Date: 2013-05-20
From: Cornelius Creek Shelter

To: Sulfur Spring Trail Crossing
Miles today: 12.7

Boo Boo reporting live from within my tent which, by the way, is not on level ground. I kinda put it up real quick and you'll see why later. This morning I awoke up at 5:30am and my tent is so tight that the rain makes it sound like I'm in a drum. I put my ear plugs back in and try to fall back to sleep, but I don't. I just lay there till 6:30am and start my daily routine. I think I must have tented right next to the trail going to the privy or there's a McDonald¢s up there! Once everyone left the shelter, I moved all my stuff there and began packing it up and had some breakfast. ¢K Fox¢ was the last to leave. She said she was going to tent about ten miles out and I could join her but I said I didn¢t know how far I¢d go but I might. But once I looked at my food supply, I knew I was gonna have to push further to make it to town sooner because I ate almost all my food up - little piggy. The rains left and the sun popped out for about thirty minutes and then the fog rolled in - just great, no views today. When I reached the FAA tower it was in the fog. I sat down, messing with my phone¢s brightness setting and suddenly, my screen went dark. By the time I got it back on, the fog was gone, so I took some pictures and made it down to the Guillotine, which is a big rock stuck between two boulders. I crossed the Blue Ridge Parkway a couple of times hoping to see someone with food, but no luck. I saw a sign that read ¢parking lot¢ this way, so off I go looking for food or a trash can so I can throw my trash away. When I got there, there was a minivan parked and an older couple walked out of the woods, saw me and made a B-line for the van. I turn away quickly so as not to scare them anymore than I already had. Is it my beard or do I smell that bad? Oh well, I saw another black snake - damn near stepped on this one, whew! Then I saw an owl - almost had it zoomed in and it took off. I followed it and was able to get its picture. This was about 1:30ish. I got down to Petites Gap and this guy jumps out of his car and says, ¢You want a drink and some cookies?¢ Yes sir! He said his name is David Horton. So I'm drinking my Mountain Dew and eating cookies and chips. He's asking me questions about my hike. I tell him when I started and yada, yada, yada and I asked him if he's ever hiked it. He said he had in 1991 and said he had the fastest time, 52 days, 9 hours and 45 minutes. Wow! He said he was doing trail maintenance. He was a nice guy to talk to and was very knowledgeable about the trail. I thanked him for the snacks and the trail maintenance and moved on. I can hear thunder off in the distance and I'm going up one hell of a hill. I make it over the top and the storm goes around me - good. I come across where ¢K Fox¢ is tenting. I don't say anything as she may be asleep. I move on about a mile away and I hear thunder again. This time it sounds close, so I look quickly for a place to put my tent and after it¢s up, the storm moves on ¢ didn¢t even start to rain!Something I meant to mention yesterday is that one of the hikers I stayed with at the shelter was named ¢Professor¢, so when I introduced myself, I asked him if he was a professor or did he get it from Gillian's Island? He laughed and said no and that he is a professor. Well, I thought it was funny! Four hikers just passed me at 8:30pm. One said that they've had a big day - 35 miles. What could they have had time to see today? That's all folks!