May 14
I had crazy weird dreams last night. I dreamed I was Emma Stone in some sci fi movie with Miley Cyrus and Elijah Wood. The dream involved a whale with the head of an angler fish. No, I hadn't been drinking, smoking, or eating strange things I found in the woods. So weird...
It was hot today. What's new? We decided to take a break mid-morning at a road crossing to cool down and take off our packs. Bluebird has a Hyperlite Mountain Gear pack that she's exceeding the weight limit on. It's uncomfortable so she's planning on getting a new pack during Trail Days in Damascus. I invited her to try on my pack once the sweat had dried, but she tried it on right then, sweat and all! Even I didn't want to put that pack back on! It was nasty. She must really be desperate to find a more comfortable pack! She also tried on Wing It and Spice's packs. She said they were all more comfortable than hers. This whole thing took 15 minutes or so. When I stood up to get going, I noticed not one, but four deer carcasses just yards from us. I can't believe we sat there that long without noticing them. There was fur everywhere and an intact deer leg, complete with hoof, at the edge of the road closest to us. Some hunters must have dumped the carcasses there. Not the most responsible thing to do, but I like skeletons so I enjoyed looking at them. Bluebird, on the other hand, is a vegan and was horrified.
We lunched at Jenny Knob Shelter and had our first chance to fill up on water during the past 18 miles (excluding the gas station in Bland). I offered to carry some of Bluebird's pack weight since she was struggling so much today. She gave me her cook kit and fuel to carry. It wasn't much, but hopefully it helped at least a little. Spice spotted another smaller rat snake just past the 600 mile mark after lunch. Those things are everywhere.
Later this afternoon we reached Dismal Falls. The name didn't sound promising, but we had heard it was a great swimming hole. We dumped our packs at the intersection for the side trail (a blue blaze) and hiked 0.3 miles to the water. Aviator, Ygrette, Indy, and Merman were there too. The water was COLD but it felt sooooooooooo good to be able to "wash" my hair and do "laundry" (both without any soap) and cool down a bit. I still need a real shower (it's been 6 days now) and a laundromat, but it helped a little and gave us the motivation we needed to complete the rest of the day's hike. We dried ourselves and our clothes in the sun then hiked the last six miles to Wapiti Shelter. We hit Woods Hole Hostel tomorrow! I get to see Mom and Dad on Friday! It's the beginning of an awesome few days.
Best Thing: Dismal Falls
Looking Forward To: Woods Hole Hostel, a shower, and laundry.
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