Update: July 8th, Vernon, N.J.

Just a brief update as we are about to leave New Jersey behind us; to let you all know that Dewey and I are still alive and continuing on our northern trek. Since our last update, we completed Pennsylvania with little further ado. The weather was kind to us with sunny dry, low humidity days. Fortunately, the reports that the rocks got even worse during the last 50 miles after Lehigh Gap proved totally exaggerated, as many reports of this type tend to be. The climb out of Lehigh Gap was awesome and wonderful, over large open rocks, with wonderful panoramas. We found it was interesting as we continued along the ridge-top for the first two miles, as it was almost completely devoid of vegetation. We later learned that this was the consequence of a Zinc mine that had been located in the valley below. The ash given off by the processing completely killed all vegetative life, leaving a stark rock-filled landscape, now on the super-fund clean-up list.
We spent two days at Delaware Water Gap, Pa. The second day was an unanticipated 'zero' day for us, as Dewey had a few essays to complete at the library 4 miles away for a job application. We spent the second night at the Episcopalian Hiker Hostel. This was a real treat, as the congregation put on a hiker feed on Thursday nights, more than justifying our second day there.
We entered N. J. the next day by crossing the Delaware River over the I-80 bridge, with all it's highway noise. We appropriately photo documented the event somewhere in the middle. On the other side you enter Wadsworth State Park and enter a beautiful forest, gradually climbing the ridge on the other side. The trail quickly loses the sounds of the highway and hugs cascading waterfalls through beautiful lush green forests. You quickly pass by Sunfish Pond, which is the first glacial pond left by the glaciers. Although it is posted prohibiting swimming, the temptation proved to be too great. The summits of the ridges were different than Pa., offering a lot more open grassy tops with vistas all around. However, our old friends the Pennsylvania rocks seemed to follow us as well, for at least the first two days. New Jersey has been interesting, with varied terrain, fields and forests, and it's occasional delis at the road crossings. Last night we managed to lose a shelter location (although we followed the map location to a tee) and found ourselves camped (perhaps illegally) by the shore of a beautiful lake, where the shelter was supposed to be located. We enjoyed a brief swim and a good dinner. Today the high heat and humidity returned to last for at least the next couple days, but this is summer, after all.
Tomorrow, within 10 miles, we will leave N. J. behind us for the 90+ miles in New York that remain, before we find ourselves home in New England. There we will finally have much family and friend support as we continue our march to Maine. More updates to come!