Date: 2018-06-13
From: The Priest Shelter

To: Devil's Backbone Brewery
Miles today: 15.5

It was a little cold last night but not as cold as the meadow. Dew from the leaves kept falling on my tent. I planned on leaving early to catch a shuttle to Devil's Backbone brewery at 5 pm. It was going to be a 15 mile day except there was another 3000 foot climb in the way. I ate a brownie with peanut butter for breakfast. I was running out of food and didn't have anymore oatmeal. I headed out around 8:30 am.From the priest it was a 3000 foot descent into the valley. Chill had sent a message about a copper head on the trail. I never saw the message, but I also didn't see the snake. It seemed that the descent went on forever. At the beginning there was mostly rocks on the top then it was rocks and mud the rest of the way down. It seemed to go on for awhile. A few hikers passed me on the way down. They were definitely ultralighters with their small packs as they flew down the trail. I met up with Scissors near the bottom of the priest. She was in a fowl mood from this section. I could feel her frustration. Our moods were lifted as we saw a trail angel giving out food. Cindy was making sandwiches with ham, prosciutto, turkey, lettuce, tomatoe, and mayo. She also had fruit, chips, and soda. I really didn't have anything to eat for lunch. It was a lifesaver. She also gave us a list of local trail angels who would give us a ride into Waynesboro.  We left the gap with better moods then started a 3000 foot climb up to three ridges mountain. It started out as a easier climb up the mountain. About 2 miles up we took a break at the shelter. I ate another brownie with peanut butter. I met a section hiker named Melody. She was hiking the AT a month at a time. Kazi was there taking a break as well. She drank some crystal light to get hyped for the second half of the climb. The second part was the worst of all the climbs in this section. It was rocky, steep, and wet. There was a section where I had to scramble up rocks. It seemed to take forever to reach the top. At the false summit I ran into Scissors, Stealth, and Kazi. I took a break then headed down the mountain to reach reeds gap for the shuttle to devil's backbone brewery. With the beer and good food in mind, I picked up the pace. The remaining trail was the easiest all the day. I ran into Cosmic and she also had the brewery on the brain. We arrived at Reeds gap and Fish, Silver Bullet, and Mouse King were already there. We were able to hitch a ride to the brewery instead of waiting for the shuttle.  When we arrived at devil's backbone brewery. I was blown away by the size of it. It was it's own campus with a brewery, distillery, stage area, cafe, green house, and campground. They let thru hikers camp there for free. I met Fish at the bar. He bought me a drink to pay me back for the trail magic I gave him at Laurel Creek Falls a few weeks ago. I ordered a burger with fries and added bacon, cheese, and avocado. It was amazing. The bar also loaned us growlers to fill at half price. We each got growlers and took them back to camp. Pantalones had made a huge fire. We all sat on picnic tables by the fire and drank our growlers. I only had two more pints because I didn't want to be hung over the next day. I went to bed around midnight and the conversations went on into the night. Tonight I'm listening to everyone drunkenly talk about being in a hiker trash porno as I drift off to sleep.