Date: 2003-06-08
From: Tumbling Run Shelters 

To: Quarry Gap Shelters 
Miles today: 12.2
Weather: overcast clouds

No rain last night, which was a good thing. However, my sheltermates, Sink II and Hotdog, got their snoring machines going, and I put in the trusty earplugs. The Boy Scouts didn't make too much noise this morning. I woke up once and heard a little bit of talking and tent pole clanging, but fell right back asleep. When I got up for good, around 7:30, they were gone. No trace of them at all.We climbed to Chimney Rocks, and even though I could tell the sun wasn't out, I took the short blue-blaze trail to check out the view anyway. It was a pretty cool place to boulder-hop, but there wasn't much of a view. It was either fog, or I was embedded in a cloud. Oh well, I had to see for myself.Hotdog and I had mentioned going to a pizza place for lunch once we got to US30, 9.6 miles north, and once I got that idea in my head, it was there to stay. We passed the Boy Scouts, then some passed us back, then we passed them again, before we took a break. Sitting on a rock for the break, I noticed mosquitos for the first time this trip. It took them a few minutes to recognize me as food, but finally they did, cutting the break short. That was okay though, as I wanted to get to Taormina's Pizza!We passed 2 section-hikers headed north, 2 dayhikers headed south, then 3 more section-hikers and a dog headed north. Of course, they all passed us when we walked the 0.3mi to the pizza place for lunch. Hotdog and I split a large sausage pizza and each had a cold soda. It was sooo good! Before we were finished, Mule, Paparazzi and B-Roc showed up for lunch too. The other customers were pretty friendly. I could hear them talking about us and the AT, even though they didn't talk TO us. One guy did, so I guess there was genuine friendliness there. The employees were friendly and that's all that mattered, I guess.Full of pizza, we walked back to the trail, debating on whether to hike 2.8mi or 10mi to shelters. I knew what I wanted to do, but not sure about Hotdog. If I hadn't heard about a chance of showers tonight, I wouldn't mind tenting somewhere in between, but I did hear that, so I knew I only wanted to go the 2.8mi to the first shelter, but it was up for debate.Back on the AT, we went through Caledonia State Park. Amazingly, there were people everywhere! Kids running and screaming, adults talking, footballs bouncing. It's the first time I've gone through a park and seen a lot of people! Of course, it is Sunday, and NOT RAINING. That might have something to do with it. One pavilion was crowded with people! As we walked by a lady came up to us, "Where'd you hike from?" I'm always confused by this question, as I never know if they mean today, or for the trip. I said "Georgia" and she said "Springer! Right?"   We talked to Mrs. Bill Gates ("Easy to remember that name, isn't it?") and a gentleman (who may or may not be Mr. Bill Gates) for quite a while, and she offered us food from their plethora. Unfortunately, I was stuffed full of pizza, and declined. We moved on, cursing ourselves for going to get pizza, when we could've had free food. Who knew???I climbed up a hill, and when the trail leveled, I saw a young lady sitting on a log, enjoying the peaceful woods. We started talking, as she'd figured I was a thruhiker. "It's that time of the year" she said. She also said she and her father were interested in thruhiking, and I said all I could to encourage her to go for it. Hotdog stopped and talked too, as did section-hikers we'd seen earlier, Ray and Chris, then we moved on.The trail went through a tunnel of rhododendron, but there were no blooms. It would've been so beautiful if they were blooming! As it was, it was pretty neat. When I got to the shelters, I wasn't sure it was the shelter at first. It looked like a pavilion, until I got closer and saw it was two small shelters, with a picnic table between, and a roof covering the whole thing. What a great setup! We decided to stay, and before long, Ray and Chris, Paparazzi, Mule and B-Roc, and Hoser came along and stayed as well.The "innkeeper" of this shelter, Jim Stauch, stopped by to check it out and do some cleaning up, if necessary. I ended up talking to him for a long time, and it turns out he owned a condo on Ft. Myers Beach a while ago. He also owns a cottage near here, and if he catches hikers before here, such as at Caledonia State Park, he will invite them to his cottage for dinner and to stay the night. However, if hikers have gotten to here already, he won't offer, as it would mean backtracking a mile or two on the AT. He was great to talk to, and takes a lot of pride in his volunteer work with PATC, especially this shelter. It was just awesome to meet another wonderful person.After he left, most everyone was starting to wind down, and I stayed up talking to Ray and Chris, as they had a lot of questions about thruhiking. They are out for 5 days, but not specifically to hike the AT; they just happen to be using the AT for their trip this time. Nice talking to them too!The rain started falling around 10pm, and Mule and Paparazzi, who'd been "sleeping under the stars" on a tent platform, came into the covered area between the shelters, to continue their slumber. As luck would have it, I had to pee about that time, but didn't want to go out in the rain, so I went to bed holding it. I paid for it later, as I had to go REALLY bad around 1am. The rain had stopped by then and I snuck out of the shelter for relief.I classify hikers on the AT in four categories: dayhiker-those out for a day; overnighter-those out for just one night; section-hiker-those out for more than one consecutive night, not considering if their goal is to hike the whole AT, or they just happen to be on the AT; and thruhiker-hiker on the AT who's goal is to hike the entire AT this year. Maybe my definition of section-hiker isn't always accurate, but it decsribes how long someone is on their trip anyway.I really enjoyed talking to all those I met yesterday. It is amazing how much it means to me, and how much it can make my day to meet other people, even if just for a few minutes. It is quite fulfilling, and I hope the people I meet enjoy it as much as I do. I am normally a shy person, not one to start conversations, but meeting people on the trail provides an instant connection, and therefore a place to start a conversation. It makes it much easier for me, and I sometimes wish I could spend more time talking with these people, or keep in touch with them. I know I can't do that, and am thankful for getting a few moments with those that I meet. It has made this adventure much better than I thought it would be. It's been just awesome!