Date: 2015-04-15
From: Wapiti Shelter

To: Woods Hole
Miles today: 7.2
Weather: clear sky

Woke up early unintentionally as Lorax and Archangel were heading out early. I had poptarts and tea for breakfast before setting out on the 7 mile hike to Woods Hole. I discovered two acorns in my shoe that I presume were left by the mice, since I definitely hadn't been walking with them yesterday.The weather was drizzly, foggy and downright miserable. The trail was absolutely waterlogged and the stream crossings were difficult. My feet got soaked despite my best efforts. I gained another new blister. The area underneath my right big toe is now also one big blister callous that is actually a little horrifying to look at when it gets wet. My left foot is okay.Woods Hole Hostel is very nice, definitely the tidiest and probably one of the top three places I've stayed at so far. It has lots of crafts on the walls, and is mostly made of wood. It's a very beautiful place. However, it is quite expensive. There was actually a problem with my reservation and I ended up with a more expensive double room that I had to convince Brightside to share with me. Frustratingly, the room was in the loft within the living room- which meant that it was subject to the noise of all the other stayers. There were nearly 25 people staying here, and almost none were quiet. I got here about 10am, and dinner wasn't until 7pm. In the meantime, I took a shower (limited to 5 minutes), did some laundry, checked my emails (limited to 30 minutes), tried to deal with my blisters, and then read. The hostel does not have wifi, so I was not able to update my TrailJournal but I will do so tomorrow in Pearisburg.The hardest part of the day was not eating all of my food, or spending all of my money on the homemade baked goods and cheese at the hostel. Instead I made do with my Little Debbie snacks and tea. When Brightside finally opened her resupply package, I also was delighted to receive a box of Digestives from her mum. Thanks again, Brightside's mum, for making me feel human again. I immediately devoured all of the biscuits and dunked them in my tea (with real milk and sugar, in a real cup!).For the majority of the day I read in various locations around the hostel. The Count of Monte Cristo is an excellent book. Whilst I was doing this, the others were singing along and playing guitar. I also helped in the kitchen by washing and drying dishes, whilst Dopey and Mowgli helped by preparing the Mexican lasagna. There is a very strong feel of community and communal effort. Everyone has done something to help out.Before dinner, our big group sat down and played Cards Against Humanity, which was quite fun.For dinner, all 25ish of us squeezed into the living room. We had salad with home made bread to start, then Mexican lasagne, and then strawberry ice cream. Everything except for the dessert was made from scratch, including the salad dressings. The owners, Neville (a woman) and her husband Michael, also grown a lot of their own veggies, keep goats, and roast their own coffee beans. Everything was also absolutely delicious, and I look forward to breakfast tomorrow. (Though, less looking forward to the final bill.)Tomorrow I have to go into Pearisburg to resupply. Brightside also needs to pick up some shoes, since her current ones are causing some serious foot problems that are slowing her down substantially. Since we are not staying in Pearisburg, this means that I will get to resupply and then hike 7-8 miles of almost continuous uphill. This will be deeply unpleasant with a full 5 day resupply. I'm planning on sending some of my winter gear away until I go to the Whites though, since there are some clothes that I've not worn for weeks, so hopefully that will lighten the load a little.