I decided to head north for my birthday, as I have done for the last few years. I departed on Sunday at 4:30 am from Pittsburgh, packed to the gills in the Subaru. The dog and I, both rather sleepy, got our fill of coffee and treats on the way and enjoyed a great sunrise along the route.

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I pulled into a full camp — as the Original Drifter (my Dad), his wife, my brother and his wife, as well as my cousins Steve and Doug were all up and mulling around waiting on breakfast. I hadn’t planned on that (breakfast), so that was a bonus. They all got packed up and headed to their respective homes, and I had the place to myself. The Trail Dog was going to spend some time with Dad, while I relaxed and unwound.

Once I loaded all my gear into camp, it was nap time. I was beat and it felt good to crash on the couch. I woke rejuvenated and headed over to the Flying W to get some grub and watch some of the Steeler game. I ordered the bruschetta. It was huge, and I’ll know next time to only get it if sharing is going to take place. I also had some gravy fries and a few IC Lights.

Then it was over to the Hickory Nut for some more of the game. The place was kinda dead, but I had a few beers and listened to the locals. Met a local butcher that I had seen before and found out his shop is in Fryburg. I’ll need to check that out someday.

Decided to try Sporty’s for a change of scenery. It was definitely that. Much too smokey in the place for me, so headed back over the hill — but that darn Hickory Nut lured me in again. It was still pretty low-key and only had one more before heading back to camp for the night.

Topped the evening off with some Raiders of the Lost Ark before hitting the hay. It was a good first day of the trip. ~Drifter07