Date: 2004-10-29
To: The beginning of the end
Miles today: 0.0

I woke up early in the morning at Danny and Kay's. They served me an awesome breakfast and sent me on my way with a big bag of brownies. The hiking that day was easy for the most part. It was nice and warm and not terribly steep. Saw the White Rock and Blackstack cliffs, two sacred Indian areas, spectacular views. I hung out at them for a few hours just resting and thinking. Ate lunch at Jerry Cabin Shelter with two thruhikers, boyfriend and girlfriend. The Girl was named Cammy (I think ) and I can't remember the guy's name, but everyone called him Lord of the Rings since he had so many piercings. There was some tough hiking after the shelter on a rocky white ridgeline. Everything was rock steps up and down, which makes your feet hurt a lot after awhile. The difference between hiking on dirt and on rocks is like the difference between running on pavement and on grass. By the time the Trail curved away from the ridgeline my feet were throbbing and I was ready for a break. Flint mountain shelter wasn't too far away at this point so I decided to stay there. The couple followed behind me and we met up with Turtle, shady, a southbound section hiker, and Early Bird.      Now let me describe for you almost any day of a thruhiker. You've probably caught onto this already from my stories, but it may help you understand some of Trail life better. Once you get into the swing of things it goes like this. Wake up in the morning before the sun comes up (or as it is) snarf down a quick breakfast, sometimes cooking, sometimes just eating cereal bars. While cooking pack up all you gear and look at today's mileage, looking for rough climbs or points of interest. Get up and start hiking with the sun. Hike till lunch time, which can be anytime since there are no constraints on time while on the Trail. Stop every thirty minutes or so for a good sit break and a snack. Eat lunch, refill water, keep hiking. Come to a nice view, stop and appreciate it for awhile. Keep hiking. Sometimes blackout for awhile in your own thoughts and don't remember hiking the last few miles. As the day is comeng to a close, get to the next shelter for the night. Use the bathroom, filter some water and eat supper. Spend a few minutes talking with other hikers, but almost always get to sleep before it is fully dark. This is the best life, rising with the sun and sleeping when it sets. Worrying about nothing except food, shelter, water, and your fellow hikers. No constraints on time, no money to worry about, fresh air, plenty of exercise, and wonderful people to be around.   That day was this typical awesome hiking day. It wasn't my best day, there are no best days, everything is so great you don't want to call something best because you know you have so much more coming. Hiking on this day, i saw plenty of people. Took my time getting everywhere, for once didn't feel guilty about being out here while Kristin was alone at home. Lunch at Hogback Ridge was great. And as the day was closing the final climb up Big Bald Mountain, Early Bird waiting at the top, nothing is better. At Bald Mountain Shelter Early Bird, Swiss Miss and I ate a leisurely supper and talked till we fell asleep in the warm springtime air.   I had planned on hiking the 21.1 miles to get to Curley Maple Gap shelter that day, and had got a good start at it. The day was one of the first hot days we had had yet, I hiked alone but ate lunch with EB and SM. EB hiked ahead of me and made it to Erwin Tenn, before I did. Right beside the trail on the road in Erwin in Uncle johnnys Nolichukey hostil (SP) I wasn't plannong on even stopping there for a break but Uncle Johnny said a women had brought some free food and beer by and I could grab some without having to stay the night. No thruhiker can turn down free food, so I stopped and grabbed some beer and food and after about an hour decided I was staying the night. Early Brid, Northern Harrier and I went to eat in a resturant in town that night and came to find Johnny Flash, and we all went to sleep.    Here's the thing about towns. Lights and cars and TV and noise are all things the human body wasn't evolved to handle. We all stayed up much later that night than we should have. On top of that I spent the whole time thinking about Kristin. So much so that I called her in the morning to change plans from her picking me up in a few days at Roan Mountain to her picking me up that day from Uncle Johnny's. This was the beginning of the end for my journey. More next time.