Date: 2011-05-10
From: Kincora Hostel

To: mile past Wilbur Lake Rd
Miles today: 14.0

Day 48 5/10: I am the Hike Nazi!We took the morning shuttle from Bob Peoples into Hampton to go to the post office. Once again, we had too much food left over so we needed to bounce food ahead. Sent three dinners ahead to Damascus, VA. I look at other peoples' food bags and get jealous as ours are so very big. Like Sarge said about us awhile ago "we eat like kings and walk like peasants."Everyone said that the hike into Damascus was easy and flat. They (and the maps)lied! We had a huge mountain (pond mountain) to go over. Before we left Kincora, we decided to hike into Damascus as a trio with DVD. She is an artist from Texas who started in Georgia on the same day as us. It is nice to add another person into the mix. We have hiked with others before, but more by chance than plan in the past.The trail has a way of working things out and returning lost items to their correct owner. Through discussion at Laurel Falls, we found out that we might have DVD's solar charger. Trudge bought it back in Franklin for $10 from Lumeire (who got it from someone else and was going to leave it in a hiker box). We mailed it home as we already have another charger and didn't have the right adapters for it. Apparently, it is a long involved story how DVD's charger might have ended up in Lumeire's hands, which I won't bore you with. The story does involve a male thruhiker named Whitney Houston...so anything is possible. We will do our best to get the charger back to DVD.We ate a late late late lunch (5 pm) at a picnic area on Watauga Lake. The spot was gross with diapers, clothes, food, and other trash strewn about. We randomly received trail magic from a bunch of moms with a bunch of kids. It was one of those groups in which it was hard to tell exactly what the relationships were. Anyway, one lady asks if we want some Pepsi, but regretfully told us there were only three. Perfect number for the three of us. After giving us pepsi, fruit snacks, and every other unwanted high fructose corn syrup product their kids didn't eat, the hoard started packing up to go. Right before leaving, one lady calls out "You want some cheesy bread?" I was ecstatic. Of course, we WANT some cheesy bread. But, what she really said was "Do you want some cheese and bread?" Turns out it was crappy American cheese singles and wonder bread. I was full from the rest of lunch, but Trudge and DVD partook. Not quite as impressive as cheesy bread. Maybe, I need my hearing checked. DVD heard it too; I promise.I earned a new trail name today. Besides Eureka, Trudge has nicknamed me Turbo Boost/Max, Kitchen Sink, and Tornando. Well, today I became Hike Nazi. After our late late late lunch, we kept walking and planned on doing a little night hike to make up miles. We were taking a break at a shelter and visiting with Cheetah and Not Worthy, when I felt like we were wasting time and precious day light. I started coaxing (others might say demanding) that we keep moving (which we were planning on doing anyway). Hence, my new moniker: Hike Nazi. I don't really like this name, so hopefully it does not stick.So, I walked maybe a mile without DVD and Trudge and waited on the dam for them. As we were going up a hill in the dark there was a relatively flat space on the right, where we could possible stay. We decided to push on. DVD and Trudge in the front, with me lolligagging behind. I was barely walking, when all of a sudden the sky opened up and a deluge of rain comes pouring down. I then see two headlamps running back at me. Trudge to DVD: "How do you feel about turning around?"We set up camp at that flat spot that just minutes before we passed by. I was not sure if there was more water outside or instead the tent. We were soaked! Puddles under and in the tent. At least our sleeping bags stayed dry.We used our food bags as pillows (check out 5/9 entry) and hoped no critters would come out in this weather. We actually didn't sleep on the food, too bumpy, but it was in the tent at our heads..