September 29 – October 1, 2017
While hiking through the New York state, numerous trail towns with bus and train terminals lead to New York City. The temptation to visit lures many thruhikers off trail. Bowing to temptation coupled with tradition, we chose to ride a bus from Fort Montgomery to NYC for a fare of $14.50 each, one way.
Our son flew in from Nevada on Friday, and the three of us happily spent the weekend seeing the sights.
It was quite a culture shock, riding crowded subways, walking through the bright lights of Times Square, eating Korean BBQ cooked in front of us. We found ourselves walking through Central Park more than once, just to quiet our souls and help assimilate all the sights and sounds.
Watching “The Lion King” was the highlight of the city experience. Costumes came alive through the skill of the actors, enhanced with extraordinary music. Such a transition, from busy New York City to African savannahs!
Regretfully we hugged our son good-bye as the weekend ended. However, relief was the over-riding feeling as we boarded the bus, headed back to the Appalachian Trail. New York City is a part of the AT thru-hike for many people, and we enjoyed our time, but we were also glad the time was limited!
Sarah and Jay Hike 