Date: 2015-05-06
From: Laurel Creek Campsite

To: Stealth Campsite Beyond Helvey Mills Shelter
Miles today: 10.4
Weather: scattered clouds

Everyone at the Laurel Creek Campsite was up early to tear down their respective tents, pack, and continue the northward trek. The Werner family was back for more trail kindness for breakfast to start and to provide lunch and supper later. They are amazing and their kindness and service is such a meaningful way for other hikers to appreciate and pass on J-Bird's legacy.I helped Dave and family put up the signs again to direct other hikers in this section today to enjoy the company of the Werner family over a delicious meal.There was a slight (683') climb over 2.5 miles on the trail up from Laurel Creek. Along the way I stopped for lunch right on the trail. I had forgotten to share with you yesterday that I had lost one of my two "barefoot" New Balance Minimus shoes (light as a feather)somewhere on the trail yesterday. Dirty Bird said she saw it right on the trail about two miles above Laurel Creek. I wasn't going back for it today; it wasn't the end of my world as I used these shoes around camp or shelters in order to get out of my trail footwear. Lo and behold as I sat for lunch (protein bars and powdered Gatorade mix), Seeker (New York) saw my remaining shoe strapped to the outside of my pack. She exclaimed that "Mufasa found a shoe just like that yesterday and is carrying it!" Mufasa came up the trail seconds later and kindly returned my shoe. Thank you, Mufasa and Seeker! He joked (I think) that he was carrying it only for twenty-four hours and then tossing it if unclaimed in that period. None of us wants to carry an extra four ounces if avoidable, so I understood the sentiment perfectly. I obviously didn't hear the shoe fall from my pack as I was plugged into my Audible.com book. I may have to reconsider this book strategy if it prevents me from hearing items fall from my pack (I could strap these on better), or it prevents me from hearing the sounds of the forest (such as birds that sing and reptiles that rattle).Much of today's trek involved some considerable road walking near Interstate 77 and the Bland/Bastian, VA region. As I came out of the woods near US 52, two section hikers from West Virginia provided trail magic in the form of sodas and also an offer to relieve us from our food wrappers and other garbage that hikers pack out. These guys had just hiked the Roan Highlands and enjoyed the section very much. On the wildlife front, just before exiting the woods I saw a multi-colored smaller bird in a tree that I think was a warbler family member; however, I could not identify it right away nor could I successfully catch it on video or a still photo. Its neck area was orangish and the body was stripped in black and white. My guess is that it is perhaps a male Blackburnian Warbler as this bird's range apparently does extend into this part of Virginia. Oh if I only had a photo as this truly is an attractive creature of the trees.As I road walked I came to a rise that presented an expansive view of Interstate 77. From this perch and vantage point, the vehicles looked like tiny Matchbox cars as they zoomed up and down the interstate highway. In our hiker world anything over two trail miles an hour is probably the equivalent of a "zooming" pace. I pressed on and re-entered the woods after 1.5 miles of paved road walking.There is 519 feet for an elevation gain over 1.4 miles as I climbed toward Helvey Mills Shelter. Once at the turnoff for Helvey Mills, I had a couple of hours of daylight left so I decided to find a stealth campsite along the way northward. I found a good campsite that would hold one or two tents about 3/10 of a mile past the Helvey Mills side trail. I set up my tent and suffered my first significant equipment malfunction. These ultralight materials for tents and sleeping bags are great except a downside is that the zippers snag very easily and very often on these fragile fabrics. In my case I snagged the zipper on the tent's fly; in trying to free it I tore the fly's zipper (this is why my family calls me "Gentle Jeff").   Thru hikers must overcome these situations, so with some duct tape and a safety pin, I was able to close the opening sufficiently to keep out mosquitoes and other winged pests. I'll have to attempt a more permanent repair off the trail, but this will have to do for now and for awhile. As an extra precaution I am sleeping tonight with my head at the other end of the tent, but this tent is not really designed to sleep this way and thus this is a tighter fit for me.About 11:00 p.m. some night hikers came by and looked for a place to pitch their tents, respectively; we spoke briefly and I offered them to try to pitch their tents here, but because of the very tight footprint they were moving on up the trail a short distance. I slept very well and no rain fell this evening and thru the early morning hours. Tomorrow could be a longer day to Jenny Knob Shelter or a longer trek beyond. Water will be a challenge as the next stream is rated by AWOL as "unreliable" in about seven trail miles from here. With the rainfall over the past several days perhaps the "unreliable" stream will flow sufficiently and become a reliable water source as other "unreliable" creeks and streams on the trail to this point have blessed us in such a way. We'll see what awaits us up the trail. Thanks for reading!