Date: 2005-04-04
From: Old Roaring Creek Shelter

To: Elmer's Sunnydale Inn
Miles today: 14.9

Miles hiked today : 14.9I woke up this morning around 7:35 a.m. and was on the trail by 8:50 a.m. I could have slept longer, but I knew I was headed for Hot Springs and wanted to get there early enough to relax and enjoy the afternoon.First up was a climb back into the snow, followed by a drop to grassy, snowless Kale Gap. When I reached Kale Gap, I'd only been hiking 2.6 miles and was by no means tired, but I felt compelled to take a break there. There was a pine forest with an old barb wire fence and it was the perfect place to sit and munch some almonds while enjoying the sunshine.My Mom likes to remind me that when I was younger and something good would happen to me, I'd exclaim "I'm the luckiest boy in the world." While at Kale Gap, that's exactly how I felt. I felt so serene as I stood up and stretched while looking around. If it had been the end of the day, this would have been an ideal spot to tent.Leaving Kale Gap, I faced a 986 foot climb to Bluff Mountain. The climb had me back in the snow and I reached the summit at 11:15 a.m. On the way down, I was treated to another round of downhill mud-slush skiing, which resulted in fall #6 at 11:30 a.m. I might not fall so often in the snow if I took my time, but I wanted to make the post office before it closed at 4:30 p.m.The summit of Bluff Mountain is at 4,686 feet and the trail is typically clear of snow below 3,500 feet. I descended to Garenflo Gap, at 2,510 feet, arriving at 1:00 p.m. I knew I was done with the snow for the day, so I stopped to change my now wet socks, as well as to remove my fleece jacket and rain pants. After changing, it was 1:15 p.m. and looking at the data book, I saw that I had 6.6 miles to go to Hot Springs. I realized that I'd really have to hustle if I wanted to make the post office before it closed and set out.Right away I was faced with a climb and the temperature was already in the high 70s. The heat was brutal, but despite this, I covered the 3.4 miles to Deer Park Mountain Shelter very quickly, arriving at 2:30 p.m.That gave me renewed hope that I might make the post office by 4:30 p.m., so I pushed on without stopping at the shelter. I had to do a bit more climbing, though shortly after 3:00 p.m. I crested a ridge and caught my first glimpse of Hot Springs, which appeared tiny from my vantage point. Then I had a huge 1,300 foot descent over a two mile stretch, which was tough on my feet, now tender from having been in wet socks earlier.I arrived in Hot Springs at 3:35 p.m., which meant that I'd covered 6.6 miles in 2 hours, 20 minutes. Wow!There weren't any blazes, so I wasn't exactly sure where to go, so I sat in a field and examined the crude map in the Wingfoot book. I had previously decided to stay at Elmer's Sunnybank Inn, which features gourmet vegetarian meals. Once I figured out how to get there, I began walking down Bridge Street, which the AT actually follows through town.I arrived at Elmer's at 3:53 p.m. and was greeted by Yardsale, who told me that the post office closed at 4:00 p.m. What!? That didn't correlate with what I'd been told this morning, so I left my pack on the porch and ran down the street to the post office, arriving just a few minutes before 4:00 p.m.I've been hiking for 22 days now and I rarely lose my breath anymore. When I do, it's usually because I'm taking long drinks of water from my platypus bag while walking and not pausing to breathe. Interestingly, after running down the street, I was definitely breathing heavily. A local at the post office asked me if I was that hungry and that I couldn't have lost much weight yet. Despite how it may sound, I believe he was trying to be friendly.I got my maildrop and my new tent pole, then returned to Elmer's. Elmer was in the kitchen cooking and I was shown around by Sam, a former hiker who now works there. Elmer's is an Italianate Victorian style building with more than ten rooms. There is a music room with several different instruments available to play, hundreds of books to read, dozens of antique chairs to sit in, several patios to sit on, as well as an upstairs balcony to relax on. Sam showed me to my room, though the bed that they had thought was available was already taken, so I was placed in the greenhouse. I later found out that the greenhouse room is only $10, whereas the other rooms are $15.Elmer's offers a thru-hiker special, which includes a bed, dinner, and breakfast for $28. Separately, they'd cost $30. The way the meals work is that you have to sign-up by a certain time. Dinner sign-up is by 3:00 p.m., which I'd missed by at least an hour.I was fine with eating at one of the local restaurants and was lounging around when Yardsale asked if I wanted to go to the outfitter. I wasn't doing anything else, so I went for the walk. Almost immediately upon entering, I spotted the PC that offered 20 minutes of free internet connectivity for thru-hikers. I was able to quickly update my Trailjournal before the store closed, which saved me a trip to the library. I also had time to buy a pint of "Chunky Monkey" ice cream.Upon returning to Elmer's, Sam asked I still wanted to attend dinner. Apparently a couple dinner guests from out of town were running late, which left an opening for me. I readily accepted and set about eating my ice cream before taking for a shower.Before dinner, I worked on my journal and then the dinner bell was rung at 7:50 p.m. It was more of a chime, rather than a clang, clang "come and get it!" chuckwagon bell.Dinner, simply put, was phenomenal. Four courses, a basil tomato soup, salad with tahini dressing, pasta with several different vegetables, and a Hungarian poppyseed cake with mint tea for dessert. Each dish was made from items grown on Elmer's organic farm and there was more food than could be eaten. My description really does not do the meal justice.As we were eating our soup, Elmer told us that it was a nightly tradition to introduce ourselves by telling where we're from, what we did before the trail, and what we'll be doing afterward. We were also asked to answer a dinner question, which tonight was "What famous author would you want to write your biography?" I chose Ernest Hemingway.We talked through-out the meal and I found out that Elmer had thru-hiked in 1976 and had stayed at this inn, which has been around since 1840. He stayed in touch with the Gentry family, who owned it, and obtained it from them in 1978. He's been here ever since preparing extraordinary meals and providing lodging year-round for thru-hikers and vacationers alike.Earlier today, my main interest in getting to the post office before it closed was so that I could pack my foodbag. After that big meal, my thinking is that that chore can wait until morning.Bedtime at 10:45 p.m.