Duncannon, PA (USA)

[woke up in the middle of the night because of a LOUD siren (!) - fell back to sleep, luckily - up early (0600) - sunny, cold (teens F). Drove across the river, parked on PA-147 and hiked up (slippery) Peters Mountain. Was ready for ice, wind and cold - but nothing could prepare me for the depth of the snow! Sometimes, i was on the south/east side of the ridge and almost everything was melted. Most of the time, however, I was on the other side - deeper drifts... I was stepping in 4-6 inches for much of the morning - but occasionally I found myself knee deep (or worse, waist deep). Every step was treacherous! There were no other footprints and I actually lost the trail several times (blazes pained on rocks under the snow). My beard was nearly frozen solid and I could feel the needles and tingling sensations in all my extremities, despite many layers of clothing. When I'd finished the first half of the hike, I'd learned that stepping through that much snow is exhausting. All of it was worth the effort, though, because the views were amazing! Still, I took advantage of the first road I encountered and hiked back to my car on pavement (PA-225, PA-325, US-322). Completed 14 miles! By then, it was around 1 PM. Got a quick bite to eat at Burger King in Duncannon (1315) before scouting out trailheads to the east (all the way to I-81). Stayed the night at the hostel again - this time, I encountered a large group of AT hikers and hung out with them at the pub. It turned out I was the only fool who actually went hiking today... Ha! Feel good about that and will try again in the morning. AT Today = 6.53 miles / G.T. = 356.59 miles.]