Date: 2012-06-04
From: Audie Murphy Monument

To: Pig Farm Campsite
Miles today: 21.9
Weather: few clouds

The next morning I broke camp without breakfast so as to conserve water and I was on the trail by 6:30 AM. I had no sooner stuck my trekking poles in the ground when I heard a snort and crashing brush. And there it was a good sized bear running away from the trail and down the slope! I finally saw a bear and not only saw one but it was no more than 50 yards from where I camped! My heart was racing, it was exhilarating to see such a large beautiful creature up so close. I had no idea they could move so fast! Within three bounds he was out of sight. So in addition to ¢respects rattlers¢ and ¢turtle man¢ I can now add ¢camps with bears¢ to my trail resume. So I ask you dear readers, how do you top a hike to Audie Murphy¢s Monument and break camp with the bears? Simple answer ¢¦hike to McAfee Knob. Further up the trail I filtered water from trout creek and had breakfast. I loaded up on water and planned to refill at the Johns Spring Shelter before hiking up to McAfee Knob. On the trail to Dragons Tooth I got a photo of a Scarlet Tanager. It took a full five minutes before the bird gave me a decent shot and then I had to use the zoom feature. As I appproched Dragons Tooth I saw a couple and heard the woman exclaim ¢there is a snake down there¢. Seems she was relieving herself behind a rock and came face to face with a large snake. Her comment ¢I almost peed myself" made me chuckle as I asked ¢what kind of snake?¢ ¢I think it¢s a rattler and he is lying below the bush on the other side of the rock right next to the toilet paper¢ came the response. My senses were alive as a shot of adrenaline hit my system...another rattler! I eased around the rock and sure enough there it was. A large timber rattler in the shade. It wasn¢t alarmed, lying in an oval rather than coiled position and it seemed to be digesting a bulge mid way down its length, rolling the bulge over and over. I took about five photos and the timber rattler never coiled or rattled. Back to my water plan..it needed some work. The hike up Dragons Tooth was slow, the trail hard on my feet and the day was hot. I was down to gulps of water when I reached Johns Spring Shelter but found the spring dry. The next water was another mile uphill and I kept my fingers crossed that spring was flowing as I headed up the mountain.   When I got to the spring the water was flowing and a few hikers were drinking right out of the spring. When my turn came I filtered my water and one of the young hikers asked her father why I was filtering the spring water and he said ¢different people do different things¢. I thought it was a nice answer but I always filter my water¢¦always. On the way up to McAfee Knob I met with Animal, Gravy, and Dimples. I told them I would take their photos if they would take mine and a deal was struck. All we had to do now was hike the hike up that mountain.Once at the knob the view was spectacular! A storm was brewing in the west and blowing towers of rain towards us. We took photo after photo knowing that eventually we would have to stop and brace for the oncoming storm. One tower of rain blew north of us and we watched it blow by. The next was much larger and headed right for us. I secured all my electronics, put on my pack cover and donned my rain jacket and hurried down the mountain. I pitched my tent at the Pig Farm Campsite, in the dark, in the rain but I didn¢t care, it was a most memorable day to be on the trail.