Date: 2004-04-23
From: Mountain Shelter

To: unnamed summit
Miles today: 10.8

"Flowers and Meat"(Warning: If you are a vegetarian skip the "Steak" section and procede to "Flowers"What an amazing day! Today was by far the most beautiful day of hiking yet. I awoke at 8am at the barn shelter and I took my time. I did not start hiking until 11am. The day started with 2-5,500 foot balds. They were called "Hump Mountain" and "Little Hump Mountain" (hehhehe). Though steep, the climbs were beautiful. I hiked with "Bonnie and Clyde" over Little Hump and with "Mockingbird" to the top of Hump. By 1:20 I reached the top of Hump Mountain. It was GORGEOUS! About 3 minutes later "Mockingbird's" dad arrived wearing a t-shirt and briefs, but not shorts. I was taken aback. I'm glad my dad does not where only briefs when we do things together.By 1:30 I left the mountaintop to head towards a steak dinner at 4pm. About 10 minutes later I passed through a fenced in area. Then I passed a herd of huge exotic cattle. I think they were "watosis" but one hiker said they were "Orecks". I think that an Oreck is a vacuum, but I could be mistaken. Needless to say, I paassed a huge bull with a ring in his nose. Luckily for me I was wearing a bright red shirt and a red bandanna (he, he). After safely passing without being charged I meditated on the cattle.... and this only made me want steak more. My Mom raised me to love steak; I think if I became a vegetarian she would faint. Today I made my Moma proud. As I walked down the mountain I prayed for my friends. There was greenery and cool flowers all around. I will go into detail later. As I prayed for my family, I got goosebumps. I could sense God so close to me. I believe he will honor my prayers and touch my friends and family. I find that as I pray I hike faster and more focused. I love praying with his creation all around me. WOW!By 2:45 I ran into 3 hikers. 2 of them (Jason and Liz) are flip-flopping, this is when you hike south from one point to Georgia and then return to that point to hike north to Maine (or vice versus). They lived nearby and were really sweet. They said I could stay the night, but I declined: My mind was set on steak. By 3:15 I arrived at "Apple House" shelter. The shelter looked like a dynamite shack where a few went off or maybe a barn that never reached maturity. I did not stay there but I checked the register. I read Koi, Goldfish, Tarzan, WalkSoftly, The Roman Noodles, and others. It was cool. The Roman Noodles are a day ahead and I hope to cathc up to them. Koi and Goldfish left me a message thanking me for a pot stand I made them. Tarzan left a message of thanks for the gifts "WalkSoftly" and I had left him on April 13th. He also left contact info. As I read my friends comments, I missed them, but I felt loved too.From here Tinker, myself and Asheville Danny headed 1 mile to the "King of the Road" steakhouse.STEAK SECTION:AT 3:50pm we entered the steakhouse starving. I ordered a coke and received a pepsi Our waitress, Jeanie proceded to tell us that she thought we were crazy for hiking. She was funny. As I opened my menu, my eyes fell out of my head onto the table. Written on the menu were the following words: "32 ounce porterhouse:. HOLY CRAP, thats a whole cow I thought. It took me about 2 seconds to decide what to eat: A 32 ounce porterhouse medium rare with steak fries, coleslaw and texas toast. Jeanie relayed that shrimp scampi was free with a porterhouse. I said OK and waited. Tinker's order dittoed mine. "Ashville Danny" being the wimp of the table, only ordered a 20 oz Porterhouse (hahaha, "Only"). As we waited more hikers arrived, it was like a party.When the steak came, I nearly fell out of my chair- It was HUGE-GANTIC!! That said, 7 minutes later it was gone. The steak was incredouble. Our waitress stopped by with a look of shock, but then lauded my eating abilities. Soon after Tinker finished his too. I also ate the scampi, my coleslaw, and the fries until they were cold. My hiker friend "Indiana Jane" used to tell me to "Eat through the pain". Today I would have made her and my mother proud Without being conscious of it I drank 5 Pepsi's and was shaking like a coke addict. The restaurant was full of "hiker stench" adn we all chilled. This was good for my digesting (I used the non-privy restroom twice). All told me, Tinker, Asheville, 2 older hikers, Bear Behink, Blaze, 2 of Blaze's friends, Bonnie, Clyde, Mockingbird, Mockingbirds dad (fully clothed), Pegasus, Fire Marshall, Francois, and Bear Tracks all gorged ourselves. Sweet! By 6pm I could walk again and we finally left. The "King of the Road" was a blast. (End of steak section)The last 2.5 miles were great minus one hideous littered spot (so sad). Pegasus and I hiked slowly and identified plants and flowers. The trail went through a beautiful mountain dale with flowers encompassing us on all sides and a stream on our right. One meadow valley as simply stunning, I felt like I was walking through the sound of music. The sky above was filled with a huge 3-dimensional cloud billowing with an extremely distinct shape.FLOWERS:Between the balds and the change in elevation, not to mention Spring, I saw more flowers than anyday so far. I also saw a bunny Below is what I now know (Flower hating meat lovers skip ahead now). They are all so beautiful:Violets- pretty little flowers. Also yellow, white, or varigated (these are a purple white streaked mutation of violets)Bluets- 4 petaled light blue little flowers. Cute.Wild Geraniun- One of many purpel flowers. They were growing by a stream today and blew my mind.Wake Robin/Trillium- Deep maroon with yellow trillium are called wake robinRagwort- Little flower/big stem. These are my favorite so far. Plentiful on the trail. Yellow petals, yellow center.Lousewort- less common (saw today) small light yellow to white flower with a slight droop.Wild Mustard- bright yellow flower, bigger than a buttercup, edible.Golden Alexander- Tiny yellow groups of buds. Very common.Trout Lillies-   Yellow drooping flower with a purpleish center. Very beautiful.Cinquefoil- Yellow flower, bigger than ragwort, often on roadsides and bed soil.Dandelions- Same dandelions as at home, also edible.Self-Heal ?- Weed-like flower with multiple lavender-colored buds.Gilover ground- Purple flower (actually a weed). Pretty. Like violets but bluer with a deeper petal shape.Toothwort- Small flowers. Can be white, pinkish, or purpleish. Also edible.Spring Beauties- The patches of white little flowers around the trail. I call them "mountain confetti".Chickweed- Small white flower with about 10 small petals. Cute.Rattlesnake Plantain- (I've yet to see a flower) Snakelike design to leaf.Blood Root- White flower with yellow center. Distinct leaf. Very nice Wild Strawberry- Also white with yellow. Smaller. 3 leaves mark it.The flowers above are just some of the beautiful ones I have seen. I am still waiting to see "Lady Slippers" and "Dutchmen'ts Britches". The flowers were everywhere, gorgeous, and made my day today. They will only get better. (End flower section).Tonight I am camped on a grassy mountain near Pegasus and Francois. Pegasus is snoring! I stared at the stars and the 3 of us joked and laughed. I saw another shooting star and the sky is beautiful. The stars and moon peak through clouds one moment and are clear the next. Using a bandanna, water, and soap I even pretended to clean myself. Tomorrow I hope to hike 21 miles to a hostel. As I go to bed I feel blessed by the beauty around me. I will close with a short poem and a final thought:Lost beneath the sky I'm underThere is lightning but no thunderClouds roll by yet the moon shines throughA little sliver, calm and newThe stars seem close, though far awayThe night has overcome the dayAnd as soft, the breeze is blowingOff to Land of dream I'm going....- Final thought: If I had to pick today's flowers or today's steak, I think I would have to pick the flowers (Don't worry Mom I'm not going to be a vegetarian though.... yet )Goodnight All, Beatbox ttt