Date: 2013-05-22
From:  Catawba Grocery

To: Howard Johnson Motel, Daleville, VA
Miles today: 25.7
Weather: few clouds

Britta¢s Birthday. After celebrating a birthday dinner late the night before on the bench behind the market, we entered the store in the early morning after taking the tent down. Took off from New Port Rd (mi 697.8). Britta hitched a ride to Daleville, VA from an older man in a pickup truck from the Catawba market. Hiked about 26 miles into Daleville. Hiked in a fierce thunderstorm with strong updrafts, and heavy rain over the last 10 miles into town. I hid beneath the overhanging bed of quartz sandstone called Hay Stack rock at mile ( ) for a brief rest from the rain, hoping it would let up, but it was relentless. I thought of the nice warm room and hot shower a short few miles down the ridge and leaped into the pouring rain through deep puddles on the inundated AT. The trail ascended a few more steep, rocky steps, before it approached the end of the ridge and began a vertical descent. It crossed beneath high voltage transmission lines in terrain that was denuded of vegetation and appeared to still be under construction given its unevenness. The rain was still dumping buckets while I crossed beneath the buzzing wires drooping off the transmission towers. I momentarily wondered if the odds of being electrocuted by electrons arching from wire to body through a seemingly conductive atmosphere were greater than being struck by a random bolt of lightning. After a mile or so of hiking through saturated sticky, yellowing brown clayey soils, I made it to flatter grounds, where the trail crossed a rail road, and followed unpaved road on the edge of town, shrouded by dense jungle. The AT diverged from the road after a short distance to a single track again, choked by tall wet grass and understory, as it made its way behind the Howard Johnson, where Britta had booked a room. The AT dumped me out on the busy highway (?), literally next door to the Howard Johnson. It was about 6:30pm. The skies I walked into the reception office in front, dripping wet and asked them if Britta had checked in. After showing them ID, they gave me the room number, and I hiked my way up the hill to the two story building on the uphill side of an empty swimming pool. Britta had reserved the room upstairs. She had left a note for me on the door stating she¢d be back shortly from an errand, and to help myself to the goodies in the small refrigerator. She had stuffed two pints of Ben and Jerry¢s in the tiny icebox inside the refrigerator. The pints were essentially chunky milk shakes, which I was able to consume that much faster. After consuming a pint of Cherry Garcia and a bag of potato chips, I pealed my wet cloths off and draped them over the furnature, making my way to the shower. I was sore and stiff. After the soothing long shower, I reclined on the bed and opened my Word Press blog, noticing that someone had left a message. Much to my surprise, it was Pool Cats. He had written the following message to me:¢Hey Rocksteady, it¢s the hiker formally known as Pool Cats here. Hope you¢re enjoying your tandem hike presently. Should a pleasant change of pace. Thought you should know I¢m changing my trail name to, ¢Lucky Strike¢ after I was hit by lightning yesterday. Yes you read that correctly. I¢m in the Hospital in Roanoak but by some weird statistical anomaly I¢m in perfect health. Just some minor burns on the exit and entry points. I¢ll be back on the trail in a day or two. Strange but true. How is your leg holding up buddy?¢While relaxing in the warm room, supine on one of the beds of the Howard Johnson, I responded:Hey Lucky Strike, I¢m taking a zero with Britta today in Daleville (723.5) and was wondering if we could visit you in Roanoak. My suspicion is that you¢ve been released already and are hiking¢¦errr¢¦I mean running your 35 mile days as usual. I¢d like to hear more details about the incident. How were you rescued? Where specifically were you when you were struck? I¢m so happy to hear that you skated out of this event with minor wounds! You have some amazing luck and stories to tell! I hope to see you on the trails soon! I should be back on tomorrow leaving from US 220 in Daleville. I¢m staying at the Howard Johnson. I¢m developing a shin splint on my right shin and have some raw spots on the top of my left foot that I need to heal today. Take care my friend! Again, great to hear that you are doing well and escaped death (as we did on our traverse of the Roan Highlands on May 5).