Date: 2019-06-02
From: Woods Hole Hostel

To: AngelÃÂÃÂ¢ÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂs Rest Hiker Haven
Miles today: 11.6

Hobo and I got up fairly early for the breakfast they serve here. It wasn¢t included, but it was good. The eggs were a little weird and had rhubarb and spinach in them, which for a picky eater like me was not great. They had homemade bread and apple butter, which was delicious. They had grits, which are another thing I¢m not a fan of. The southern biscuits and gravy and grits thing is getting a little old for me. I don¢t like any of it! Ready for my northern food again lol. The best part of breakfast was cinnamon rolls! They were INCREDIBLE. Homemade and covered in icing and absolutely delicious. I had three and was very full and content. Hobo and I packed up and headed out for our 13 mile day (Guthook and AWOL say different things lol something around that mileage)! It was hot when we left. We saw Yoshi and Eeyore and they were taking a zero, and then some of the fasties had actually decided to stay here (one¢s ankle was hurting), so we saw them too. There was a little climb to start the day, but it was actually really gradual. Hobo said he liked my pace and we hiked together for pretty much the whole day. It was a lot of walking through meadowy forest. It was so nice to bond with him. Hobo is my mom¢s age, so he¢s like a trail dad to me! He has his own daughters and we talked about a lot of different life experiences. I don¢t know if I mentioned, but he got his name because people kept giving him food over a period of time and one girl observed that and called him a hobo. He¢s from Ohio and is so great to hang out with. We had a really nice hike together today and I was grateful for his company. We passed by Ziggy and another man, Texas Pete, and there was a very nice view. We stopped for a bit and had a snack, and then we kept going. It started to go downhill after this and we passed by Angel¢s Rest Rock, what the hostel is named after! It didn¢t have as great of a view as the other one, but it was still a nice view. We continued down and it was a rather steep downhill. We saw a man and his son walking up it and commented on how we thought it would be a steep and difficult climb going that way. We called Angel¢s Rest from the first road we came to and walked a bit further to the next one. We passed some power lines and a little climb and then we were at the road! It took a little while for them to show up. I think they got confused, because there are two roads you can get picked up from and we called them from the first to say we would be at the next in 15 minutes. We thought we were clear, but they had apparently gone to the first road and waited and then decided to go to the second too. The man who picked us up was named Acadicus. He had studied owls on top of a Big Bald Mountain and the scientific name of what he was studying was Acadicus. I forgot it a million times in the course of what would become my week-long stay in the Vortex, but definitely got it down. We arrived at Angel¢s Rest and another man named Tramp checked us in. I discussed slackpacking with them and they have a really great deal, but I told them I¢d think on it and would just be staying the night and possibly zeroing tomorrow. I hadn¢t taken a zero in two weeks so it was time. They gave me a tour. The place consists of the little office, which had a mural with wings on it that people like to take pictures in front of, a bunkhouse that was an old garage, and bathhouse with three separate bathrooms that have a toilet, sink, and shower in each, and a trailer with a TV, sitting area, and kitchen. I was staying in a bunk so I walked in to choose a bunk. All of the upper bunks were free, but none of the lower ones. I was going to go for an open lower bunk, but Tramp said that mattress was crap, so essentially it was only top bunks at this point. I don¢t really like the top bunk in general. I never really had an issue with it before the trail, but now the top bunk means climbing up there and pulling your pack and stuff up and down the bunk. It¢s just more of a nuisance, which is why there were no lower bunks left. I walked into the main trailer and saw someone I knew! Chug! I had met Chug for the first time at Trail Days, but she was part of that trail family. Unfortunately, she had a boot on her foot. She had gotten injured about a week ago, and was hanging out in Pearisburg, doing a work for stay at Angel¢s Rest. She seemed a little anxious and tired of staying in one place, but it was good to see her! Hobo was staying in a private room in the trailer and we both threw in a load of laundry and I put some loaner clothes on. I put a pair of lucky charms spandex on and a shirt that said ¢happy go lucky¢ because I was told you needed to pull the craziest outfits out of the loaner clothes. It was crazy for sure! But I was having a blast and enjoying myself. I saw Birdman near his tent, and inside the bunkhouse I saw Wonder Woman, a woman named Camel, Ziggy, and Texas Pete. Hobo and I went to the Mexican restaurant for dinner. There¢s always a Mexican restaurant lol. My issue with most is that they don¢t have margaritas! There have been so many ¢dry¢ Mexican restaurants! But this one was not! They had huge margaritas and they made them frozen, which I love. Frozen margaritas are like slushies and I love crunching on the ice while sipping too. My dad actually makes very good margaritas at home every weekend and I do miss having those. He makes them frozen too so you can crunch on the ice. I can¢t wait to have those again! Hobo didn¢t get a margarita because he was craving soda instead. I had a Fajita Quesadilla, which was delicious. I got French Fries on the side lol I know I was at a Mexican place, but fries are fries and I was craving them.Dinner was awesome and we saw Camel, Texas Pete, and Birdman at the bar as we left. I was pretty wiped, so I decided not to stay. Hobo went to the Dairy Queen for a shake and then we went back to the hostel. We went into the trailer to watch TV. Hobo put on The Bachelorette as a joke, but I was enjoying it haha. I do watch that show at home with my mom. I think it¢s total trash, but almost more interesting to watch knowing that it¢s trash because it¢s just so ridiculous. Someone came in and vetoed it haha so we watched another show instead. I headed to my bunk and slept alright. They didn¢t have sheets so I was just in my sleeping bag and I was a bit hot and itchy all night. Little Debbie