Date: 2004-05-18
From: John Hollow Shelter

To: Punchbowl Shelter
Miles today: 8.8
Weather: few clouds

I've had to hike 20 miles with a sore achilles tendon through snow and over an ice-encrusted narrow ridgeline and eventually alone into the night.    I've had to hike after having practically no sleep from freezing my ass off the night before and then had to ford a stream 12 times and hike an additional 5 miles with soaking wet boots before calling it a day.   I've hiked over difficult, steep sections of trail with daytime tempatures in the 90s, put up with sore knees and a swollen foot, dealt with homesickness, and was rejected by a girl I had a crush on.   Nothing in the past 78 days comes close to today.    Today was the worst day yet.   I left the shelter after everybody else. At the time, of course, I didn't know it would be my worst day yet and so i figured I should easily be able to catch up with Tinder and his 3 lady friends. After all, these girls had not been hiking for the past 212 months and would surely slow Tinder down a bit. I would be able to enjoy some time alone and then, once caught up, be able to enjoy time with some company.   Had they not needed so many breaks, I don't know that I ever would've caught up. My pace was slow; I felt even weaker than yesterday. 'Maybe it's just a tough climb,' I thought. 'Maybe Trail Days was enough to make me forget how exhausting hiking can be. I'm probably no weaker than I would normally be. Nothing's wrong.'   I caught up to Tinder and the girls and was happy to sit with them for a minute. One of the girls was having an especially hard time with the climb and Tinder had given her his poles to help propel her upward. When that wasn't quite enough, he even took her backpack. I wish I had a sister to betroth to Tinder.   We got up and started hiking with the three girls leading the way, Tinder behind them and me bringing up the rear. I soon saw evidence that my earlier thoughts were inaccurate.    Even with no trekking poles, hiking a pace being kept by three girls who had only been on the trail for a day, and with an extra backpack strapped across his chest, I still was not able to keep up with Tinder.   Something was definitely wrong.   As the day went on, I felt more than just weak. My stomach bothered me the entire time. I don't know exactly what it was, but it felt like the worst gas pains of my life. At times it got so bad that I had to unbuckle my waist belt Any pressure on my stomach was too much and to loosen the belt just didn't do enough good.   I hiked up and over Bluff Mt. and could hear thunder above me. Usually, thunder motivates me to hike quicker, but it just wasn't possible. I had to creep along the trail as it was; hiking any faster was painful to the point of crippling.   And, of course, here comes the rain again.   I don't like to sh*t in the woods. It's uncomfortable. Of course I've had to do it out here and I'm sure I'll probably have to again, but it's much easier to do your business at a privy located at most shelters. Sometimes, you don't have much of a choice. Like, for example, when you're sick and creeping along at a mile an hour with horrible gas pains.   I tried finding a place off the trail and assumed the position as raindrops continued to pelt me. I won't involve all the details (you're welcome) but it turned out I didn't have to go. Lot's of talk, no action...if you know what I mean.   I had to stop again a little later. This isn't always an easy task. You don't just walk off the trail and find a place. Sometimes, because of switchbacks or whatever other reason, walking off the trail is also heading you TOWARD the trail. You could be out of sight from where you just were, but actually be closer to another part of the trail NOT clearly visible from where you are unless another hiker was standing there.    The forest itself doesn't always make it easy to just get off the trail when it's time to see that man about that horse. You'll be walking along when you get that sudden urge and find that the brush lining the trail on both sides is just too damn thick to get through. So I hiked on to find a better spot and, when I did, I discovered the same problem as before. I didn't actually have to go.    When I arrived at the shelter I found Bandicoot, Tinder, and the girls all there. They were all going to move on and wanted to wait to see if I would be joining them. I would not be. I couldn't. Those 8.8 miles took alot out of me. I was out of gas.   Finally.   The first thing I did when they left was take out my thermarest and sleeping bag and went to sleep. I didn't wake up until I heard more voices approaching. The friends I had so desperately hoped to get DAYS ahead of had caught up. If I was going to get ahead of them, it would have to be after I kicked whatever bug this was. For now, I'd be lucky just to keep up.   We prepared our dinner and practically had to shout if we wanted to hear each other. Punchbowl Shelter is located next to a small pond with what sounded like every cricket and every frog in the entire state of Virginia taking up residence there. Flora and I actually put in our earplugs just to sit there and eat our food.    I kid you not. It was that loud.