Date: 2018-05-08
From: Kincora Hostel

To: Boots Off Hostel
Miles today: 8.6

I woke up to one of Sketch's crew snoring really loudly at 4 am. I put my earplugs in and went back to bed. Like clockwork, people started getting ready at 6 am. We were ready by 7 since we needed to catch a shuttle to town for Dunkin donuts and the post office. It wasn't hard to convince Bob to go to Dunkin donuts. It was his favorite spot. Bob told us about his time working for the air force. He had lost some of his hearing and received support from the VA. From Dunkin, I packed out an everything bagel with cream cheese. If you have a chance, always pack out if you can! Bob took us back to the hostel and we packed up and headed out for the trail.The trail today was flat for the first few miles. We ran into The Smith family again for a small bit of trail magic. They gave us sodas for our lunch. I told them when I ran down the mountain to get Taco Bell trail magic from them. Only to find that they had left. Then we came upon Laurel Falls. I was one of the wider falls we've seen. I took off my shoes and rested them in the cold flowing water. The water was soothing my ankles from the several days of hiking. I ate my bagel and drank my soda. We headed out for the large climb on the day. The bridges built in the area were quality. Bob had told us that he and his team put a lot work in that area. The switch backs were gradual and clear. The climb as was about 1500 feet over 3 miles. At the top, trees blocked the view and we took a break to eat lunch. I ate an English muffin with peanut butter and Fritos on top. Surprisingly not bad. It was another 3 miles downhill until we arrived at Boots Off hostel near the trail.The hostel was well maintained. They had bunkhouses, cabins, and tenting areas. We all opted for a tenting area since it was the cheapest. Booger Bear and I were planning on jumping in the lake, but the shuttle was also running at the same time.  We had to do our resupply for our stretch to Damascus. It also started raining and put the kabash on that idea.  The food run was pretty hectic. They used an SUV to haul several people to a Subway, McDonald's, and Dollar General a few miles away. The SUV could fit 11 people at one time. There were about 30 people needing to do a food run. Booger Bear and I were on the last run. The driver was swerving down the driveway. It didn't seem that he cared that there was a full car with people. We stopped at Subway first. Booger bear and I got subs with all the veggies.  We got beer at the Shell station and garbage resupply food at Dollar General. The driver came back and told us it was the last shuttle back to the hostel. There were 14 of us and one dog. We ended up stacked in the SUV. The dog didn't like being smushed in the back.When we got back to the hostel. We chowed down on Subway and split a pizza as well. We hung out in the common area until midnight. I met a German woman named Brick who talked about the issues going on in her country with refugees coming in. She felt that people were not speaking up about what was going on. She mentioned about moving to Paraguay to get away from her home country. After that talk I was drained and ready to go to bed.Tonight I'm cozy in my tent. Rotten Ronnie is jamming into the night. I don't think we're going to shake this guy.