Date: 2003-05-11
From: Kincora Hostel, Dennis Cove, TN

To: Kincora Hostel - Dennis Cove, TN
Miles today: 12.0

(my brothers b-day)My plans to leave Kincora Hostel today didn¢t quite come to fruition. I was all packed up and ready to go and awoke to tons of rain outside. I knew that if I decided to slack pack instead of hike out that at least I could come back and take a hot shower. We left for the trail around 9 or so. I was hiking by 9:30. Bob dropped Martha Graham and I off and said he expected that the nine miles would take about four hours. It took me closer to five. The last four miles or so I took very slow, appreciating everything. The beginning of the hike was an uphill climb for about three miles, then we hiked the Pond Flats, where I saw a mangy looking dog. He was so frightened of me, hobbling away until he was stuck between Naomie coming in the other direction and myself. There was a descent from the Pond Flats ¢ sometimes steep, othertimes nicely graded. I met (or re-met) Mich who I had seen slackpacking between Hot Springs and Erwin, when I was doing the same thing. He and I leapfrogged each other most all of the day. When a northbounder ¢ Superstar- saw a snake Mich helped us identify it as a copperhead and swept it off the trail with his hiking stick. I stopped for a while to chat with Sup; he had heard about my knee problems and wanted to know how everything was going. We shared lots of ideas and he told me where I could find he and Ready in Damascus at Traildays. He offered to take a look at my pack and help me reduce some weight. We crossed a couple bridges over the Laurel River. At the second, I stopped for a snack and to relax and appreciate my surroundings. After a fisherman passed me, startling me out of my thoughts, I gathered my things and hiked on. There was a junction ahead of me, and someone had painted a white blaze blue, so I assumed that I should keep going forward along the river. I hiked not seeing any blazes. Then WHAM! ¢ I fell to the ground. This was a complete body slam. My poles had lifted a stick that tripped my feet and brought me face first to the ground. Though I was stunned, I wasn¢t hurt. I got up, brushed myself off and continued on¢¦but couldn¢t go any further. Bob said that when we encountered a place with huge boulders that would require us to ¢go down along the river.¢ He said ¢Don¢t go up, if you do it¢s a vertical rock face there; you¢d have to climb.¢ I thought that this couldn¢t have been the spot he was referring to. I searched and searched for a white blaze that he said would be on the rocks; I couldn¢t find it. I decided I wasn¢t where I was supposed to be, so I returned, retracing my steps, back to the junction. I didn¢t see any there either. At the junction, I looked further up the hill, there was a white blaze. I moved on. I got to the boulder area Bob told us about and was contemplating my route when I heard Mich above asking where the trail went. I told him we needed to stay close to the water, so we wouldn¢t have to climb the rock face. Both he and I are happy I came along when I did. We hiked more or less together to Laurel Falls. They were huge! The biggest yet on the trail ¢ very impressive. I hiked on, wanting to take it leisurely. The last mile was an easy up and out, then carried me along an old railroad bed. When I got back to the hostel Takereasy was looking for takers to go to the swimming hole. We got halfway adequate directions and set out to find it. I¢m convinced we weren¢t in the right place because the water was rushing a bit too much for my tastes. Plus I counted that we stopped at the third blaze from the third bridge (not the fifth blaze from the bridge as we had been told). I dipped my toes in and was cajoled in to going for a swim. That water was COLD!!!, even with the sun that had come out for the afternoon. All it took was a quick dip and I was done ¢ that was all the swimming I needed. We got back to the hostel and in to total chaos. More and different people here tonight. It¢s a bit too overwhelming for me. I want to escape but not sure to where.   I am glad to be getting back on the trail tomorrow. I¢m not sure exactly when Leanna Ms. Social Butterfly became so tired of people. Maybe I¢ve learned that you have to hold close to people that you already know well. I guess I figure that here (and everywhere else) it¢s a bunch of BS and very little heart to heart. I just don¢t fee like I need to go out there and ¢win¢ friends or be the center of attention.