Date: 2016-05-15
From: No Business Shelter

To: Erwin, TN
Miles today: 6.0

Day 29 No Business Shelter to Erwin, TNIt was very cold last night. I added all of my layers except my puffy down. After I got all of my layers on, I slept fine. I got everyone up at 0700 and we were actually underway at 0808! I was very pleased. I hiked with two jackets on for quite some time as it was cold and we were headed mostly down hill. It definitely takes longer to warm up heading down. We made fantastic time and Sam and Philip paced us. We did stop for a photo overlooking the Nolichucky River and surrounding hills. Very pretty in the morning light. We made it to Uncle Johnny's Hostel at 1040 covering over 6 miles in under 3 hours. We checked in, got bunks and started our laundry. We then took nice hot showers which felt sooooo good! My boxes came from my parents and it included my orange hiking shirt to replace the mice eaten shirt. I also got my trekking poles, my rust colored down sweater, and my blue rain jacket, which is 1/2 pound lighter than my ski jacket. I am very happy with my gear exchange!At 12:30 sharp, a full van load of hikers was taken to Pizza Plus for all you could eat pizza and salad bar. I do not think I have ever eaten that much pizza. Even scarier, I felt absolutely fine. Not one stomach rumble. After lunch I walked over to Dollar General and bought some supplies, including my favorite, Cheetohs Puffs! I just strap a king size bag to the outside of my pack. After a few great phone calls with the family, etc., I was summoned to the 5:30 dinner van to Mexican and Walmart. I had promised Peace Foot that I would buy the first round of Margaritas in town. I asked the waiter how many glasses a pitcher would hold and he said 4. Being 5 of us, I promptly ordered 2 pitchers. The pitchers actually served 6. So that was good. Our food came and I am sure it was the best Mexican in Erwin. However, we marveled at Helen's quesadilla that had no cheese. Just chicken. Queso means cheese. Another one of the mysteries of the universe I guess. It was almost time to go to Walmart when confusion struck. Peace Foot ordered two more pitchers of margaritas. We all drank the third pitcher, but we were losing steam. Philip asked for to go cups. The waiter laughed and Philip said he was being completely serious. I was amused as outside of New Orleans I have yet to find someplace that will give you "liquor to go cups." So we drank up and ran to Walmart. Sam kept me on track, so I really only bought a four or five pounds of extraneous items. Poor Philip got separated and buzzed shopping kicked in. With 10 minutes before pickup, he went hog wild and bought the most amazing assortment of junk food I have ever seen. I think he bought at least 10 pounds of candy of every variety! So I also made the mistake of buying beer which all insisted was necessary. We were picked up and driven to the convenience store where Peace Foot said he needed something. Sam, Helen and I stayed in the van and discussed interview tips and strategies for when they return to real life. Peace Foot and Philip came out of the store, and for some reason known only to God, they bought more beer. We arrived back at the hostel and I put my food on the floor in a huge heap. Sam bailed me out and said she wasn't dealing with it until tomorrow. I was relieved! So, we built a fire and drank the beer. A lot of other folks stopped by to chat, but they were smart enough to stay away from the beer. Ok. Some stories are funny when you are with folks with shared experiences. For example, Coast Guard Academy stories are still funny to my friends and I. Yes, hikers have a whole genre of stories as well. So, in a strange turn of events, the conversation somehow got turned into your funniest taking care of business in the woods story. This cleared out pretty much the rest of the sane and sober folks from the camp fire. We all laughed and laughed and then it was time for bed when at 00:30 someone asked if we were done. Yes we were officially "those people". It was a fun day, but really seemed like two days in one.