Date: 2008-05-05
From: Quality Inn Waynesboro

To: Quality Inn Waynesboro
Miles today: 0.0

Good sleep last night. At hotel breakfast area got to meet Pocket Change and Poncho, as well as getting a chance to see Thud again before he hits the trail. Thud said Max threw up during the night, but seems fine this a.m. Once he heard about the expected temp today-80 degrees, it didn't take but a moment for him to decide against doing his planned 20 mile hike and settle for sharing a 3p.m.m shuttle to the trailhead with PocketChange and her hiking partner whom we haven't met yet(the poor guy's ft hurt so badly he couldn't come to breakfast). They'll all hike 7 miles to the first shelter. That's smart cause Max doesn't need a 20 mile hot hike if he's not 100%. Next we went to library to post entries. Marguerite, a trail angel wo came to the hotel lobby during breakfast to take hikers back to the trailhead 2.5 miles away, is coming at 2 p.m. to take us to the outfitters. We'll get a water collection bag, filter replacement(clogged form it's one-time exposure to silt-unacceptable filter failure), socks for TIE, [poncho for me to replace useless raingear. Eating plans for the day: lunch at Purple Foot, a tea room across the st that has an appealing menu. Happy Cinco de Mayo! Marguerite picked us up and Cavalier, too, from hotel, took us to outfitter, then at her suggestion to the Shenandoah Park Ranger Station to get our hiking permits in advance. In driving away from the outfitter, TIE spotted Piglette and Smoky coming out of the woods where the trail intersects the rd. Marguerite managed to squeeze them and their packs into her car. Dropped me off the library for morre posting, and took everyone else to Q.I.. At library are Snidely Whiplash and Applecore. Good to see them. At dinner time, TIE and I just passed the lobby and up drove Caribou, a section hiker from Maine. Caribou offed to take us to Gavid's, a local steakhouse. Thanks, Caribou! We also thank Caribou for his previous trail magic Saturday. On our hike to W'boro we crossed a rd where Caribou introduced himself while he gatherd his gear, leaving his car parked on the pull-over spot. He gave us a gallon of store-bought water to fill our Platypus bags. Thanks to Caribou, we didn't have to stop to filter and pump more water, enabling us to land in W'boro in the nick of time to catch the YMCA check-in and free showers--marvelous! Caribou, an almost retired Maine resident, lives near the AT. Once a yr, he and a couple of friends, one of whom is a 72 year old knee replacement beneficiary, spend a wk doing sections of the AT. Caribou's an easy-going, affable guy. He told us that eventually some to the hikers he meets on the southern portions of the AT make their way to the AT in Maine, call him up, and he picks them up and houses and feeds them for a night. What a treat! We look forward to seeing you, Caribou, up in Maine in a few yrs! Gavid's turned out to be more like a Golden Corral than an Outback, but we stuffed ourselves with vegetables which our bodies really relished. Also there were Piglette and Smoky. On our way back to our room we passed Smoky, back at the hotel, sitting on his balcony. "Hey, do ya'll want some beer?" he called out. "No, thanks. Too stuffed and tired," TIE hollered back. Upon getting into our room, the phone rang. Snidely Whiplash and Applecore inviting us to go out to eat with them. What nice people we've met on the trail! Outgoing, griendly, generous spirits, that's for sure. Tomorrow we hit the trail midday after resupplying and mailing a box of winter stuff to my parents. Our packs will be lighter this town exit cause in the Shenandoah Natl Park there are campstores and waysides that sell hot fast foods, supplies, and beer! Next town we'll cross is Front Royal in 5-6 days. Don't know if we'll stay there or just walk past. In 10-12 days we should arrive in Harper's Ferry where we'll definitely take a zero day. Talk to you then! Oh, say a prayer that the assertive bears in the Shenadoah N. Park keep their distance. The ranger gave us a talk about them. Shouldn't be problem as long as we hang our food properly. We'll more than likely see'em, but not up close