Date: 2009-05-02
From: Partnership Shelter, VA

To: US 11/ VA 638 Relax Inn, VA 
Miles today: 11.6
Weather: light rain

Cell goodOG notesLast night ordering pizza and dinner was really nice. We had 15 people at the shelter and everybody had all they could eat, we even ordered a desert pizza of apple and cinnamon topping. That topped it off really well.The night was warm and comfortable. Our winter sleeping bags are too warm for the weather we are having. We'll be swapping our gear out in a few weeks to the lighter summer gear. We're evaluating our clothing and gear each day to make sure we don't send the things we'll need to stay warm too soon. I'm a much better summer camper than I am winter camper.We live one day at a time out here on the trail. We live with the weather and it dictates how we must react that day. We have different goals on rainy days than we do on sunny days. We really try to sleep in shelters when it rains and we love to be in our tent when it's nice. No one likes to pack up a wet tent then stuff it in your pack with all your dry stuff. Also our sleeping bags seem to get wet where they touch the tent walls and we don't like that. On nice days we're willing to hike later because we want to sleep in the tent. On rainy days we may do fewer miles and stop early in order to get a spot in the shelter. These factors have a big impact on our milage. We're looking at rain the next 5 days. There is a storm working its way across the south right now and it's coming our way.Enough of that now we're in a motel and warm bed right now so goodnight.   C6 notesA nice hiking day today. Some uphills, but not so many (nor so steep or high) that they were frustrating. A good amount of easy hiking (flats and easy downs), so it was a pleasure to hike today. We did have drizzle rain all morning, but it's warmer out now, so it's no longer freezing cold when it rains. But it was cool enough to need a jacket when we stopped hiking.Just before we reached our destination we came upon some wonderful trail magic. Yesterday was "Kick Ass Jack's" birthday (a young guy we had not yet met - he's a couple of days ahead of us) so his parents and girfriend drove down from near Chicago, IL, to be with him on his birthday. "Kick Ass Jack" told them that what he wanted for his birthday was for them to be with him to do trail magic today for others hiking. They set up a small grill and cooked hot dogs and hamburgers for any hiker who came along. They also had beer, soda, chips, and cookies and candies. When we got there most of the kids who were where we were last night were there, so it was a fun group hanging out for a while. "Kick Ass Jack's" parents enjoyed seeing and meeting people who are hiking the AT. They didn't know what to expect, so meeting "normal" people seemed to be comforting to them. I remember that feeling when OG hiked the AT in 2006. I loved meeting the people he had been hiking with.Now we're in a motel room. It's nice to have a warm, dry room to hang out in for the afternoon. We're going to meet "Papa Doc" for dinner in a few minutes. I'm looking forward to that because it gives us the opportunity to get to know him better. It's later now and we had a nice diner with "Papa Doc" and Greg. (I hope I'm remembering your name correctly, Greg. If not, I apologize.) Greg is on vacation and hiked this past week while his wife was visiting someone in PA. We met Greg on Monday and have bumped into him a few times this week. "Papa Doc" is hiking for 4 weeks and doing a few hundred miles of the AT. (I think he said he has a Trail Journal, in case you might want to look it up.) It was a nice dinner, and we're all full now.OG is enjoying the NASCAR race and I'll read my book when I'm done with this entry. A nice evening.Old Goat & Check Six