All alone. Woe is me.

I mean, not really. I do have the shelter completely to myself. Not a soul around. A little annoying since I was supposed to meet Dino and Sisyfus here.

Started pretty late this morning. Last night was the second night using this foam sleeping pad instead of my Big Agnes inflatable one, and this just ain't gonna cut it. Unfortunately I sent that one home already, so I'm stuck with this one until I can get the good one mailed back to me. Poor choices. 

Anyway, slept terrible, plus I think I was still trying to get my schedule back after that silly night hike. Got up sort of late, Dino and Sisyfus were motivated I guess, and left fairly early. I didn't leave until 0930. 

Just sort of meandered today. Was really in no hurry. Walked and talked with Cheeseburger and Baggy for quite a bit. They do something with environmental science (something with bats) and know all kinds of plants, animals, and birds. Learned quite a bit. I probably already forgot most of it, but I hope some of it sticks. 

Ran into The Geezers again. They gave me honorary membership. Not sure if I can get ten percent off anything with that or not. They were at the shelter before the one I was going to meet Dino and Sis at, and I had plenty of time, so I hung out for a while. Probably nearly two hours. I enjoyed it, and Ranger pointed out some trees to me, including a cucumber tree. Apparently that's what it's called. 

Cheeseburger, Baggy, and Santa were heading into Glasgow, but I was skipping it since I didn't need a resupply. I was tempted, though, since the town had a pavilion built where hikers could stay and even shower for free. But I was going to meet Dino and Sis at the shelter right after town, so decided against it. 

Which is why I'm here alone. Got plenty of space. There was a note for me in the register telling me they were pushing farther, but since I got here so late I'm just going to bed. Dino left a note wondering if I would make it where they are. I hope she didn't make a bet again. I wrote under it "Unlikely."  

Crossed the James river today, on the Foot Bridge, apparently the longest pedestrian bridge on the AT. Foot is actually the name of the guy the bridge is dedicated to. Maybe I'll get up early tomorrow and put in some miles. 

Cheeseburger and Baggy. 

Selfie. 

Foot Bridge. 

The James River. 

So far to go. 

Reunited

Dinosaur caught up with me and Sisyphus today. Which wasn't hard, as we barely walked today. Sis took off early, but when I got to the next shelter (5 miles) she was in her sleeping bag there. She'd hurt her knee, and was hanging out. I sat to eat lunch, and just never really got going again. Dinosaur, Ranger, Princess, Rocketman, and Santa all caught up, beating the afternoon rain. We played Diamonds while waiting for the weather to clear up. Didn't go so well for me. 

I was incredibly tempted to just stay at that shelter, for a five mile nero, but Dinosaur and Sis pushed on. I figured I didn't have any excuse, but I looked in the guidebook trying to find one. No luck, so I bid the Geezers adieu. Five more miles was the next shelter, where I currently am with Dinosaur, Sisyfus, Safari, Cheeseburger, and Baggy. Dino won a dollar from Sisyphus, who bet I wouldn't show up. Had some dinner, and Cheeseburger gave me some wild leeks for my wrap. Delicious, though now I'm fighting leek after taste. Tomorrow I'm planning on going past Glasgow. 

Princess and Rocketman preparing stuff for the rain. 

Black rock Overlook. 

The Guillotine. 

More crazy wonderful trail magic.

So, past few days have been pretty great. First, on the 1st, walked 10 miles into Dalesville, where I'd planned on resupplying and moving on. My broken pack was worrying me, however. It was still 60 miles to Glasgow, and I'd probably get there either Saturday or Sunday after post office hours. So I had a reasonably clever thought, and I called the Glasgow post office to have them forward my mail to Dalesville, and I'd spend the night in town. 

So on the morning of the second, I went to the post office to pick up my packages. But alas, there was only a solitary package there. The one from Momma Sparkle containing way too much food (and an Ale-8!), and not the one containing the piece of my pack that I needed to actually continue on my hike. So phone calls were made. Apparently, since that package was shipped UPS, only UPS could ship it, and it wouldn't arrive until Monday. Uh-oh. 

Not to worry, the wonderful Seyra at the outfitter in town (Outdoor Trails, I think it was) saved my day. She had a spare of the piece I needed, and even helped me install it. All of this took longer than expected however, so it was past noon when I was ready to hike. Then I ran into Dinosaur and Beandip, who'd just made it into town. I was invited to eat with them, so I did. They were splitting a room with Spirit Crusher and Thin Mint, and offered me a spot on their floor. So I figured to heck with it, and zeroed. Though I stayed in Fireman's room. He had a second bed that wasn't being used, so I got a bed. Happy days. 

So I moved on the next day, the 3rd. Easy walking, pretty surroundings, but I was feeling burned out. Did about 10 miles, and then sat at the second shelter I came to for an hour. It was a little after noon, and the sun was hot. Talked with Capt and her partner (drawing a blank on the name but she's already thru-hiked twice, nice and knowledgeable lady). Moxie showed up and I traded him a pastry to fill my water bottle. I was debating on whether to go further when Dino and Sisyfus showed up. I'd never met Sis before, but she has one of those infectious smiles. When I told her my name, she said, "You're Midnight Sparkle!? I've been wanting to meet you forever! I feel like I'm meeting a celebrity." So obviously I like her. She looked so familiar, though, and I couldn't figure out why, until it suddenly dawned on me that she had an uncanny resemblance to Starbuck from the new Battlestar Galactica. I think Kaytee Sackhoff every time I see her now. 

They were pushing off, and asked me if I wanted to go, so I joined them. Sis was leading and she was flying, until Dino eventually suggested a tamer speed, and Sis apologized, because she was worried she would slow us down. I laughed at that.  Not much can slow me down, hard to get slower than me. 

Then the crazy stuff happened. We got to Taylor overlook on the Blue Ridge Parkway, and I said let's take a break. So we took our packs off and flopped down, and almost immediately a pickup truck swerves into the overlook with a bunch of hollering. It's Sis's friends, who'd met up with Kindergarten Cop, a former PCT thru-hiker and retired LAPD cop, back in Daleville. Two of them had hiked with him on the PCT. Her friends were Geared Up (who'd made his own backpack out of ziplock bags), Cristo the Lion, and Winging It. We picked up Moxie at the next overlook. 

Kindergarten Cop (KC) took us to his place in Bedford, a beautiful old Victorian home. He and his wife had moved out here when they retired. You've heard the phrase "bigger than life?" KC is who they were talking about. Not necessarily physically, as he's not particularly tall, though he's quite solidly built. I wouldn't keep score in his register, anyway. But his presence and obvious zest for life are remarkable. 

They had made food for us, ribs, corn, incredibly delicious pies with a local dairy's ice cream, and a ton of other stuff. The girls watched a movie (Kill Bill 1), but I spent the evening talking with KC and the other guys. The man had so many crazy interesting stories. Some would make you laugh, and some would make you cringe. He wrote a novel that's in the editing stage, of which I read a chapter. Pretty entertaining, I'm looking forward to reading it all when it's published. The best part of hanging out with KC? I could tell my own stories. 

I've had to be careful about what stories to tell on the Trail. It's mostly civilians, and some story that I think is hilarious could draw looks of horror. But I didn't have to censor myself with KC.  He's seen similar things and been in similar situations. It felt like I was talking to another soldier. It felt good. I really missed that, and hadn't even realized it. 

The plan was to go back to the Trail in the morning. However, when morning came (they fed us a huge and excellent breakfast as well!), Dino says, "Can we stay and watch Kill Bill 2? Then we can do night hiking tonight! It will be fun!" I was less than enthused, but it was a bit of a drive back to the trailhead and I didn't want KC to make an extra trip, plus I was really enjoying sitting on his front porch swing talking with him and his wife. So long story short, we got back on the Trail at about 1630. Pretty late. Cristo, Gear, and Wing stayed at KC's. 

The girls and I met up with Moxie at the next shelter, and we all hiked together for a while. Saw a large blacksnake, freaked Dino out until we explained it wasn't poisonous. Seen several of those guys, so far. Passed Ranger, Princess, and Rocketman, who'd set up camp in a reasonably flat spot, and we reached the next shelter right at dark. This was about ten miles in.  Dino says, "Umm, I think I'm going to camp here." Ha. 

So Moxie, Sis, and I go for the night hike Dino suggested. It was pretty fun, I guess. We passed the time by singing. But only songs from the nineties, and we rotated who picked one. It was mostly just choruses and a few random lines, but good time. Arrived at the shelter just after midnight, for about seventeen miles. Facts, Grasshopper, and Topo were the only ones there, and it fit 20 people. Really nice shelter. Lovely design. Bryant shelter, I think it's called. And there was a note from Canary to me in the register, which made me happy. Good times, but I don't think I'm doing that again. 

Gear's homemade bag. 

Sisyfus, Kindergarten Cop, and Dinosaur.

Yet another beautiful view. 

Sis, Dino, and Moxie. 

It's just nice out here. 

The 700 Club

Much better day. Spent nearly the entire day by myself. The Machine and Survivorman were gone by the time I woke up. Scott (section hiker) was prepping his stuff also. I got my stuff ready while everyone else was waking up. Several people were going to the store right down the road, so I rode with them, had an overpriced BLT, and then they dropped me off at the trailhead. 

Really misty today. Fog covered everything. But no rain, and that was a blessing considering the forecast claimed today would be much worse than the last two. Hiked up on McAfee's Knob, the rock ledge that juts out and is the most photographed landmark on the AT. I had signal there, so I hung out for a good hour hoping someone would come by to take my picture. No joy. The timer on my camera was only for 10 seconds, so I almost killed myself sprinting across the cliffs to get in the picture. Turned out okay, I guess. Can't upload them until I get to a computer. 

Beautiful views around Tinker Cliffs, the fog spread itself thin enough for almost a half an hour of lovely scenery. That was one of my favorite sections of the AT so far. 

In the shelter tonight is The Machine, Survivorman, Scott, Resistance, and me. I guess no one else headed out today. It was a good day of hiking, and it's nice having only a few good people around. 

That's my backpack on McAfees Knob with the fog. 

Pretty sweet rock house. 

Me in the dense fog. 

The Campbell Shelter. 

Pretty. 

Events.

Quite a bit happened today. It was a pretty miserable day, actually. Pretty high on my AT worst days list. Not all bad of course, there were some good moments. Just also a high percentage of bad ones, as well. 

First off the weather was unpleasant. It was just bad. Cold and rainy. I am so very tired of being cold. All morning. 

We went over Dragon's Tooth today, several really cool jagged stone monoliths that resembled the bottom teeth of a monster. And it was. I think the descent would have been challenging but fun in good weather. In the cold wind and rain it was more of a nightmare. 

The wind kept whipping my poncho around my legs as I tried to climb down steep rocks and traversing shallow ledges. The difficulty was compounded by holding hiking poles, wearing a pack, my broken frame digging into my back, the rocks being wet, the aforementioned poncho, and most worryingly, cold hands that were numb and slow to respond. I was very deliberate with every move. 

At the bottom of the mountain is Four Pines hostel. An odd place, it's just a 3 car garage that was converted into a place to stay. The story of how it came into existence is interesting. The proprietor, Joe, used to work at a store down the road (this store is why I came here, I needed food). One day a thru-hiker came in and asked if he knew anyone willing to give him a ride. Joe, being a good ol' boy, offered him a ride. When the hiker got in the cab of his truck, Joe told him "Man, you sure stink." So the hiker told him of the AT. Joe took him to his place first and let him use the shower in his garage, and eventually let him stay there. The hiker told him, "This sure would be a good hostel," to which Joe replied, "What the **** is a hostel?" As told by Joe. The rest is history, now he stays busy, running it as a donation only place. He charges for some stuff, such as laundry and deliveries. 

A lot of hikers are here. The Machine, Survivorman, Dinosaur, Squirrel (both of them), Listen, Violet, Quailman, Icicle, Treefrog, and several others. Even Bangerang showed up, though he's flip flopping and hiking south at the moment. All witness to the drama that unfolded tonight. 

Before the "drama," resupplied at a convenience store. Needed two days worth of food, pretty much got Pop-tarts and snack cakes, and cost as much as my 4-5 day resupplies run. Have to eat, though. Did get some gas station pizza. 

Back at the hostel, we played some games of Diamonds. I think it's starting to spread, several people really enjoy it now and are wanting to play. Joe came in after a while and challenged everyone to either chess or cornhole. He was driving some people somewhere, and the game would happen when he came back. Free laundry would be the prize if you beat him in cornhole ($6 otherwise). 

Dinosaur, Listen, and Squirrel had never played cornhole before, so I taught them how to play. Listen is extremely competitive (which makes her fun to play with) and took to it quickly. The other two seemed to enjoy themselves, but did not appear too enthused. When Joe came back, I played him in cornhole. I beat him. So yay, free laundry, right? Sigh.  Listen challenged him also, but lost. She played a good game, though. Joe then had to drive some section hikers to town. 

So we start playing cards again. And we were using the register to keep score. A fairly routine practice on the AT. But the registers here are pretty much sacred to Joe. Sigh. So here's how it went down. 

I'm keeping score, because someone else asked me to. They handed me the notebook (plain ol' notebook, but actually a register). We're playing cards. Joe comes in. Of course he's obviously drunk. I'm batting a pretty good percentage of interactions while hostel owners are inebriated. And he flips out about the register. Aggressively. 

My first thought was to defuse the situation, and I made the attempt, but he was having none of it. Some of the other hikers were attempting to calm him down, but he was having none of that, either. His ire is at me, of course, since I'm the one defacing his relic. 

After a fairly considerable amount of cussing from him, I finally snap and start yelling back. I really thought it was going to be physical for a minute (dude probably would have kicked my tail, he's older but probably twice my size!). 

Finally while other people are talking to him I just start packing my things. Then he tells me to get out of his place, and I say "what do you think I'm doing?" While I'm packing he calms down and it's obvious he feels bad and embarrassed about the situation. He leaves after more or less apologizing to everyone else. He wasn't angry anymore, anyway. I'm so tired of drunks. I think I'm only going to stay in places that don't allow drinking from now on. Well, depending on how cold and wet it is. 

I'm still packing, but after the door shuts literally everyone in the place (maybe one or two exceptions) is asking me to stay. Which makes me feel good, but now I'm embarrassed by my reaction, plus I'm so amped up on adrenalin that I'm shaking. So I'm still going to go, but they continued asking me to stay and finally one person says, "look, if you leave right now everyone here is going to feel awful. Please stay." So I did. Which might mean I'm trespassing right now. I'm not up on that law. 

I apologized to everyone for my part, and of course everyone tells me not to worry about it, that it was either justified or reasonable. But it's not okay. It doesn't really matter whether my actions were reasonable, I don't think they were right. 

Joe loves his registers. They tell him who and how many hikers he helps each year, and I believe they really are sacred to him. I think they give him purpose. And I think that is something every person needs. By defacing his register, however inadvertent, I disrespected his self appointed purpose in life. 

So I feel I should have apologized to him repeatedly and listened to him berate me. Sigh. It's hard to be the puppy who rolls over when your natural tendencies plus training and experience wants you to growl back and go for the throat. The guy really seemed cool. I was hoping to play him in a game of chess tomorrow. Plus I wanted the free laundry I won. I don't think I'm going to bring that up, now. I am going to attempt to apologize to him in the morning, but probably after I'm packed and on my way out. Seems smarter that way. C'est la vie. 

Dragon's Tooth. 

After traversing Dragon's Tooth. Rain had mostly stopped. The sign is the sign urging caution. 

Listen playing with the hostel cat. He has an inappropriate name so I will call him "Kitty."

Seven Years Lucky

The Appalachian Trail is one of the longest, most rewarding, and most challenging individual endeavors that I have ever undertaken. Seven years ago, however, I began an even more rewarding, and yes, challenging endeavor. And I'm expecting it to be the longest lasting thing that I ever do. Happy  Anniversary Mrs. Sparkle. I love you more than anything in this world. 

Another reason to celebrate, today is Dinosaur's birthday. Happy Birthday, Dino! I'm hoping to get her an ice cream cake. I don't know if they have those in Germany. 

Been a long day. About 21 miles. I'm trying to remember this morning. Oh yeah. Started before I woke up. Last night sort of late, an older section hiker named Fringe came into Laurel shelter, so I moved my spot over for him and he ended up where I was. No big deal, but this happened after Princess went to bed. Her, Ranger, and Rocketman tented last night, and are early risers. When they were leaving, she decided to mess with me by kissing me on the forehead, but she thought Fringe was me. Apparently it was pretty funny, but I was asleep. 

Lot of rain today. Heavy, cold rain. But before it hit came across the Keffer Oak, one of the oldest oak trees on the AT. There is one bigger somewhere up north. Big tree. 

Lot of people took cover from the rain in the second shelter (think it was Niday) we came across. Beandip and her mother stayed there today. Dino drew one of her drawings with a poll for whether they should change their names from Beandip and Mama Bean to Soul Destroyer and Spirit Crusher. I voted yes. 

We played another game of Diamonds while waiting for the rain to stop. Senator, H2O, Dino, me, and Listen. Senator won again. He just got out of the Navy, where he was a diver. When the rain stopped, he and H2O took off, as did Listen and Squirrel. I think Boomer and Smudge took off before it finished. After a few minutes, Dinosaur, Violet, and myself took off. Long uphills today. And did I mention rain?

In a dry spell, I stopped on a ridge line where I had signal while the others went on. I was freezing, but I managed to get a call through to my wife. It was good to talk to her, even though my teeth were chattering (slight exaggeration there). 

This was on Brushy Mountain. There's a wide grassy path up part of the mountain, that leads to the Audie Murphy monument. Boomer and Smudge were camped right in the middle of the path, which sounds odd but was actually a great spot. I considered doing so myself. Didn't though, and as I talked to them a deluge arrived. I got my poncho on before it hit hard, so that was nice. I rarely bother, but it was chilly, and I didn't think I'd dry off before getting to the shelter. Unfortunately it was raining hard when I reached the monument. I didn't realize the AT ran past it, or I might have brought something, like a 173rd patch to leave there. Lot of mementos there. 

Had a little trail magic. Cooler of drinks. I had a Dr. Pepper. Still carrying the can until I get to a trash can, should be tomorrow. Then had one more hill to go to get to the shelter. It got dark, but for whatever reason I decided to try to get to the shelter without my headlamp. Maybe not very bright, but I succeeded. Tomorrow will be a short day as I have to resupply. 

Me, somewhere in VA. 

This is Chef. 

The very large Keffer Oak. Hard to understand its size here. 

Me in the first deluge. 

Audie Murphy monument in the rain. 

The hordes.

Made a mistake today, I'm afraid. Stopped too early. Just under 15 miles. Now there is a horde of people at the shelter. I bet we are approaching 40 people. I could have gone on to the next shelter, but this place, Laurel shelter, was pretty nice. Water is very near, there's a privy, and the thru-hikers that were here were all friends. 

Dinosaur, Beandip, and Spirit Crusher are here, and so are Rocketman, Princess, and Ranger. If I haven't said so before, I really like them. Ranger and Princess are siblings, and both are very outgoing.  Princess is straight up exuberant. Rocketman is a little more reserved, yet still quite personable.

Thin Mint is also here, and I've forgiven him for taking my hiking poles this morning. Same brand and color, but different models. We are similar heights, so he didn't notice for first 5 miles. I finally caught up to him around lunch time. 

There is a college group here from Canada. And a new hiker walks in every few minutes, it seems. Listen and Squirrel are here, Violet made it in, Boomer, Senator, H2O, Smudge, and some others, plus a few section hikers. Party. Gonna be hard to go to sleep. 

Played a couple games of Diamonds. Ranger, me, and Dinosaur played the first one. I won that one. The second was me, Dinosaur, Senator, and H2O. Senator won. The two of them are cousins from Ohio. They were witty, I'll give them that. 

I enjoyed the game, and I think Dinosaur really likes Diamonds. My hope is that it will spread the length of the Trail and become the official card game of the AT. Then I will finally have accomplished something with my life. 

Selfie near Windy Rock. 

Violet, Dinosaur, and Ranger.