Date: 2018-05-04
From: Trent Grocery

To: Campsite after Sugar Run Gap
Miles today: 16.4

DAY 59Packed up our things which were quite dewy from staying in the field. Went up to the store for breakfast, but they only had one biscuit sandwich left and no hot water for tea (finding hot tea in the south is a challenge). Mary had the biscuit sandwich and I got a BLT. We grabbed a couple of snacks and some Gatorades and headed out to walk the .5 miles back to the trail.Another hot one today, after looking like it might rain early. By the time we made it the 2 miles to Dismal Falls we were in our shorts/skirt and tee shirts. After a quick stop at the falls for some pictures we traveled the flat, shady section through rhododendron thicket.Lots of water and stream crossings through this section. Even though it was somewhat shaded we had no energy and trudged along in the heat. We had lunch at Dismal Creek and soaked our feet in the creek while we ate. Shortly after lunch we stopped at Wapiti Shelter and met "Hippo", a hiker from Germany. He had somehow gotten passed by his hiking partner "Treebeard" earlier in the day (which he didn't know) and had been waiting for him at the shelter for over 2 hours. We informed him that we had met "Treebeard" about three miles back after we stopped to have lunch. This meant "Treebeard" now had to be at least 5 or 6 miles ahead. With this news "Hippo" quickly packed up and hustled out to try to catch his partner. We also headed out and started the steep, rocky, and by this time very hot climb up onto the ridge.We struggled to make some miles, and wanted to get as many as we could so our day into town tomorrow won't be too long. By the time we reached the Ribble Trail we were ready to quit for the day and decided to eat dinner before we set up camp on the somewhat flat trail. While dinner was cooking I checked out the Fire Service road and saw a section of burn area from a prescribed burn that the forest service was doing. We have been smelling smoke from the prescribed burns and another actual brush fire for the last couple of days. Down near the burn area a truck was parked and a guy got out and started pulling a squeaky metal cart out into the woods toward where we were eating. When he got close enough he saw us and promptly turned around and went the other way. It was all a little strange, so our gut told us maybe this wasn't a good place to camp. We finished dinner and headed on.The trail went through the burn area, so when we got down to it we realized the trail was closed and you had to walk around the burn area, down the gravel road to rejoin the trail. The sign wasn't real clear as to where we were supposed to go, and now it was starting to rain. We hustled down the road getting wetter and wetter hoping we were going the correct way. We found where the trail crossed again and there was a campsite right there. We were about to set up when another truck came by and made us think twice about setting up next to a road on a friday night. We quickly started up the climb hoping to find a stealth site, but the trail soon turned rocky, and the rain came down harder. The longer we hiked the darker it got and the less fussy we were about a potential campsite. As the rained slacked off a little we quickly threw our tent up underneath a rhododendron in a semi-flat spot. By the time we were set up I was hanging a bear bag by headlamp. Everything got a little damp and Mary has a sizeable rock underneath her hip on her side of the tent, but we should be able to get some sleep, and we will be in town tomorrow. Note from Mary: When Alan says we are tired, beat, etc it is usually me.. But, as he says, we are a team.A couple of quotes from other hikers we like:"Never underestimate the rejuvenating powers of a hot shower""That is why they make the windshield of your car bigger than the back window." - In other words, look to the future, not the pastAs I am typing, today is May 13th and we are in Daleville, VA. We will try to get more journal entries done, but finding a computer and time to work on the journal isn't always easy. Thank you for following along on our adventure!