Date: 2005-05-23
From: US 220

To: Wilson Creek Shelter
Miles today: 10.2
Weather: scattered clouds

It was a lazy morning. We woke up when everyone was ready to wake up. We went down to have the Deluxe Continental Breakfast at our hotel. Basically, it's coffee, orange juice, donuts, bagels, cereal, fruit, etc.We sat there for a while eating, then went back to the room and hung around there for a while. I read the paper and organized my gear. We packed our bags up and took them up to the front office by 9:30. I went ahead and checked out. We asked the lady to watch our bags for us while we went up to Kroger's and the outfitters. The outfitter didn't open until 10 o'clock, so we went over to Kroger's. I bought a bunch of odd stuff. I got Crystal Light individual packets of iced tea and lemonade. I got some gel eye drops because the liquid ones don't seem to be helping much. I also picked up 2 fried chicken breasts. I figured I'd have them for lunch on the Trail. By that time, the outfitter was opening up and we all ran over there. I ended up splurging and spending $150.00 on a new Western Mountaineering flight jacket since I had burned so many holes in the last one. I gave the old one to OC1. He said he'd like to have it. I figured it was more economical for me than to run back to the hotel room and get my jacket and try to mail it. He will get good use out of it. I have no use for 2 of them. I also got some things I needed to make some modifications on my tent.I had too much food already, but I couldn't resist buying a pack of freeze dried red beans and rice. It sounded so good that I went ahead and got it. I got a bottle of Permethrin spray to put on the gaiters. I told OC1 that I would split a can with him. We are definitely getting into bug season right now. Ticks are starting to show up. Easy Goer had 2 of them on him yesterday. I ended up checking his hair to make sure he didn't have anymore. I called Outdoor Research about the gaiters. The instep on the gaiters had cut through very quickly, within a couple of hundred miles. I had an identical pair that I ran 2,500 miles on before I got rid of them. The guy told me to take them to any outfitter and they would replace them and the outfitter would get reimbursed.   In fact, I could have done that with the old gaiters, even though I had had them for 2 years and all those miles. They are warranted for a lifetime. I guess that's good to know for next time.We ended up spending a lot of time hanging around looking at gear at the outfitters. A couple of through hikers popped in there. Chef Boy Ardee was also shopping at Kroger's and stopped in at the outfitters. He's looking for socks. Apparently, he has a foot odor problem. He's trying to figure out a way to improve it. There were also 2 young blondes there, who we had met a few days back. We did our shopping, OC1 also got a new hydration pack and a new pack cover to fit his much smaller pack. We carried everything back to the Howard Johnson's and had lunch. I sprayed down the gaiters with the Permethrin spray. I filled up my hydration bladder with ice and water. We were out there and walking at 12:15 and Easy Goer said, " I guess it's time to hike, that's what we came here for." We walked into the woods.It was a pretty pleasant, easy hike but also pretty noisy. We are going through a major intersection where US 220 and I 81 meet. There's a lot of cars flying by there.   I guess we are going to have to get used to that for the next few days. We will be running parallel with the Blue Ridge Parkway, and in fact crossing it many times. Then, for about a 20 mile section, we will actually be within a couple of hundred yards of it. So, we will be hearing cars alot.Within the first couple of miles we saw an ambulance. The guy ran over and told us there was a hiker down. We all wondered who it was and if we knew him. There was a little bit of anticipation there. It was a few miles more before we realized what was going on. In the meantime, the dummies trying to rescue him apparently had no clue as to what the terrain on the Trail is. Or the best route to get to someone that's hurt.   I guess they don't have maps available or they aren't trained for that terrain. They were trying to get to the hiker with a 4 WD ATV pulling a gardening trailer on it to carry the guy out. Of course the Trail does not facilitate that kind of transportation. They came to a place with the ATV that they couldn't get through because of switchbacks and fences. It was a good thing too, because they would have killed that guy trying to get him out on the ATV. The trailer was jumping around all over the place. I hear they ended up carrying the guy out. It turned out to be a day hiker who got stung by a bee and had a severe reaction. He was down and out, when we went by he was covered with sleeping bags and shivering. Through hikers had come by and found him like that. Someone stayed and took care of him while another ran and called 911. All for a bee sting. When we got there, Easy Goer, who is a doctor, stopped to talk to the paramedics for a while. It seemed the paramedics had it all under control.   The guy was going to be ok.We ended up walking right by the Fullhardt Shelter. It was a 1/10 mile of the Trail and we didn't want to waste too much time. Right after that, there were a bunch of down hills which were pretty much toasting my right knee. Certain grades of downhill are very difficult to slow down on. There's no rocks or roots to slow you down. It's a constant downhill.   You pick up momentum and it takes more energy to slow down than to roll with it.   The end result is, either way you're putting a lot of strain on the knees. You're either pressing to hold back or almost running with the momentum. It was still good ground.We went to the Wilson Creek Shelter at around 4:30 which was kind of a change. We were 10.2 miles away from where we started and sat down and discussed what we wanted to do for the rest of the day; if we wanted to continue on or stay. We ended up staying and I pitched my tent a good distance from the shelter. I like to be able to snore like crazy if I want to.   We had a pretty good shower tonight already. It's been very windy up here. It seems like it's wanting to storm. When we got to the shelter, there were a couple of people here. Tape Worm had managed to leave his driver's license and toilet paper here. Apparently, he is trying to get out of the Blue Ridge Parkway and hitch a ride to a mail drop or something 85 miles up the road. The only problem with that is when he gets to the post office, they are going to want to see a driver's license and he won't have it. I managed to get my cell phone out and called 411 and called his parents and left a message for them in Pennsylvania. I said we were getting his driver's license left at the Daleville post office and he needs to contact them to try to get it back.I'm in my tent. I'm going to try to fill out my postcards that I have been carrying since Atkins, Va. I have been procrastinating writing and sending them out. It might take me an hour. I hope I can find 'Delilah' on the radio and fall asleep to that.Tomorrow is a big day. We are going to try to run 20 miles, maybe more.