Date: 2004-05-17
From: Bland Va

To: Shelter
Miles today: 2.3
Weather: scattered clouds

I hiked 2.3 miles today. Whoa! OK, I could have hiked more, but things happen. The important thing is that I returned to the trail. Tonight I've made some new friends and I'm sleeping in a shelter. I'm still exhausted from Trail Days, so here goes nothing.I awoke at the Hiker Inn by 7 AM and quickly packed up. We were leaving at 10 AM(ish), so I went to Sidetracks one last time. I updated e-mail and said real goodbyes to Nuffy and Cotton. After breakfast I returned to the Inn. All my clothes and belongings are far drier than before and my tent was much less muddy (not clean, but much less muddy.) By 11 AM, BallPark, 2 other hikers, and myself were packed into BallPark's SUV. BallPark is a no-nonsense New Englander, but a nice guy. He explained we were not going to dilly-dally. Within moments we left for final errands. I made the quickest post office trip ever and soon we were on our way: Damascus was finally behind me. As we drove, BallPark gave us every piece of advice we could ever need for the trail ahead...it was cool. We dropped off the other 2 hikers first, since I had the furthest to go. At the second stop, BallPark decided to walk up to Partnership Shelter (the one where you can order pizza.) I had not expected to be there, but I took advantage of the unexpected opportunity: I left a poem for Skippy, Matt, and Poppins that they should get in a few days ? I was happy to write to my friends and someone gave me a Coke. A great start to a great day.By 1 PM we reached Wytheville, where I was dropped off. BallPark had to get to Annapolis fairly quickly and Wytheville is the closest stop on I-81 to Bland. One 20-minute hitch and I would be back on the trail. I said goodbye and about 6,000 "thank yous" before "BallPark" drove away. I stood for 30 minutes trying to hitch, to no avail...Maybe it was destined that way. Right where I was hitching in the 90 degree heat, I stood in front of a Steakhouse. Finally, my willpower crumbled and I walked over for lunch. It would turn out to be a great decision. Since I was alone, I took a seat at the bar. I ordered a drink, buffalo chicken strips, and some sliders. I was ready to enjoy myself. As I waited, a man in his late forties wearing a Hawaiian shirt sat down. As soon as he sat, he began to talk. I told him about the trail and as soon as he mentioned that he had a wife, I let my guard down ? By chance (or fate), Mark lived in Bland and knew all about the trail. We talked for an hour and we both ate. We talked both about the trail and about God; it was nice. As we finished our conversation and some great food, I went to pay. The server informed me it was paid. As I thanked Mark, he offered me a ride too. What trail magic. As we drove to Bland, Mark told me all about trail encounters with rattlesnakes...Ugh. Still it was nice to talk to him. He had been golfing as part of an "in-home vacation", but had left due to rain. It was still dry where we were. I was mildly alarmed when he opened a beer while driving, but we were in a tunnel and only 3 minutes away, so I held on for the ride (gulp.) As we left the tunnel, rain was upon us and I had no desire to walk in the rain. When Mark offered for me to wait out the storm at his house, I gladly obliged. Mark was really cool, but seemed like a grown-up Hippie. He told me about his son, who was my age, and we watched "Cops." Cops is not my favorite show, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. He kept referring to his "old lady" and talking about life in "Bland." He was hilarious and I was dry ? While at his house I had 2 beers, but did not allow myself more (good decision ?). It was past 6:00 PM when the storm finally passed, and I hit the trail. Kindness like Mark's is part of what makes the trail so sweet. When I started walking for the first time in 6 days, my body was in shock. Shortly after I started, I crossed a stream raging with the new rain. I had no choice but to wade through it knee-deep. It was half fun and half annoying, but I lived. As I hiked my 2 whole miles I prayed. When I reached the shelter, I knew my day was done. Though my day was short, it was sweet and I truly enjoyed it. The night would be even better. I reached the shelter to find 7 hikers in high spirits: SaltLick, Coyote, Mama Bird, Little Chicken, Oxymoron, MaineSail, and Palm Tree. Since the shelter slept 6, I expected to be in my dirty tent, when to my surprise I found out 2 hikers were going to tent. This left me the last spot in the shelter. Yay! Coyote is the female hiker who rapped with me and Bow-legged Gorilla 2 days ago at Trail Days. The evening was shaping up to be a fun one. After dinner, the festivities began. We started talking about how I hike and think of big words. Soon, everyone was helping. Everyone joined in for a while until Palm Tree, Oxymoron, and MaineSail headed to bed. Salt Lick, I found out, is hiking with Coyote and loves Country. Soon our mini-concert began.Salt Lick, Coyote, and I sang Country songs and rap songs for an hour (we made sure we were not too loud.) Once it was getting late, we talked and then solved riddles together...it rocked! The only bad part of the night was when I nearly melted my shoes as I tried to try them in the fire. All told, we had a lot of fun and I quickly made a few new trail friends. Now I am in a shelter for the first time in ages. Ahh!Tomorrow I may hike 30 miles; I've heard it is an easy stretch. Of course, I may not, too. Either way, I will do more than 2.3 miles for the first time in a week. Until them, I'm going to get some rest.Goodnight, Beatbox