Goodbye Shenandoahs.

Hello new shoes. Finished up the Shenandoahs in style, saw two more bears. Seven bears total so far. Still no wildcats. Walked some with the Mainiac crowd, and some by myself. We all ended up at the Front Royal Hostel, Terrapin Station. Princess, Rocketman, Ranger, Lady Moose, Treefrog, Squirrel, Wrongleg, Halfmoon, Mama Bear, Rambo, Geared Up, Stretch, Gandalf (the elder one), and probably a few others I'm missing were all there. The next morning, got a ride into town from the hostel owner, where I got my new shoes and Chacos, plus a goodie box from my mom. As usual, way too much stuff, but the other hikers are appreciative. The new shoes feel weird, and I hope I get used to them quickly. Very sad that Merrell quit making the model I walked the previous 970 miles in. Sigh. 

Due to the late start (and inherent laziness) I only hiked about ten miles. Stayed in the Jim and Molly Denton Shelter, described as "excellent" in the guide book. There was a shower, a porch, ergonomic chairs, etc. Very nice. Met Prom Queen there. I'd been hearing people talk about her, and she was quite cool. Thin Mint was also there. Talked with the two of them for a while, and then Shybear showed up, also a welcome addition. The next two people to show up were Ice Party and Wees. I don't dislike them, but when three or more of this particular group of girls comes together on the trail, you get what we refer to as the "Brownie Troop Effect." Basically lots of giggling and high pitched laughter. I don't really know why it annoys me so much, but I figure it doesn't bode well for me if I ever have a daughter. I hope I can sleep. 

More deer. 

More bears. 

More beautiful views.  

More pictures of me. 

No more Shenandoahs. Sigh. 

Homemade-ish milkshakes.

Another day in the luxury of the Shenandoahs. Seriously worried this place is going to spoil me. 

Caught up with the Mainiacs! Ran into Mama Bear, Halfmoon, Wrongleg, and Rambo at Lowes Gap Wayside. Hadn't seen them since Winding Stairs Gap, a hundred years ago. What was really cool was that Papa Mainiac was also there, as he was visiting. Hadn't seen him since the first week. I like those guys. 

Finally got my milkshake in the Shenandoahs. Sort of. I went in to order it, and of course their machine was broken. I was crestfallen, but I remembered something Ranger had told me, so I bought a pint of B&Js and some chocolate milk, got a cup from the wayside, and mixed them together. Turned out pretty awesome. Cookie dough ice cream. Had to eat the dough with a spoon. A highlight of the trip, right there. 

Was going to walk a couple more miles, but was invited to stay with the Mainiacs who were going into town to a hotel. I figured I could make up an extra two miles the next day, so I went with them. We watched Captain America 2 at a tiny theater in Luray. It was entertaining, if a bit silly. Tomorrow will be my last day in the Shenandoahs. Oh, also saw two more bears today. Numbers 4 and 5. Some rangers told me the eyes I saw that one night were probably deer, so I'm not counting them. 

Breakfast spot. 

Wrongleg. It's funny 'cuz he's British. 

Best shot I could get. 

The Appalachian River

So the rain last night was ridiculous. The path was literally a stream of water for much of its length today. The trail was great for me, though. So soft. Like walking on marshmallows. The Shenandoahs are so well maintained, there wasn't a ton of mud. Good drainage. 

Shoes are waiting for me in Front Royal (or will be).  Can't wait for it. Going to save my hike. I believe. Hopefully the Trail will be this soft until then. 

Stopped at the Skyline Lodge around dinner time. Probably shouldn't have. Definitely shouldn't have. I was on track to get to my shelter before dark.  Little voice telling me don't do it.  But I wanted a Coke. Of course the Shenandoah only stocks Pepsi products. 

So I went down, and the place was pretty cool. Really cool, actually. Very picturesque. And they made me a cafe mocha. A pre-made turkey and provolone sandwich caught my eye. Ran into the Mountain Men there. They don't have individual trail names, because they move so fast no one really gets to know them.  I had talked with them at an overlook earlier in the day. I only caught them because they had taken their dog, Riley, to the vet. We ate together, and were like minor celebrities. Everyone wanted to talk to the thru-hikers. My ten minute detour turned into a two hour break. 

So it got dark. And then started hailing. And I sprained my ankle (not bad). And didn't get to the shelter until almost 11 so I had to set my tent up. And decided I was going to listen to that little voice in the future. Decent mileage today, around 24. Beautiful day, also. 

The Appalachian Trail stream. 

Gorgeous view A.

Gorgeous view B. 

Me at a gorgeous view. 

Gorgeous view C. 

Tree on a rock. I like these, I think they're cool. 

Mountain Men and Riley at the Skyline Lodge. 

Gorgeous view D. 

Gorgeous view E. 

Better days.

Though quite a bit shorter. Only pulled 12 miles today, the 15th of May. Been expecting the rain all day long, and sort of managed to avoid it. Before I forget though, I got a funny story about last night. 

So the register had several mentions of a large bear bothering the shelter we were staying in, and there was some advice from a ridge runner that said to poke it with your hiking sticks if if came too close to the shelter. So Lady Moose sleeps with her sticks beside her. In the middle of the night, something wakes her up and she sees this huge black shape moving around the edge of the shelter. So she grabs her poles and tries to poke this bear to get it to go away. But she misses, which is good because it was actually Turtle who'd gotten up to go pee. I don't think he had any idea how close he was to being skewered. 

The walk was better than yesterday, though my feet were still killing me. Honestly, if they don't improve I may not be making it past Harper's Ferry. I think the problem is my shoes. Not being very bright again. I've been wearing the same pair since day one. They still look pretty good, but there is no shock absorption anymore. I had some silly idea about how it would be awesome to walk 1000 miles in the same pair. Not a good idea. I've already got my replacements and they've been mailed to Front Royal, but it's been pretty painful the last 100 miles. Sure hope they fix the problem. 

Anyway, due to the agony in my feet and the imminent deluge predicted, I planned on doing a short 12 mile day. Didn't quite make it. First, let me tell you about the Shenandoahs. They're kind of like the Disneyland of national parks. There are little stores and restaraunts every ten miles or so. Milkshakes every day if you want. Coin-operated showers and washing machines. Civilization is everywhere. So kind of hate it and kind of love it. 

There was a little camp store and campground with cabins about .7 miles before the shelter Lady Moose and I were planning on staying in. We stopped there for showers and food, and while in the camp store the rain hit. Hard. We ran into Snailpack and the Texan Brothers in the store. They'd stayed at the last shelter with us, and I guess just felt bad for us so they let us sleep on the floor of their cabin. Score! Indoors during the rain store. Snailpack had some awesome stories. My favorite was when he was sent by his Biology Dept in college to go pick up a bunch up rattlesnakes. He was doing venom research at the time. So he drove down to wherever in Texas, and loaded up a bunch of rattlesnakes (packed in bags) into the back of his VW van. I assume he looked like a person the police would want to pullover, because he sure enough was pulled over by the highway patrol. They have him step out, and of course the officer wants to know what's in the back. And doesn't believe him. So the cop opens the back up, reaches in and grabs a bag, and every rattle snake in there started rattling at him. He throws the bag back in, shuts the van up, and screams at Snailpack to "Get the heck out of my county!" I thought it was amusing. Good guys, those Texans. 

Selfie before the rain. 

The Shenandoahs

I hiked 20.8 miles today. Pretty nice place. Walked into some deer. Incredibly tame, really. I could have touched them if I'd desired, and I had to wait until they got out of the trail before I could move on. Fun to watch. 

The walking was pretty easy, though a bit more rocky than I expected. Not bad, though. I was pretty happy with the mileage considering that I didn't get dropped back on the trail until after ten.

Cowboy camped, next to Pint-sized's tent. One whippoorwill was very loud and obnoxious all night long, I think it was confused by the full moon. In the middle of the night I woke up to the noise of something moving around me. I sat up and turned on my headlamp, two deer were eating and walking around my camp spot. Pretty much right on top of me. Pretty cool. 

Deer blocking the way. 

 

Thought this looked like a giraffe head. 

Lovely place. 

Pretty hot today. 

Leaving Waynesboro.

Hardest place to leave yet. I walked in on Saturday morning, and left on Tuesday. The reason it was so hard to leave was because Mrs. Sparkle was there. She was originally only going to be there on Sat, and going rafting on Sun and then back to KY, but she tweaked her schedule and stayed until early Tuesday. Happiest moment of the Trail so far was when she said she was coming back. 

We stayed in the lovely Tree Streets B & B.  Beautiful home, and Elizabeth and Richard made us feel like family. It was also a pretty convenient place to walk to anywhere in town from. They gave a substantial hiker discount, so it was pretty reasonable. Excellent experience, and if you're in the area I'd recommend stopping by. 

The first day I walked into town they were having both a car show and a soap box derby race. The car show ended before I could get through my shower, but I did see Conway Twitty's personal car. Watched quite a bit of the soap box derby. Also bought food from all the vendors at the race. Had to support the local fire fighters, and then all the other stands, didn't want to play favorites. Even met the mayor there. I asked him where the best place to eat was.  He recommended a few restaraunts and I promised not to tell anyone about his preferences. 

Met up with The Machine and Survivorman while doing laundry, they were staying down the road a piece. After Mrs. Sparkle came in we all went to the outfitters and then had dinner at The Heritage, where I had the "20 minute burger." Hamburger stuffed with cheddar and then wrapped in bacon. Yep. Their onion rings were like delicious doughnuts with an onion center. It was alright. 

Survivorman took off the next morning so he's a couple of days ahead of me now. Machine left the next day so I suppose she's one ahead. Rocketman, Princess, and Ranger came into town, though, and they stayed at the Tree Streets also. Lady Moose and her mom were also staying there, and they'd arrived the same day that I did. 

Spent a lot of time with the Geezers. Seemed like every time we went to a restaraunt or cafe they were already there or on their way. Excellent company. The Green Leaf had very good food, and the establishment was very friendly to us, even after we showed up fifteen minutes before they closed. Long story short, I really enjoyed Waynesboro, though the fact that my wife was there was really the only thing that mattered. All things end, however, and eventually, after Mrs. Sparkle had to return to school, Moose's mom drove the two of us back to the trailhead, and we began our trudge again. 

Soap box derby racers.

Elizabeth and Tree Streets B&B. 

Ugh.

Right now I'm cold, wet, and miserable. Honestly, it's more like chilly, damp, and miserable. Something like 24 miles today. My feet are killing me. Pretty walking though. Until the fog rolled in. Also camping at mile 899.99. Apparently there are bears that bother this shelter. 

Me. 

Rolling in. 

Hey, the Shenandoahs look just like the Smokies.