May 13
I'm so sticky and my hair is so greasy! I need a shower and some laundry, stat! It was another hot and humid one. We hiked into Bland and hitched a ride with a utility worker of some sort. He had on fluorescent clothing. We rode in the bed of his truck until he dropped us off at the post office a few miles away. What would have taken us about an hour to walk was accomplished in about 3 or 4 minutes in a vehicle.
After Bluebird picked up her mail drop, we hiked to the "diner." It received rave reviews from the woman that worked in the post office. She said it was the "best place to eat food in town." That's so sad. It was a tiny little "diner" in the back room of a Citgo gas station. Fail. Oh well. They still had hot food. I got the double dog combo, which was two chili dogs with slaw, a drink, and fries. We had to walk back into the gas station part to get our drinks. The food wasn't bad, but one of my hot dogs was grey on one end. Meh. I ate it anyway. The lady working at the diner was cleaning up the baked potato bar and asked me if we wanted the uneaten potatoes so she wouldn't have to throw them away. I accepted her offer thinking she would give us two or three. She filled a Ziploc with six baked potatoes! What were we going to do with six potatoes?! Bluebird kept two and we gave the others away to some hikers named Johnny Utah and Aviator later when we resupplied at the Dollar General.
We filled up on water in the gas station's bathroom because we were halfway through an 18 mile stretch with no water. Not cool. Water is heavy and carrying three liters sucks! I was glad to have it though. We could use some rain and a trail that crosses more streams instead of just ridge walking. Not that I'm complaining! The flattish terrain in Virginia has been lovely!
At one of the overlooks today we caught up with Hog Driver. He comforted us with stories about plane engine failures. He said he has bad luck with that sort of stuff. Remind me never to fly with him! Just kidding. It sounds like he's handled them all well. I can't say the same for his passengers. He said one woman came up to him after he had to turn back to the airport for an emergency landing shortly after takeoff due to engine problems. She was miffed that she was going to miss her connecting flight. What an idiot. This guy probably just saved your life!
As we walked today, I could tell my socks were rubbing between my toes and giving me a blister. I didn't stop to adjust my sock because I knew the blister was in a place that wouldn't cause me problems. When I pulled off my sock at camp, it looked like I was sprouting a new toe! It was such a weird, cool-looking blister. I showed it off to Wing It and Bluebird. I'm posting a pic here, so I apologize if nasty feet gross you out. They definitely aren't looking pretty right now, but I'm proud of how far they have carried me! I give them permission to look a bit gnarly. Here's the blister pic:
I popped it and all is well now. We are camping with a new girl named Spice tonight. We kind of took over her little campsite on the side of the trail because it was the only spot we had seen for miles that was big enough for our three tents. Hope she didn't mind too much! Heather and Joshua Face Timed me right as I was going to bed. As I mentioned, I desperately need a shower. It's been almost a week since I've had one. I hope she wasn't too shocked at the view!
Best Thing: Flat terrain! For real this time!
Looking Forward To: Passing the 600 mile mark tomorrow. They are flying by now!
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