Susquehanna State Park, MD

I stayed in a loud Walmart parking lot last night. I didn’t sleep well. It was overcast with a heavy fog in the air. The fog was so heavy that it felt like rain at times.

Starbucks Bel Air, MD

I was off to Starbucks in Bel Air, MD to access the Internet. This was my second time at this Starbucks and I noticed the same people sitting around and picking up drinks. One guy beside me, Mark, was hiring people for a new restaurant, Honeygrow, that was opening in the same plaza. It was part of a small chain of restaurants that had private equity backing from the same group that funded Five Guys (now a major burger chain). This was the groups second restaurant chain investment. The food is all made fresh and there is nothing frozen or microwaved. Mark is the general manager for the new restaurant in Bel Air, MD. Just listening to Mark describe the menu and preparation, I hoped I would get a chance to eat at one.

People came in for interviews in a corner of Starbucks. Mark would ask them to tell him a little bit about themselves. I was struck by the stories they told. Some were very qualified and others not at all. One young man had been in rehab several times and had been raised by his grandmother. He had been clean for three years and was focused on staying drug free. He had a support group to help him. A woman told him that she had three kids, ages 22, 20 and 2. Mark commented on the age differences and she said I love them all and wouldn’t change a thing. She was working three jobs to make everything work. Her mother watched the 2 year old while she worked. Another man, age 35, from Pennsylvania, was recently divorced and temporarily moved in with his brother to get his life back on track. He had a lot of prep experience in small restaurants and was clearly eager to work. He got an offer on the spot. There were many others that never made it to the interview. Mark would call them and they would give him an excuse. Sometimes the second or third attempt at an interview. I spoke to Mark on my last visit to this Starbucks and he told me he was having trouble finding people that could do the work, were willing to work and didn’t have too many issues that would interfere with getting the job done. Some of the jobs paid $14 per hour plus estimated $2 per hour in tips. I thought to myself how can people support a family on $16 per hour.

Susquehanna State Park

I was working on a blog and did some research on the Susquehanna State Park trails. Apparently, this is one of the best parks in Maryland for mountain biking, but I decided I wanted to go for a hike instead.

The drive from Belair, MD to the park was about 20 minutes. Near the park, the roads narrow. Two cars can pass each other, but it is very tight. The locals don’t slow down. I came into the park near the Carter-Archer house. I stopped to read the plaque near the entrance. James J. Archer left the U.S. Army and joined the Confederate Army as a brigadier general. He was captured and was in prison where he died in 1864 before the end of the war. The Susquehanna State Park website has the following description of the house:

On the hill which overlooks the mill stands the Carter-Archer House. Also known as the Rock Run Mansion, this majestic 14-room stone structure was built in 1804 by John Carter, a partner of John Stump in the Rock Run Mill. When Carter died a year later, the house passed to the Stumps' daughter, Ann, and her husband, Dr. John Archer, Jr. One of their children, James J. Archer, served as a brigadier general in the Confederate Army during the Civil War. Several rooms are restored and furnished with period antiques. Associated with the mansion are a stone carriage barn and a stone springhouse, where the water still runs clear and cold.

I parked down the street at the Rock Run Grist Mill. There’s an old rail line with some rails running along the Susquehanna river. I walked around a little just to get a sense of the area. There are trails running in several directions. I woman with a gravel bike rode by and said good morning.

I decided to take the Rock Run Grist Mill Trail on AllTrails. The trail starts by crossing over a small stream. Typically, I assume this isn’t an issue if there isn’t much water in the stream. I tried for 20 minutes to cross with my camera snuggly attached to my chest. I knew that I was either going to get wet, destroy my camera, or get hurt trying to cross. It had rained for the past two nights, and there was more water in the stream than usual. The rocks were wet, covered with green moss and leaves. I couldn’t find a stable place to cross. I walked down stream on the road, crossed a road bridge and came back up stream through thick briars to the trail. My legs were itching but I was finally on the trail. I didn’t see any other streams to cross on the map until I returned.

The AllTrails route pretty much stayed on the Susquehanna Ridge Trail and White Trail and looped through the forest. There were plaques along the way describing some of the trees. A few of the trees were between 12 and 15 feet in diameter, massive trees. The forest was moist and there were many mushrooms growing on the trees. I told myself that I need to learn more about mushrooms. This has become a theme.

The trail eventually opened into large fields that were once part of the regions farming community. The fields were covered in a vibrant green grass and the trail was dotted with some type of small plant with a reddish-violet growth. My photos didn’t do them justice. It was nice to be in a place where there was no cars, planes and other loud noises. It was silent with the occasional sound of a bird or the wind rustling in the trees.

I continued through the forest and near the end of the hike came to another stream. A large group of tree trunks had collected near the trail. I stopped to take a few photos of a flat area of the stream with cascading water. I was looking for a way across the stream and noticed a woman sitting on large tree that had fallen across down stream. She had her camera out and was taking videos of the water coming through the stack of trees.

Her name was Heather and she is a private Environmental Assessor for large companies. She is also an avid hiker and made some suggestions for places I might want to visit. I was a little reluctant to cross the log with my camera. She coached me on using a stick for balance and then slowly walking across. In the middle of the stream, there were small branches growing out of the tree which made navigating the truck a little more difficult. I successfully made it across without getting me or the camera wet. I said to her that it doesn’t make sense to have a trail that goes directly into the stream and not provide a way to cross. There were small bridges on other parts of the trail.

We were headed in the same direction and discussed mushrooms, environmental assessments, hiking, etc. Along the way I almost stepped on a common garter snake. I moved its tail and it didn’t scurry off, but raised its head. She said they are such curious creatures. I unsuccessfully took a few photos to captured its bright red tongue.

Ko-Shinto/Shinto Priestess

Further down stream, I saw a woman standing in the stream dressed in all white. She had a puppy that looked like a wolf. It seemed to have a protective instinct but didn’t growl. I noticed an origami paper shape hanging on a stick, planted in the water. I took some photos of the falls and then asked if I could take a few photos of her.

She told me she was a Ko-Shinto/Shinto priestess and she was doing a Japanese purification ceremony called "Misogi-harae". I explained my trip to her and asked permission to post some of the photos on the blog. She told me she wanted to approve the photos before I posted anything.

Her name was Kuniko and she was concerned that the water might be contaminated. There was a sign near the falls that indicated being in the falls could be dangerous. I told her that Heater was an environmental assessor. Heather felt that the sign was there as a warning about the dangers of slipping on the rocks. Heather also told her not to swallow the water for fear of ingesting any tiny parasites like Giardia.

I noticed Kuniko had some type of foot covering with toes that came up on her leg like a sock. I presume they provided a better grip on the rocks. She entered the water and faced the falls, saying something in Japanese. She raised her right hand towards the sky with two fingers pointing and then lowered her arm towards the fall. She then proceeded to walk towards the falls. Once under the falls, she stood with her hands in prayer and her eyes closed. She said a few more words in Japanese and remained under the falls for one or two minutes. Stepping away from the falls, she turned and bowed with her hands in prayer. She then walked back to the shore. She did a similar process a second time and this time sat on a rock to the side of the falls. The water still rushed over her.

The temperatures were in the low 60’s, and I thought to myself, she must be cold. I thought of the process that Wim Hof goes through to be able to handle extremely cold environments and wondered if there was something similar in this process.

Heather and I walked back to our cars. She knew the park well from previous visits and showed me how to get down to the Susquehanna river. We also checked out the Grist Mill.

The drive from the park was beautiful because the sun was hitting the trees perfectly.

Planet Fitness

I needed a shower and found the closest Planet Fitness. The black membership gets me into any Planet Fitness. I realized, that some even have changing rooms near the showers. The showers are always clean and have plenty of hot water. They’ve also started putting a large bowl of tootsie rolls at the front desk.

Prost Restaurant

Given that I’d probably be staying at another Walmart, I looked for a local restaurant. I didn’t want pub food or pizza. I found a German restaurant called Prost (cheers in German) and it had good reviews. It was a 15 minute drive located in Aberdeen, MD. Entering, there were four people waiting. We explained that we weren’t all together, but she seated us all at the same table. This was something that would happen in Europe and didn’t think anything about sitting with strangers. The woman in the party, told I needed to go find another table. It was a little abrupt but I went back to the front and noticed there was a bar.

Every one seemed to know each other. Denny sitting beside me was a regular. There was a younger software engineer on the other corner of the bar. An hour later we were all exchanging various stories about Germany, software development, and various German foods and beer. I ordered the traditional grilled German bratwurst (spicy), served on a bed sauerkraut and German potato salad. It was delicious and very authentic. Nan, the general manager / bartender, told me the owners are German and very particular about making sure the food is high. quality and authentic. I ordered a Weissbier to go with the meal. It was all so good, and I had worked up such an appetite with the hike, I order the same meal again.

Stay In The Country

Denny is a teacher and works with kids with special needs. He told me he had over 20 acres of land about 10 miles away. I took him up on his offer to let me park the car in his front yard. Nan told me Denny is a good guy and it wouldn’t be a problem staying there. I was thankful to have a quiet place to stay.