Date: 2008-04-20
From: Bryant Ridge Shelter

To: Matts Creek Shelter
Miles today: 22.7
Weather: light rain

I woke up this morning at around 6:40a and laid in my sleeping bag for about 5 minutes thinking, "23 miles on my 23rd Birthday. Hikers sure have a strange way of celebrating their birthdays!" After visiting the privy, I packed up and prepared 3 packets of oatmeal, Yeti style! While eating, Toddy Bear and Yeti wished me a Happy Birthday. So, Yeti took pictures of the shelter while I read the poem TAPESTRY, which was very nicely written by the sister of the guy to whom the shelter was dedicated. I decided to take a picture of the plaque for Briana because she's getting her Bachelor's of Fine Arts in Fabrics! When we left the shelter, the trail wasn't as kind to me as T. Bear and Yeti were this morning...we had a gain of 2,240ft in 4.4 miles with it being steep in sections. When we got to the Cornelius Creek Shelter, we took a quick break because the humidity had us drenched in sweat. While there, we took a picture of a Woodsy Owl Sign. In the Appalachian Times, there was a funny comic strip left there by Highlife (SOBO '07). I would've taken a picture of it, but my batteries are dying. We then continued to Black Rock and enjoyed the view. Then, we began our climb up to Apple Orchard Mountain. When we got there, we noticed a fully functioning radar tower. It used to belong to the USAF and they once had enough barracks for 250 men, but now it's deserted and the tallest point between Chestnut Knob and Mount Moosilauke, NH. After passing it, we got to the Guillotine. I took photos for the guys, but I need to start carrying more batteries so that I can take more photos. When we got to the Thunder Hill Shelter, we learned that Brandon chose a Trail Name: TRILL..? The water source here seems a little sketchy. So, we pressed on to the Thunder Ridge Overlook and ate lunch. When we got to Petites Gap, we began to psyche ourselves up for the climb up to High Cock Knob. While we were climbing, we saw an older gentleman up ahead. When he turned around, he said, "Hey! There are some familiar faces!" To our dismay, it was biscuit. He had moved ahead so that he could finish up on his sections. Once he reaches the James River, He'll have VT, NH, and ME left!!! Congrats Biscuit!!! He plans to camp at Marble Springs, so we won't see him again, but he was a nice person to have met! The climb up to High Cock Knob is what you would expect for a 704 ft. elevation gain in 1 mile to be, except for the last 1/4 mile, which was pretty steep! We took a break on the summit and then hustled down to Marble Springs to get some water. The thing I hate about chemically treating your water is the wait...especially when you're thirsty! As usual, we made it to the shelter right before the rain did and cooked, ate and made a tentative schedule for our trek from Glasgow, VA-->Waynesboro, VA. We've changed our strategy slightly: We're still gonna try and average 150 miles per week, but we're gonna do small miles, around 15-18, while our food bags are heavy and then increase the miles, 20-25, when our food bags are lighter...hmm, we'll see how it goes! After brushing my teeth, I decided to "examine" the privy. When I returned to the shelter, Yeti pulled a Big Texas Cinnamon Roll, with 5 matches on it, from behind his back and he and Toddy Bear said, "Happy Birthday." I blew out the "candles" and then divided the cake. Thanks guys...I really mean it. Hiking 23 miles on your birthday with a little bit of water and the fear of rain isn't very ideal, but unlike last year, this beats taking the Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT) on my birthday! Also, it's great to have GOOD company in the form of two "smelly" individuals...ha ha!!! Tomorrow we head into Glasgow for maildrops/resupply. Now I'm gonna fill myself with liquid and make a grocery list to help speed tomorrow up!!! We've found this idea to be very productive. If you make a list before going into town, you'll be able to reduce the time spent wandering around in the grocery store and can either 1) get out of town faster, 2) save money because you have a plan and 3) gives more time so that you can eat town food!!!