Date: 2008-10-31
From: Uber campsite

To: Damascus
Miles today: 31.1
Weather: clear sky

Up for the sunrise, epic. With a new hiking partner to our posse and an amazing day we were high on life and hiking was easy. 1 mile in we came across 3 adult and 1 baby feral pony. The little guy was curious and allowed us to get close and eventually pet him. The Spaniards had tried to bring the ponys over the Appalachians and couldn't so just left them here. We came across a group of about 20 and I wanted to ride one but they kept turning to buck if you got next to them. Defeated I limped on eying some large rocky peaks ahead for climbing Thomas knob. Awesome hike through this area, just past the shelter we ran into 2 more ponys one seemed to be less skidish of me than the others and my dream to ride a feral pony was back. I eased next to it petting it and jumped on the back. It took off and I rode for a few seconds than made a clean dismount to the cheers of Chev and Zilla. (its on youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8IrFJo3R-zM) Godzilla decided that looked safe and made a horrible mount, the pony...a little bit wiser started bucking this time. Zilla was thrown into the air and landed flat he burst into laughter while Chev and I both collapsed in laughter as well. We continued on down to a parking lot where we had lunch..the long 2-3 hour kind where there is more napping than eating. We looked on the map and saw the Creeper trail and decided we would check that out once we arrived. Up Whitetop and pushed a fast few miles to the creeper which the AT follows for a bit. Then the AT goes straight up and the creeper, an old railroad bed continues on flat to the same place. It was getting dark so we got the idea on the creeper we may be able to make it to Damascus that night. The sun had fully set and we were making great time on the creeper, we could barley see, Chev led and I just followed the back of his back which I could barley make out. It was Halloween and we passed through a couple cabins which looked like hunting cabins so Chev and Zilla decided to trick or treat. No one answered thank goodness cause it would probably have been with a gun. A man across the street came out and informed us it was 3 miles to Damascus. We walked another mile into a bigger town and a house decorated for Halloween. We rang the door bell and the women laughed at us when we told her we were hiking. She handed us candy bags and said "you came to the right house you're going to love this." She than handed us 2 sticks of beef jerky each. We walked a block and devoured our booty. A cop pulled up next to us (making sure we weren't causing trouble) and we asked how much farther to town. 3 miles was the response and we marched on into the night. Several miles later we came to a parking lot and were looking at the map trying to figure out how much further to town. A car pulls into the parking lot and its a cop with a dog that wants to eat us. Again making sure we weren't making trouble...in the middle of the woods, ya were breaking sticks! Again we ask this cop how many miles into town and he responds "3 miles." What? 3 different times we've gotten this answer and again return to the creeper trail now totally exhausted. Trudge on and finally get into the outskirts of town at 10:30. We finally see some lights and Dots a bar is open we pass the window and see Grizz and Earthworm in there. I walk in and see Juicebox! I haven't seen him since VT. We had some drinks and headed back to the hostel in town which was a house with bunk beds everywhere and no heat.