Date: 2004-04-27
From: Chestnut Knob Shelter

To: Bland, VA
Miles today: 21.5
Weather: broken clouds

Last night was the most miserably cold night I have ever experienced in my life. Had I known what kind of night I was about to have, I would not have been so positive about the certainty of everything turning out for the best.    I would have made a wish for each one of those shooting stars.   I wish that cold, harsh wind would stop blowing.   I wish I still had my winter hat and gloves.   I wish I wasn't such an idiot.   I wish I could be magically whisked away to a tropical beach somewhere. With a little tiki bar. And a volleyball court. And Playboy Bunnies. In bikinis. Or no bikinis; I'm really not too picky.   But instead, I was on an exposed summit with a cold front coming in. And, despite the ground cloth, my down sleeping bag was getting wet from the morning dew accumulating on the surrounding grass. Not a good thing.   And don't forget the wind. With every blast, I learned that the phrase "chilled to the bone" has real meaning. It's not just figurative.   Perhaps I'm still not describing the misery I felt quite as well as I'd hoped. Try this on for size. Remember those dreams I talked about? The ones where I'm home, but I'm really upset at myself for being home? The ones where I really don't WANT to be home because I know I'm supposed to be on the trail? Well, I had another one of those dreams last night. I remember being outside my house thinking, "What am I doing here? I'm not supposed to be home right now." I remember thinking for about 2 seconds that if I tented outside my house, it wouldn't count as actually going home. But the cold air from the mountain upon which I slumbered was even seeping into my subconscious. And the "dream-me" then thought, "Screw this. I'm going inside to a nice, warm bed." And you know what? I was okay with it. Didn't regret the decision one bit.    In summary: Cold doesn't begin to describe what I was feeling last night.   The only good part was the sunrise. As soon as I saw a hint of daylight, I angled my head up saw it was gonna be a nice one. At this point I turned my head to the right so I could tell Sarah and Ben that the sun was coming up.   Nothing. Nobody there. Not even a trace that two people had ever been sleeping there. Those bastards had abandoned their comrade and retreated to the safety of Ben's tent. Those brilliant, brilliant bastards.   Fine, screw them. I'll enjoy the sunrise all by myself. Out here. In the freezing cold. Or, after a few minutes of rocking, I'll finally get out of my bag and run into the uncommon 4-sided shelter not caring how many people wake up to the sound of my chattering teeth.    Flora & Fauna were in the shelter and could both tell what a horrible night I'd had. They didn't realize, however, that I'd spent it outside. Flora immediately wrapped her arms around me to share body heat. She then took my hands in hers and rubbed them together while Fauna offered me hot tea. These girls are the sweetest two sisters from Kansas you ever met. The kind of girls you hope to someday bring home to meet your mother.   One thing was certain after the night that I'd had; I was getting to town tonight. I didn't care that it was over 20 miles. I was determined to get to town. TONIGHT.    And I wasn't stopping until I got there. Come hell or high water.   I guess God wanted to see just how serious I was about that.   I started out the day on a ridgeline that went on for miles. Normally, this section of trail would be fairly easy, but I didn't get much sleep last night. (If you ask, "Why not?," I will dropkick you in the head.) So, due to my lack of sleep, I had to take many breaks. However, it still wasn't all that warm up there on the ridge, so stopping meant being cold again. So I'd get moving again until I started feeling winded or unfocused and would have to take a break again. Then came more cold. Then came more walking until I had to break. It was hell.   And then came the high water.   I found out about it while at the shelter I was eating lunch at. Flora & Fauna caught up there, and eventually so did Patrick. I knew this section I was about to hit existed; I just didn't know the name of the river. So I didn't know it was coming up today.   Little Wolf Creek. With the AT crossing it about a dozen times. With no bridges.    Yes, there's a high water route, but that trail doesn't have white blazes on it. It has blue blazes. And even though it rained a whole lot yesterday, it might not be that bad, right?   "You know, in high water situations, the blue blaze trail becomes the white blaze trail." I just don't know if I can accept that, Fauna. But thank you for trying.   So I started hiking and soon came to the sign for the High Water Trail. Last chance to change my mind. Now where's that next white blaze?   Down the mountain I trekked and soon realized that there was no way I would be turning back and climbing up this trail no matter HOW high the water was. I think it was around this time that it started to rain. Well, that sure isn't going to help things.   The first crossing wasn't too bad. I was able to find rocks big enough to get most of the way across. The step up onto the bank was a big one though. Tossing my poles and reaching for a tree with my right hand, I stretched my leg as much as I could to make the step and got across dry.   Just eleven more.   The second one seemed slightly more tricky. Even after getting as close to the other side as I could using shallow sections and rocks, no step would be big enough to get me onto that bank without stepping into deeper water. I reviewed the situation a bit more and saw a possibility. Toward the edge of the bank was a tree with an exposed root hanging underneath. I might be able to use that root as a step. Securing one Leki pole in the middle of the stream, I leaned forward and checked the root. Yeah, that thing ain't going anywhere. I unstrapped my pack and hurled it over to the other side. With my Leki's assisting my airtime, I took a small leap and aimed my momentum forward. My foot caught the root perfectly and my body fell safely onto dry ground.   YES!! This game is great!! I felt just like Indiana Jones!   The third crossing was the best. I thought for sure I'd be getting wet on this one. No big steps possible. No underhanging roots. But wait a second. Those three small trees on the opposite bank slanted toward me at a 45 degree angle from the water might prove to be useful.   I checked each one, putting all my weight on them to make sure they wouldn't snap. When I was pretty sure it would be safe, I once again hurled my backpack to the other side and this time my poles as well. Grabbing two of the higher trees, I lifted my bodyweight onto the third, balanced myself, and slowly walked closer to the bank. Then I jumped off just to be dramatic.   Somebody hire me to fight Nazi's and search for holy relics. I'm a natural at this crap.   The fourth crossing was cake. The fifth crossing was not. After that, I stopped bothering to keep track. There was no way to stay dry. And though the water wasn't high enough to get my whole body soaked, there was no saving my feet and shins. And after many more crossings, my boots squished with every step.   But I was getting to town, dammit.   Okay, now this has been the longest journal entry every, so let's wrap this up.   Patrick caught up at the road that marked that the crossings were over with. I was wringing out my socks at the time. We made great time the rest of the way to town. Almost 7 miles in 2 hours. At this point, we were really looking forward to just getting there.   Hitchhiked into Bland. Split a hotel room. And as we're walking to the room, I see two bodies walking toward me. It takes a while for my eyes to adjust to the light, but then I realize who I'm looking at.   "AHHHHH!!!!" It was Bloody Cactus and Xena (aka Joy). I hadn't seen them in forever. And Heather and Arwen were here too. My God. After a tough couple of days, I was definitely being rewarded.    We all went to Dairy Queen across the street and I ate more than I should have. The Chocolate French Silk Pie was divine, but it really doesn't treat your stomach nice when mixed with a chili cheese dog. I went to bed feeling very sick.    But at least I was dry, warm, and far away from any windy mountain tops.