Date: 2014-04-28
From: Pearisburg...pronounced Parisburg. 

To: Roanoke
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

Pearisburg to RoanokeOy! Weather! I know I like to write about communing with nature and enjoying the beauties of our world, but shifting weather is a mess, as the last few days have taught me. Because I nero-ed* into Pearisburg and then nero-ed out again I didn't lose my trail legs. Even so, coming north out of town was a steep climb up, which is fairly common, since most towns are located in valleys, but the new factor was heat. Even though it had rained hard the day before the ground was dry and loose and the one water source available along the 7 mile stretch to the first shelter looked parched. Even though it was only in the 80's I felt like I was cooking. I made it to the shelter not too long before dark and found it empty but for one occupant, Blitz. Wed never met before, but she knew my name from the shelter logs. She's been trailing me for a few weeks. I figured out quickly why the place was empty. The shelter had an unreliable water source .4 miles down the mountain. Ugh! Hiker nightmare: having to hike an extra mile for a necessary commodity than may or may not even be available at the end of the hike. By the time I had figured this out I had already unpacked and blown up my mat and the sky was beginning to edge towards dusk, so it was too late to push on another 2 miles to the next water source to camp. So I trudged unhappily down the hill through brambles to the very muddy, buggy, barely bubbling water source. The water was red with sediment, but at least I wasn't dry. Aside from the water irritation it was a pleasant evening. Blitz was good company and I shared my fresh food with her. We greedily noshed on avocados, carrots and pea pods and shared life and hike histories. She's only 18 and is hiking fast. She started after me and averages about 20 a day. She's built like a runner and has a marathoner's spirit: dedicated, patient, plodding. She was home schooled too, so that was an immediate bond. I don't think I'll see her again, as she's rather faster than me, but I'm glad I got a chance to talk to her. I don't think she would have been quite so forthcoming if the shelter had been full-up. We were both up early the next morning and out by 7. It was a beautiful, bright ridge walk to the next water source where I planned to fill up for the day. When I got there I saw that a camp had been erected by Kristo, Safari, G, Gandalf (who I had heard about but never met, so was nerdily excited to do so), Redwood, Legs and Legs' dad, who was along for a hundred mile section hike (I immediately dubbed him Pop-A-Leg and it seems to have stuck). They invited me to hike with them for the day and I gladly accepted. We agreed to meet up at the first shelter for lunch and then go from there. Pleasant morning, but hot. Nothing of interest until after the second shelter when we hit our steepest climb of the day at the hottest time of the day. I felt like I was swimming and realized too late how very little I had drunk over the course of the last 17 miles. I'd gotten used to lower temperatures and being able to camel up at water holes. I've been in the routine of carrying less than a liter on me at a time in order to reduce my pack weight, but that was now biting me in the butt.I got about halfway up the 2,000 foot climb and had to stop, drop my pack, lean over the edge and dry heave for a few minutes. Good times. Gandalf caught up to me after a few minutes and made me sit down on a rock with my head between my knees. He was a real gentleman about it and sat with me and talked until I started to rally. While I sat the entire group passed me except for Pop-A-Leg and I brought up the rear to the third shelter. After a bit of a group lie down we decided to press on another 2 and half miles to the next reliable water source because this shelter too was sadly lacking. Safari and Gandalf took the lead and built a fire pit and campsite right around the corner from the water. I got there, pitched my tent and collapsed for the night. 20 mile day in the heat. Ew. Around 11 Geared Up, Wingin' It (my Easter buddy!) and Prom Queen came through camp attracted by the light of our still burning fire. They had started from Pearisburg that morning and were aiming for a 27 mile day! They were exhausted and hungry and still had a mile to go before they hit their campsite at Wind Rock. They ate up... Well, sort of, Geared Up was doing a weird town-to-town-fasting challenge. But the other two ate at the fireside and then all three pushed on. Up early again to try to avoid the beginnings of a predicted approaching storm. Good push and minimal weather, and even a little sun, until early afternoon. I came down through some pastureland around 3 and at a road crossing a man in a pickup truck pulled over to ask me if I had seen Prom Queen. I admitted that I hadn't seen her yet for the day but I knew that she was less than an hour behind me. After a few more minutes of talking I found out that the man was her stepdad. Since she lives so close to the trail Prom Queen had arranged with her mom and stepdad to turn the house into a makeshift hostel and I was cordially invited along with the rest of the group. He also offered to let me slack pack the remaining 11.5 miles to the house if I so wished. I did so wish and I thankfully dumped my drenched pack into the bed of his truck. By the time I did that Geared Up and Kristo we there and they decided to do the same. We set off together but they soon out distanced me on the uphill and I was moving alone. I hit a rocky ridge line and it was as if the weather gods decided to make a snap decision and hurl down a storm upon deceitful mankind. Torrents of rain, wind, thunder and lightening all at once and I decided that it was time to get myself off of the darned mountain. I moved as quickly as I could over the rocks and booked it down the mountain. I ran the 2 1/2 miles down to the last shelter before the road, where Geared Up was waiting for me (he's a prince of a fellow), and we trotted the remaining mile and half to the road together. Prom Queen picked us up in the family suburban and took us back to the house. It was so wonderful to be in a car. We were soaked through and colder than frozen peas. She cranked on the heat and promised that life would improve soon, but I was beyond caring. It had been a hellish 24.6 mile day and I was done in. I stumbled into the house and was immediately overwhelmed by the smell of ham cooking in the oven and Kristo tootling around on a guitar. Heaven. I'm pretty sure that's what Heaven will be like. *nero is a combination near and zero and is individually defined based upon your daily average miles. A general rule of thumb is any milage below half your usual day. My nero is <10.