It's May 12. I am going to try to start putting the dates in my blog since I'm so far behind and I know people are getting confused. My goal is to get this thing up to date before I leave town this time. Wish me luck!
It was a long, steamy, hot day today. Luckily, there were a bunch of water sources early on in the day. Have I mentioned how much I love drinking fresh spring water? It's so cold and clear! I always treat it with Aqua Mira drops just in case, but it blows town water, well, out of the water! I'm going to miss it when I get back to Austin. Maybe I'll have to hang on to some of my hobo ways and continue to drink out of streams.
We stopped for lunch at a pond near the top of a hill. There wasn't much shade so we just sat in the baking sun while we ate. I did rinse my shirt and bandana at the pipe that led to the pond though. Helped cool me down a little. While we ate I just kept thinking about how horrifying the American diet is. I'm grateful to have easy access to such high calorie processed foods, but to think anyone that DOESN'T hike eight hours a day is eating this stuff is horrifying. No wonder America has such an obesity problem. I'm living it up while I can though and indulging my inner fat kid.
After lunch, I left Wing It and Bluebird to hike on my own for a bit. I hiked up to Chestnut Knob Shelter and took a few photos of the view, but didn't stop there.
The "flat" part of the day that I was looking forward to was NOT flat! Boo! The hot, sunny weather didn't help much and I missed the only water source for an 8.1 mile stretch. I rationed the liter I had left and only allowed myself to drink 1/8 of the bottle every half hour. I was never in any danger of course, but it was annoying and unpleasant. I had to remind myself that it wasn't a life-threatening situation and that I'd only get thirsty until I could refill at the shelter. A lot of people ran low on water today. I passed two German guys at a road crossing that were even worse off than me. Poor guys. The good news is that we all lived! Victory!
While I was hiking today, I spooked two birds out of a stump and they almost flew straight into my head! Oh, the hazards of the woods. I also saw a beautiful Luna moth dying on the trail.
I spend so much time looking down at the ground that sometimes I see things in the moss and leaves much like people see things in the clouds. Today, I saw some moss on a rock that looked like a shark head. I should have taken a photo. I see smiley faces in dead leaves all the time from where people's trekking poles have pierced holes in them. Gotta keep myself entertained somehow!
The last few miles to the shelter took forever, as they always do. On the way, some nice hikers showed me an awesome water source and I filled up. It was so nice to have plenty of water again. I arrived at the shelter at 6:00 and had set up my tent and gotten ready for dinner by the time Wing It and Bluebird showed up at 6:30. When I sat down for dinner, I noticed a weird purple-red stain on my thumb and forefinger. I showed it to Hog Driver and he said a hiker named Ginger had the same stain on her hand! So odd. I never did figure out what it was.
The privy at this shelter is just a toilet on a platform. No walls. No roof. Awesome. I didn't use it. If I'm going to poop out in the open, I certainly don't want to be up on a raised platform for all to see.
Tomorrow we are hitching a ride into Bland to resupply and then hitching back out to camp for the evening. I'm looking forward to seeing Mom and Dad on Friday for Trail Days! Woohoo!
Best Thing: Getting water at the end of the day!
Looking Forward To: A town meal in Bland tomorrow!
While I was hiking today, I spooked two birds out of a stump and they almost flew straight into my head! Oh, the hazards of the woods. I also saw a beautiful Luna moth dying on the trail.
I spend so much time looking down at the ground that sometimes I see things in the moss and leaves much like people see things in the clouds. Today, I saw some moss on a rock that looked like a shark head. I should have taken a photo. I see smiley faces in dead leaves all the time from where people's trekking poles have pierced holes in them. Gotta keep myself entertained somehow!
The last few miles to the shelter took forever, as they always do. On the way, some nice hikers showed me an awesome water source and I filled up. It was so nice to have plenty of water again. I arrived at the shelter at 6:00 and had set up my tent and gotten ready for dinner by the time Wing It and Bluebird showed up at 6:30. When I sat down for dinner, I noticed a weird purple-red stain on my thumb and forefinger. I showed it to Hog Driver and he said a hiker named Ginger had the same stain on her hand! So odd. I never did figure out what it was.
The privy at this shelter is just a toilet on a platform. No walls. No roof. Awesome. I didn't use it. If I'm going to poop out in the open, I certainly don't want to be up on a raised platform for all to see.
Tomorrow we are hitching a ride into Bland to resupply and then hitching back out to camp for the evening. I'm looking forward to seeing Mom and Dad on Friday for Trail Days! Woohoo!
Best Thing: Getting water at the end of the day!
Looking Forward To: A town meal in Bland tomorrow!
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