Date: 2014-05-02
From: Niday Shelter

To: Four Pines Hostel
Miles today: 16.8
Weather: clear sky

Day 51-May 2, Niday Shelter to Four Pines Hostel (698.3), 16.8 miles. It was another beautiful day to hike! Lucky us! As usual we left camp just before 7 AM and hiked down to a creek and a road and then started our big climb for the day, 1500 feet in just under 3 miles to the top of Brush Mountain. The trail was a moderate grade and trail conditions were perfect~pine needles over dirt for the most part! In the cool of the morning we made this climb without too much trouble. Once on top we discovered a wide grassy path which took us to the Audie Murphy Monument. Audie Murphy was the most decorated American soldier from World War II. Mr. Murphy was killed in a plane crash on this mountain so the local VFW post erected this monument in his memory. Over the years the hikers have added to the memorial by placing stones around the monument and we made our contribution. As I was walking today and thinking about what I would be writing in this journal entry, I thought that because the trails had been so nice that this would be the first day in awhile when I didn't whine about how rocky the path had been. Well, all that changed for a two mile stretch around the Dragon's Tooth, a large, tall rock outcropping that stands guard over the Catawba Valley. The trail got very rocky as we approached the Tooth, which really wasn't surprising since we were on top of a ridge line. We got some photos from the Dragon's Tooth and then returned to the AT to head down. That's when the fun began! We had to descend over steep rock faces which would have been a bit easier if I'd had Jim's long legs and his good knees. The route was very exposed and one mis-step would have been disaster! I was very grateful that we weren't trying to do this in the rain. It was super slow going and a few times I had to drop my poles down to Jim and sit on my bottom to get my legs to reach the next step. It was a real challenge, but we made it and soon (not soon enough!) we were back on regular trail heading for VA 624 where this hostel is located. Let me tell you about this hostel because it is special. Four Pines Hostel is housed in Joe Mitchell's 3-car garage. There are 6 or 7 cots, 3 couches, a few tables and lots of chairs. There is one shower and one toilet, a stove, a couple of microwave ovens and two refrigerators. All of this is free of charge to hikers with Joe just asking us to donate what we can!! He also has lots of food available for free! There is a box of single-serving sized jelly packets and we will pick up a few of those to go with our lunches. In addition to all the offerings at the hostel there is an All-You-Can-Eat restaurant in town and Joe will shuttle hikers there and back! Tonight, however, Joe didn't feel like driving so turned the keys over to me so I could drive this old Chevy Astro van, complete with cracked front windshield and no rear view mirror. I successfully got 6 of us to and from the restaurant, where we ate more food than was probably good! Here's what was served family-style: fried chicken, country ham, roast beef, green beans, pinto beans, mashed potatoes, gravy, Mac and cheese, coleslaw, biscuits, lemonade, sweet tea and for dessert, cherry cobbler with ice cream! A hikers's paradise!Also, we got some trail magic this morning. After our descent of Brush Mountain we spotted a red cooler tucked between a rock and a tree and we got our hopes up. Jim opened the lid and there was a cooler full of ice and a variety of pop! We each slammed back a Mellow Yello and we were ready to hike again! When we arrived at this hostel we learned that Joe's girlfriend was responsible for that magic! One note from yesterday that I forgot to mention. We walked by the largest oak tree on the southern AT, the Keffer Oak. The largest oak tree on the whole AT is the Dover Oak in New York! Tomorrow we see Corey! We are so excited!All is well!