Date: 2016-06-05
From: Swamp Branch Shelter

To: Windy Rock
Miles today: 8.0
Weather: light rain

6/5Don't let your hike get in the way of your hike.... so the saying goes. I think today is a good example of that. Here is the play by play.I woke up stuffed in a loft of the Pine Swamp Branch Shelter. The rain was coming down in sheets making that "I think I will sleep in" noise on the metal roof of the shelter. Eventually the Cannibas Kids awoke.... I could tell as the shelter filled with the smells of Colorado. The loft was an odd place as it really did not have a ladder so I delayed my awaking until almost 9:00 am and then shimmied down the post holding the loft in place.Smokey Bear (the Alpha of the CK's) was stirring up his breakfast. One observes people packing in some crazy stuff to add variety to standards, but this is what Smokey whipped up...scrambled eggs with onions and Saracha sauce topped with avacados and a toasted bagel on the side. But here is the deal, he presented it on a plate and it looked like something you would get in a restaurant. Big Bird and I laughed that we wish we videoed him cooking because, well.... He just looked like he knew what he was doing. We also joked that the Food Network should do a hiker trash episode where contestants get 4 bucks and only can shop at a gas station and all ingredients must weigh under a pound. This kid would win stoned as he was.Finally I took the plunge and hiked out. After two months on the trail today I was first out of the shelter, who cares if it was after 10 am and my competition was known collectively as the Cannibas Kids. I hiked the mile down to the Captain's (where we all would have gone if we did not get caught in the rain and settle for the shelter). The Captain's is a private piece of land with the Captain's house on it and a big yard where hikers can camp. The place is located across Stony Creek and hikers access it by taking a small zip-line across. I zip-lined in and immediately saw hikers I knew....City Slicker, Sky High, Texas Hippie, Thumper, Squirrel. I also met Salsa who was on her way back across as I arrived.I got on wi-fi and grabbed a free coke from the refig on the Captain's porch. The Captain is an older gentlemen and he was in the house. I didn't get to meet him, but I am thankful for his hospitality. Squirrel was manning the outdoor griddle under the tent and cooked everyone grilled cheeses. Sky High told me that the AT reconnected up the road so that a trip back across the creek on zip line was not necessary. I convinced two hikers to "skip" ahead and we left Captain's and headed up the rode that ran along Stony Creek. That's when I noticed a perfect trout pool. The two unnamed hikers (I can not give names away of other hikers who were weak and took a short cut with me) kept hiking and I stopped and assembled my fly rod. With the look of the pool I was glad I fixed my rod tip in Pearisburg! I tied on an olive woolly bugger (after getting some local advice from a couple in a truck) and preceded to fish. It did not take long before I caught two decent trout and missed a third!I kept to fish as my original intention was to catch a limit and hike them back to the Captain's and let them cook them. When the stream went cold leaving me with just two trout I decided to pack them onto the AT and I would cook them for dinner. I ended up camping at the campsite by Windy Rock. Navigator, Big Bird and Salsa were there. A section hiker brought water and at sunset we all watched the sunset as we sat on Windy Rock. It was a great way to end a great day. Although I did not crush the miles today, I enjoyed the AT.