Date: 2008-05-03
From: Pokisin Cabin

To: Hawksbill Gap
Miles today: 15.3

What a day yesterday. As promised here are the details. Woke up early, 5:45 am, and I was on the trail before 6. just walked all day, not super fast but didn't stop much. Got to 33 miles and stopped for dinner at about 6:30 pm. The hike was pretty, but not great for pictures. Virginia is really beautiful. Got hiking after dinner and the sun went down after not too long. Hiked for about two hours in the dark and my headlamp isn't really bright enough for hiking, just reading and writing. So it was a tough hike after the sun went down. Hiking at night is kind of a weird sensation. The world around you is totally dark and you are in a little bubble of white light from the LED's in your headlamp. I fell into the strange zone where you just walk and time passes but you don't realize it. While I was lost in the little bubble of my headlamp a strange and unexpected voice nearly scared me to death. A guy in a tarp near the trail said hello and broke me out of my stuper and into the real world. It nearly gave me a heart attack. By 10:30 pm I was spent and wasn't going to make it to a shelter. I wasn't going to make it to a shelter. I saw a sign for a cabin and heard voices so I figured other hikers were there. Turns out it was just a group of middle aged friends who get together every year in Shenandoah. They invited me in, gave me a cheesesteak sandwich and beer and we sat up talking for a few hours. Finally got to bed at about midnight after the longest, most exhausting night yet. I tend to not sleep well after big days due to aches and pains and soreness. So I only got about 2 hours of sleep and was up at 5 am. As I packed up my gear to hit the trail a bear wandered into the clearing about 35 ft away. He just stood there a bit and the went back into the woods. First bear of the trail. Now I can say yes to the first question everyone asks: "have you seen any bears?" got on the trail at 5:30 am and made slow miles all day. My parents were going to meet me at Hawksbill Gap at 12:30 pm so I had a fairly short hike and took it slow. I got here at noon and sat, resting against my pack in the shade waiting. I talked to a woman who was in Peace Corps Volunteer in Moretania doing forestry, which was pretty exciting. she gave me a mango and really made me excited for Peace Corps. My parents didn't show up until almost 4 pm due to some car trouble on the drive down. I was getting worried and irritated about sitting there waiting for so long. But the wait was worth it as it was super nice seeing them. They brought fried chicken for lunch and lots of fruits and juice and baked goods, it was great. They didn't feel like hiking after the fourteen hour drive and I was tired from yesterday and unmotivated from sitting and reading for four hours so we decided to go down and camp at a shelter that was only .8 miles from the road. There are 3 other people here tonight at the shelter. It was warm and sunny all day but the wind has picked up and it looks like rain. It's nice having my folks here even though it is a logistical nightmare. I am so used to the simple life of just having to me to worry about and things just got three times more complicated. But it is worth it. Now I can't wait for Hannah to get here the day after tomorrow. I am still abit sore from the big miles yesterday, but feeling really good.