Date: 2007-09-27
From: Chairback Gap Leanto

To: Carl Newhall Leanto
Miles today: 9.9
Weather: light rain

Started the day with a discussion with Don(not the New Hampshire Don, but a SOBO section hiker I met at the shelter last night) . He is an engineer, and would appreciate this topic ¢ I have long thought that the rocks we walk up remind me of an old physics experiment to calculate the coefficient of friction, where you put a block on top of a board, and then raise one end of the board until the board reaches a steep enough angle that the block starts to slide down it. I mentioned that the sine of the angle is the coefficient of friction. He corrected me and said it was the cosine. I had to laugh because he was probably one of the few people on the trail who could correct me on that. Normally I can baffle people with cowpies.   The day started out rainy. Pearls and Starvin Marvin charged out early in the morning, but Don and I stalled to see where the weather was going and to figure out what the appropriate attire would be. I left dressed for heavy rains. Finding the trail was the next challenge ¢ hit 2 false trails before finding the right one. Don¢t know how I missed the obvious blazes, but that is life. It didn¢t take me long to remove my rain gear, though I left my pack cover on, because the rain slowed greatly and it was turning into a hot day. It remained overcast. One thing I had debated about, especially since I had the time, was to hike a side trail called the Gulf Hagas Trail. It visits a gorge that some call the ¢Grand Canyon of the East¢. Before I got there, I had to ford a river. I changed into my aquasocks and waded through, only to be shown up by some day hikers who chose to try to step on stones all the way across. Only 1 of the 5 got wet at all, and that was only 1 foot. They all hiked past me as I was putting my boots back on. Oh, well, better safe than sorry, especially when I have to walk on these feet tomorrow too. As I continued on toward Gulf Hagas, I continued to watch the iffy weather, but decided when I got there, why not¢¦.. I have a lot of time to kill for Loose Bruce to catch up. So I did it. And was rewarded several ways. First, the weather became bright and sunny (though still rather hot). Second, I caught up to the day hikers that had passed me at the river, all 3 groups, and they were the only companionship I had all day. Third, I got to prove what a rebel I am, marching to my own drum. The Gulf turned out to be fairly interesting, but it was an absolute deception to associate it with the Grand Canyon. It was a bunch of trail with few isolated, attractive overlooks. Fairly dramatic, but not overwhelming. Maybe about 1/10 of the Grand Canyon in terms of visual impact. The most satisfying part of the trip was when I decided that hiking an extra 4 miles of trail that were more rigorous than that portion of the AT entitled me to take a shortcut that skipped 7/10 of a mile of the AT. It was a little difficult because my guidebook specifically instructed me not to do it. Hah! Take that, Wingfoot. I will be a 2000 miler without hiking it! Because I can! My rationalization is that if you take a longer, more difficult route for either a logistical purpose or sightseeing to expand your trail experience (i.e. you are not taking a shortcut), the AT is simply the means to get you there, not the be-all end-all route to follow. **Note: After the trip I read a book about the first through hike by Earl Shaffer, and this hiker felt that when he got lost, he didn¢t feel the need to go all the way back to where he turned wrong, so I think the precedents go way back.**   Clearly the good weather was yet another gift from the rain gods, because as soon as I finished dinner at camp that evening a thunderstorm commenced. My frequent gifts of water and nitrogen to their beloved trees continue to pay off. Of course, I would do it anyway because I love the trees too.   I am dealing with a moral dilemma right now. For the 3rd time I have seen the ultimate mousetrap protecting a shelter from mice. It is a 5 gallon bucket partially filled with water, and with peanut butter spread on the sides. It is placed under a wooden beam that mice can climb. When the jump in, they cannot get out, and either drown or freeze to death. These shelters had been infested with mice, according to the registers, and I was glad to be free of them, but, ¢Oh, the humanity!¢      Sharing my dilemma in camp were Pippy, Pittsburgh, Gnarly, Yogi, Fidel, Redblaze and Holdon. The shelter was very full again because of the rain ¢ in fact Redblaze slept UNDER the shelter floor.   An interesting observation ¢ I was old enough to be the father of every person I was camping with. Yet they treated me exactly as a peer. And in fact it has been that way since the start. I think that by being hikers we realize we have so much in common that the differences only make us interesting to each other.