Date: 2007-06-12
From: Skyline Drive mile 66.7

To: Big Meadows,Campground
Miles today: 18.3
Weather: clear sky

Skiman told me that whatever got his pack in the woods yesterday, also put one hole or more in his Thermarest, because it didn't hold air last night, after trying to inflate it three times... bummer! I suggested he try ductape or super glue, if he could find the holes. Skiman and I had a BEAR special day today! I will tell you the BEAR essentials, if you will read on! We left the Big Meadows campground at 6:20, slack packing south. Skiman said,"I bet we'll see three deer today in the first hour." We actually saw 5, so I told him he had 2 bonus points! Just before Milam Gap, Skiman saw a log protruding into the Trail, but it was furry! So, we quickly got the camera out, but the bear was quite far away. Finally, we had seen a bear and Skiman was glad it wasn't in the campground. A turkey startled us more than any of the other animal sitings today. It took flight when we were 6 ft away. If you have ever flushed a grouse or a pheasant, imagine what it's like to flush a turkey. It must have been a Mother because a chick was left behind and the Mother was trying to lure us away. I had goosebumps! I have told you before that hiking southbound is fun because you get to see hikers that are ahead of you. We saw Gus, Step and a Half, Nos, Cheeseburger, Snowplow, Lynx and her husband and Baggins. We met 5 ladies hiking the 100 mile Shenandoahs from Michigan. We also met 501 and gave him our car keys so he could pick us up around 2:30, after he finished his 18.3 miles northbound. On the trail, someone had written 900 in sticks. I told Skiman that probably a hiker was letting a friend know he was there at 9:00 am. Skiman reminded me that today I would break the 900 mile mark, so I'm sure that's what a thoughtful hiker was reminding us about. We had hiked 900 miles on the AT near Lewis Mt. Wow! Later, we saw two bears close together, one much bigger than the other. We learned that the female bears, called sows, are bigger because they have stored fat to give birth and take care of the cubs. Next, we saw a male bear very close to the trail, about 25 ft away. After we took several pictures and had walked a ways ahead, Skiman said "We should have taken a movie of the bear." So, we dropped our poles and daypack and returned to make the movie. As we met Thru Hikers coming north, we were warned about a Mother bear with two cubs who was not very happy. Hikers left the trail to give them space, detouring from the Trail. When we got to that location, 3 miles ahead, we saw one cub and did not stop, for fear Mother was nearby and would be upset. So, in all we saw 5 bear, 8 deer, 2 turkeys and one chick. Some hikers saw more bear than we did today while others saw absolutely none! We only waited 10 minutes at the parking lot on Skyline Drive and 501 arrived with Skiman's car. We made a similar plan with him for tomorrow, except we will hike north and he will hike south. Lynx and her husband have joined us tenting at Big Meadows tonight. We have reserved the same space for tomorrow night, which will be our third night here. A campsite cost $20, and we have shared the expense the last two nights. Skiman has put three layers of ductape on one tiny hole in his Thermarest. We'll see if it holds air tonight! Hopefully we will have another BEARable day tomorrow, hiking 18 miles!