Date: 2005-06-14
From: Blackrock Hut

To: Pinefield Hut
Miles today: 13.2
Weather: broken clouds

8:16pm - Tangled up in BlueAs of today, I am a certified, card-carrying, bonafide blue blazer. I was the last up in the shelter this morning and the first on the trail. 1.8 unimpressive miles later I stood at a trail junction. I could either follow the AT on its ridge walk or duck down into a valley. The valley route boasted three waterfalls. I've always said that I support blue blazing if it's to see a more scenic area and doesn't skip a hard section, but have never put those words into action. Today I did.My AT alternative took me past Jones Falls, Lower Doyles Falls, and Upper Doyles Falls. All were nice, but Lower Doyles Falls bordered on spectacular, making my detour well worth it. The trail I took added an extra 1.5 miles to my hike and included a 1,400 foot climb, which will likely be my largest climb in Shenandoah barring additional blue blazing adventures. I don't feel guilty about skipping a few AT miles; I feel guilty about having to justify it. Does my detour somehow diminish a purist's accomplishment if I continue to call myself a thru-hiker?After rejoining the AT I passed a large work crew and a very tame deer on my way to the Loft Mountain Campstore. I ended up turning on the wrong trail and wound up at the campground instead of the store. My wrong turn soon turned fortunate, though. I started following a winding, paved path down to the store. I turned a corner, and fifty feet away stood a bobcat. The yellow cat watched me for a second or two before disappearing into the surrounding brush in the blink of an eye. He didn't appear to be scared, merely disinterested. It was very surreal. And for those of you keeping score, I've now seen more bobcats (1) than rattlesnakes (0).Shortly thereafter I made it to the camp store. I washed my hiking clothes and took advantage of the pay showers. Afterwards, I bought two dinners. Because there are so many camp stores in Shenandoah, I decided to carry a minimum of food and buy what I need along the way. It's marginally more expensive but much more comfortable.Once clean I started walking to the Loft Mountain Wayside a mile away. Spruce drove by partway down and gave me a lift for the remaining distance. I ordered an extremely overpriced, mediocre steak and cheese sub and a fantastic blackberry milkshake. It sure beat the pants of nutella and tortillas. The only downside was that I had to walk a mile uphill back to the camp store and my pack.Holy humidity Batman! Today was hot - the heat index was supposedly 105 degrees. I killed nearly two hours around the store to avoid hiking in the worst part of the day. It also gave me a chance to finish the book I was reading, "Everything Is Illuminated". It's a very powerful yet entertaining reading that I highly recommend.At long last I returned to the trail to churn out six more miles to the next shelter. As I was walking back to where I left the trail, a familiar car stopped to offer me a ride. This time it was Spruce's father and Jaybird. I glady accepted and was off. My gamble paid off, too. It cooled down very quickly and was in fact quite pleasant when I reached the shelter at six thirty.In residence tonight are the remnants of the section hikers I've been seeing the last few days. Though I've found Shenandoah to be a cakewalk, those without 850 miles under their belts have a different experience. My gradual uphill climb to a shelter is their mountain at the end of the day. Three of them have opted to just camp for the remainder of their hike and skip the walking; the other two are here tonight. Pumpkin and her father are also here. I briefly met her once before (Laurel Fork Campground before Damascus perhaps?), but she's taking an easy southbound route through most of Shenandoah. Everyone's got their own hike to hike.[Note: 13.2 miles is AT mileage; the blue blaze detour added an additional 1.5 miles]