Date: 2013-03-08
From: Neel Gap

To: Hogpen Gap
Miles today: 6.9
Weather: scattered clouds

When tenting the nights are soooo long. We go to bed with the sun - around 7:30 and get up about 6:30. I like a good night's sleep but I am absolutely stir crazy by morning. I like to eat a quick breakfast and hit the trail as quickly as possible. I'm usually one of the first out of camp which is also nice because the others usually catch me after 3 or 4 miles. Early starts are also nice because the trail is still frozen and I can get in several hours of hiking before it gets muddy. There is a much better chance of seeing wildlife first thing in the morning, although I haven't seen a lot. Today is another absolutely gorgeous day for hiking and it is filled with anticipation as I will meet Anita at Hogpen Gap. I have missed her so much this week. It seems that every day starts with a climb and this day was no different. I immediately began climbing Levelland Mtn (3,836 ft). I came across Monkey, Irish, (a husband and wife that met and married on a previous thru hike) and their diabetic detection dog Bella (Monkey is a diabetic). I had not seen them for 2 days so it was fun to catch up with them. Camped across from them was Trail-lite and while I was chatting with him Sean caught up with me. Sean and I hiked together and talked all the way to Hogpen Gap. We have so many similarities that its almost scary - right down to having the same injured fingers from previous accidents. One of the things I most treasure about our friendship is that neither of us is so macho that we can't admit what we don't know. We frequently ask each other questions that I may not be comfortable asking others - right down to the best way to go #2 in the woods ( sorry if that's too much information). Together, we climbed Cowrock Mtn (3,842 ft) were we had a mid-morning snack and saw a possum, and Wildcat Mtn (3,554 ft) were we had lunch. Even though Wildcat was not very high, it was a very steep ascent and was surprisingly difficult. When we reached Hogpen Gap I gave Sean some of the food I wouldn't be needing and the rest of my water since I was getting off the trail. I was feeling very sad about parting with Sean as he walked away. About 20 yards up the trail he stopped and hollered down "Hobo, I'm feeling really sad". I hope I will run in to him again in the months to come and wish him well on his journey. He has been a great trail buddy for the past 5 days. There is such a sense of community among the thru hikers, it's hard to describe - you almost have to experience it. There is a tremendous amount of tolerance for different styles, personalities, and idiosyncrasies. Everyone has their own reasons for being out here, but what unites us is that we are out here. We watch out for each other, share information, share food, and share gear when needed. As I was basking in the sun waiting for Anita, Grasshopper came walking by. He was feeling a little light headed so he stopped to rest for awhile and I gave him the rest of my trail mix and a protein bar. Soon after he left Chin Music came walking up. Chin Music is a dentist from Illinois and is addicted to Diet Coke (a habit I kicked before hitting the trail). He had previously hidden Diet Cokes at road crossings and he takes caffeine pills on the trail. It cracked me up when he started digging around in the bushes and came back with two Diet Cokes. I agreed to take his empty bottles so he wouldn't have to carry them. One other thing I have forgotten to mention is being surprised at how many Germans are on the trail. So far I have met 5 of them. My favorite gear: my Patagonia Ultralite Down jacket (8 oz). It keeps me toasty warm in the mornings and evenings. It feels especially good at the end of the day when I take off my wet shirt, put on the dry one and get nice and warm in my down jacket. I never anticipated hiking in it since I thought I'd be too hot, but on the really cold windy day I wore it (and everything else that I had) all day. It was sooo good to see Anita pull up. We headed back to Athens and will be staying with Hannah until we fly out on Sunday. The first town we came to we stopped at the Dairy Queen and I got a large root beer float - yum!