Date: 2015-06-25
From: Sam Moore Shelter

To: David Lesser Memorial Shelter
Miles today: 14.2
Weather: overcast clouds

I was up before light and was starting to get my bedding put away. I grabbed my pack and felt something hairy crawl across and I thought that it was a mouse looking for food. I turned my headlamp to look and there was a wolf spider that was 4" in diameter staring at me from the wall. She protectively held an egg sack close to her stomach as she stared in defiance. I just moved my pack and left her alone as wolf spiders are non-venomous and eats helter bugs which can be a problem. I celebrated as I crossed into a new State - WV! I stopped at Raven and Crescent Rock for the amazing views then I finished the Roller Coaster thinking it was fun, not nearly as scary as the name implied. The trail wound down into Wilson Gap and meandered up to the Blackburn A.T. Center where I stopped for coffee and a quick break. The Laurel Springs boardwalk was pretty impressive before I reached the David Lesser Memorial Shelter. This is a stately and large cabin type shelter with a large front porch with a railing and wrap around bench. There is a separate sleeping platform with a picnic table and firepit to cook at. I like this type of shelter as all of the cooking smells are away from the shelter and thus the shelter is less likely to attract animals. There was a father and son at the shelter who had just arrived and managed to get set up before the rain started. I made the long, steep trip downhill to the watersource during a break in the rain and when I got back to the shelter I noticed a deer hanging out in the woods on the other side of the trail from the shelter. I called the boy and showed him the doe who was very photogenic and allowed pictures before wandering off into the woods. I noticed that the father was having difficulty in getting a fire started and it seemed like he wanted to give his son the best outdoor experience that he could on his first outing. I then gave a demonstration "to the son" on what kind of twigs around almost every fire pit would quickly start a fire. Then we gathered increasingly larger pieces of dead wood until we had enough for a fire. It is better to get all of your wood first rather than hurry around trying to keep a struggling fire going. I then showed how, with paper trash from my pack how to quickly get a fire going utilizing a pyramid stacking technique. You start with paper, dried moss and bark, then pile a small pyramid of tiny twigs and a few finger size sticks. Then start the fire and as the fire gets bigger you add larger and larger pieces to the pyramid while continuing to throw small pieces into the bottom to keep the flame hot. Both the son and father watched attentively and asking questions throughout the process. Soon I was joined in the shelter by an older couple and a single hiker. I really liked this shelter as it is a new and large shelter with a huge front porch with a bench for the hikers to sit on. There was a separate building for cooking which was where the fire pit was located. There were two picnic tables to sit on so you there was plenty of room for hikers. It was getting late so I offered a safety meeting to the couple who declined, so I stepped away from the shelter and had my meeting in private and then went to bed. I had started listening to "Treasure Island" on audiobook during my hike today and was glad that I had decided to make audio books a part of my daily hiking routine.