Date: 2003-06-07
From: Seeley-Woodworth Shelter

To: Priest Shelter
Miles today: 6.9
Weather: moderate rain

Yesterday my new baseball cap kept the hot sun off of my face and today it kept off the rain. Again.When we went to sleep last night the sky was still blue. There was no indication of the storm that was to come. At 10pm I along with Go 4 It and Princess Hoot was awakened by four thru-hikers coming in late. They had stayed on Wolf Rocks to watch the sunset and then moved on to the shelter. They talked, banged their things, laughed and were just all around rude considering it was late and people were already asleep.Two tented and two came into the shelter giggling like middle school kids. It was then that I decided I wouldn't go out of my way to be quiet for them in the morning.The wind was howling when I finally went back to sleep. I awakened several times during the night to the rain pounding against he shelter roof. I cringed at the thought of going out into it in the morning.At 7am I awakened and began packing up for the day. Because of the heavy rain I didn't go out until 8:40. I had planned to meet up for lunch with Princess Hoot and Go 4 It at the Priest Shelter, just 6.9 miles away. They planned to stay for the night, I planned to go on 7 more miles to the next shelter.It was one of those "just put your head down and go" mornings so I don't really know what was along the trail to see. I didn't stop at Spy Rock, visibility was about 20 feet.When I reached the shelter 3 hours after starting out, I was greeted by 2 weekend hikers with their mastiff and wrottweiler. The hikers had been alone in the shelter last night and the large, wet dogs had had the run of it. When I walked up to the shelter entrance, my mouth dropped open. "The floor is soaking wet", I said. "Yes", they said. "the rain has been blowing in all night". Well, it must have blown the dog bowls into it too, and it must have tied the dog leashes in the corner.I was so angry. I told them that there were at least 5 thru-hikers on their way to the shelter that would be cold, wet and need a place to sleep for the night. One of them had hiked half the AT last year so he had to know how important it was to come to a dry shelter at the end of a rainy hike. They just didn't care.Having decided that my cold, wet body was going no farther, I set up my bed on the other side of the shelter from them and ate my lunch while they played cards and told the crying dogs that they couldn't come into the shelter.Shortly Princess and Go 4 It arrived in the same condition that I had earlier. They too were surprised and disappointed at the condition of the shelter. They used tent flies and plastic bags under their pads and sleeping bags to keep their gear dry.Everyone else from last night's shelter either skipped this shelter altogether or stopped in for lunch and went on.The weekend hikers and their dogs decided to move on for the night. I don't think they wanted the dogs to have to sleep under the shelter and I wouldn't have wanted my dogs to either. Hopefully they walked back to their truck and drove home. Probably they went to the next shelter and started all over again.It's 7:45pm, the rain has stopped and we can actually see sun shining on some trees in the distance.The weather report says rain for tonight, with possible thunder showers. What a surprise.Sometime in the next 2 days I have to make up for the 7 miles that I didn't hike today. Probably Monday will have to be a 20 mile day. Ughhhhhhhh.