Date: 2005-04-26
From: hot springs NC

To: Pisgah National Forrest
Miles today: 10.0

Monday April 25:I woke up at Elmers Sunnybank hostel and headed out in the early mrning sunshine to cross the street and eat at the Diner in hot springs. The diner is called the Smoky Mountain diner, and it is where I eat all my meals since I have been in town. It is fun to talk to the locals and all of the other hikers I already know or am meeting since we can identify each other easily by our clothing and pleasant odors. (We really don¢t stink that bad in towns since we can finally take showers, and the smell doesn¢t bother me anyways, I might just quit wearing deodorant for good- JUST JOKING)¢¦ Anyways, the diner was packed and so I talked to some guys just traveling through who were intrigued by my journey and so some other hikers started talking to us as well. After breakfast, I went out into the sunshine to walk over to the library and type up my latest journal entries. I typed for about two hours and updated everything. I also logged online to my bank account to transfer some funds and take care of some business. After the library I went to elmers to take my stuff out of the room and check out and I was happy to get a discounted rate because my room was the worst one in the house and it wasn¢t worth the same price. That hostel has more old antiques and artifacts than most museums. I think he should start putting chamber pots in the rooms. I then went to the post office to pick up my shoes that I had Stephanie send me, but after trying them on, I decided that they hurt more than present shoes and so I am sending them ahead to use at a later date. I headed out of the PO with my new box of goodies and went to a campground in town to set up my tent for the night which only took a few minutes and then I headed to the grocery to get a bucket of ice cream and read my book on the main and only street in hot springs where I could catch sight of my friends whenever they got to town. At around 3:00 I saw mr.fusion and saxy and so I was excited that they made it and so we went to grab some food and dinner after chatting about the crazy weather. After dinner it was time to get some beer and celebrate and so the night closed out and it was bedtime. Tuesday April 26:Wow. That was the most comfortably I have slept in the past 26 days. It was warm enough last night that I only had to drape my sleeping bag over me in the campground in my tent and so I could stretch out and sleep well unlike normally when I am couped up in my sleeping bag when is very warm but confining. I ate breakfast at the diner again with mr. Fusion and then I headed to the library again to update my journal. Now I am getting ready to buy some food at the local grocery to get me to Erwin Tennessee which is the next available area to get food and it is five days away and so I am going to be carrying a lot of food and so my pack will be pretty heavy, but I am excited because I am trying some new food ideas and so the variety of my new menu items have me anxious to see how they work. At the diner, the moms were sitting around yelling about the teacher at the local school and I think they were actually just yelling about their personal dislike under the guise of her poor teaching style, but I don¢t know the situation so I¢ll stay out of it. This town is so small and it is a trip to get in with the locals. It is definitely an awesome trail town because it is so small that everthing is within walking distance and it is cool that there is only one small corner grocery, and one small diner, and one little gas ands service station, and one little bar, AND NOTHING IS CORPORATE- THEY ARE ALL MOM AND POP SHOPS, IT IS AMAZING TO SEE NO TYPICAL CORPORATE AMERICA SHOPS. The little strip is about two block long and the town is settled in the middle of the surrounding mountains that I¢ll climb today to leave the town in the rain, since the weather is calling for four more days of rain, damnit. Take it easy everone!I am doing great and loving every minute of this epic journey. It¢s my own personal odyssey.