essentially vacation spots, but call themselves camps.’
There were also interesting historical markers about the tunnels, which were created to enable straighter, flatter roads for vehicles, which previously had to 
drive up, down, around curves, etc. Very time consuming.
Thank goodness trail angel Bob told me about the tunnels. They’re not straight and are long, so you need a light to safely traverse them. My headlamp and iPhone light were barely enough. I often felt like I was listing as I walked through them.
Day Is Done
I’ve been staying in Emlenton for four nights. Tomorrow I switch to Clarion for my last two days on the trail. More rain is predicted. Ugh.
OMG, how could I have forgotten to mention this?!! I hit 4,000 miles on the NCT today. Yay, me!
Snowshoe
Pennsylvania miles today: 16.8 (27 km)
Pennsylvania NCT miles to date: 119.7 (192.6 km)
Total NCT miles to date: 4,001.9 (6,440.4 km)
Total NCT miles to go: 598.1 (962.6 km)
My most useful gear today: My Black Diamond head lamp, which helped me navigate those tunnels.
