Today started off cool and gloomy,  quickly turning to rain for half the day.

On the first 500ft climb of the day, I came across my favorite sign so far…

The trail soon turned muddy making progress very slow and difficult. At one point, I slipped and nearly slid into a creek, skidding about 3 ft, stopping right at the edge of the water.

I came across a massive Oak tree. It’s branches were the size of many tree trunks around it.

Around midday,  the trail ran alongside Nuclear lake. It had been the site of a nuclear research facility until a  explosion in the 70s. I kept a lookout for three eyed fish and glow in the dark deer, but everything seemed normal.

Later on I crossed through a swamp via wooden boardwalk.

I ended the day at Tony’s deli. Great food and they let you camp out back for $2. They are open from 3:30am to midnight,  definitely worth stopping by if you’re hiking through.