July 23, 2004

Bear and I left New York City today via the bus.  As we were walking through the terminal,

Bear exclaimed, "Oh shit!"

"What?" I asked.

"I left my hiking clothes at the hotel," Bear said in a frustrated tone.

So...I waited at the gate while Bear hurried via cab back to the hotel to retrieve his hiking apparel.  Luckily, we had misread the bus schedule so Bear had an extra 30 minutes to scurry around NY.  Did I mention that it rained today?  Yep...it rained an inch an hour in NYC so the black umbrellas were ever-present. 

We boarded the bus and rode for two hours headed back to Greenwood Lakes, NY where we got off the trail.  We missed our stop and ended up north of Greenwood Lakes so we had to phone for a ride.  We were soaked!  I enjoyed my break in NYC, but cannot wait to begin hiking again.  The forecast calls for heavy rain until at least Tuesday, but I am anxious and excited to become a resident of the woods again.  The woods is where I am most comfortable these days which is a HUGE transformation for me.