Date: 2005-05-02
From: Iron Mtn. Shelter

To: Damascus, VA
Miles today: 26.3
Weather: broken clouds

Unleashed once again! Sometimes I feel like David Banner. The Mileage Monster came out again today but it took awhile before he did. I was up at six and the temperature was in the high 30's. Not only was it cool but the so called clear weather had disappeared. Once again it was overcast and there was a slight wind blowing. I was packed and ready to go by 7:20. I talked to Poet who was almost ready to leave and we said we would meet up at the day's goal, Abingdon Gap Shelter, 16 miles away. Then I took off. About a mile up the trail I stopped at Nick Grindstaff's memorial. Nick was born in 1851 and when he was in his late teens he packed up what he owned and headed west to find his fame and fortune. He did not get far before he was robbed and mugged. Disillusioned he came back to this area and lived alone in the hills for the rest of his life. He died in 1922 and later, family members erected the memorial. On the memorial are the words, "He lived alone, suffered alone, and died alone". Pretty chilling when you are standing there, on a moutaintop, reading that. I moved on and soon reached Double Spring Shelter. The time was 9:40. I as in a state of shock! I had just covered 8 miles in two hours and I wasn't even trying hard. This section of the trail is known as the "Tennessee Turnpike" and now I know why. I kept going and the weather was not improving any. Still windy, cold, and overcast. It was supposed to get down to freezing tonight and that was in town. That meant that it would be in the 20's up here. Oh Boy! I reached Abingdon Gap Shelter at 1:00. 16 miles in five and a half hours! At that point in time I still planned on staying there even though the weather wasn't the best. I had lunch and just as I finished Andy and Squid Jerky pulled in. They both asked if I was going to push into town. At that very moment I decided that I was and so were they. Ten more miles on good terrain and I would be in Damascus as opposed to sitting around the shelter freezing my butt off. They sat down to eat and I left a note for Poet to push in if she got there early enough. I then shouldered the pack and let the monster out. It was 2:00 with 10 miles to go. I figured I would be there by five. Off I went. I hit the TN/VA border, took a couple pictures and had only 4 miles to go. I flew down the rest of the hill and walked into Damascus at 4:30. As I walked up the street I saw Red Hat. She was getting off the trail. We chatted a bit and then she dropped a bombshell. She casually said that Scholar and Freedom were here. I had heard rumors that Freedom was here because of a knee injury. I did not know that Scholar had shuttled up here with her. Sure enough, about 3 minutes later I saw them. Scholar said that she had thought about leaving but then figured we might be getting in today or tomorrow. They asked where I was staying but I didn't know yet so they said I could stay with them which I quickly accepted. We went to get something to eat. On the way there we ran into Pacman. He was doing some work for stay at the Hiker's Inn. After eating we headed back to the hostel. I got my second surprise on the way there. I heard a voice shout my name and there was Nuffy. Nuffy hiked last year and she was back doing some this year. I had received an email from her saying she was in Damascus but that was a week ago. I figured she was long gone. She is here because of a foot injury. It was great to see her again! The four of us sat there and talked when I looked up and saw Socks crossing the street followed shortly by Poet. I laughed and told Poet I owed her a drink. I guess she got to Abingdon Gap Shelter about five minutes after I left and she had it in her mind to push into town also. So, most of the crew is here. Free, Serenity, Break and Linux should be rolling in tomorrow morning. At the moment the town is pretty quiet. There is a lot of space at "The Place" and that is where I plan on staying tomorrow. I have a feeling there will be a lot more people in town tomorrow.