Date: 2004-05-01
From: Deep Gap Shelter

To: Dicks Creek Gap
Miles today: 5.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Deep Gap Shelter @ 0830Finish: Dicks Creek Gap @ 1015Miles: 3.5Weather: Drizzle and Rain at elevation. Walked through a cloud all morning.Breakfast: Chocolate CIB, Strawberry Poptarts...AYCE breakfast for $5.00.Lunch: NoneDinner: Hamburger and Mozzarella SticksTrail Conditions: A good climb to start the day and then downhill.Animals: NonePeople: Saw no one new, except an older gentleman attempting a thru-hike.Awoke to a warm and damp morning. We were sitting in the same cloud as the night before. I proceeded to rip a big morning fart, hollered stinky britches, and we all laughed. Life was good.I hiked down to the gap where N&C and Stick were waiting for me in the back of a truck to get to town. I shuffled across the road, tossed my pack in the back, jumped in and headed into town. We arrived at a local AYCE (I forgot the name). It turns out the guy giving us the hitch was none other than Tater! He is such a nice guy. Thanks man!I am sure a group of hikers is the last thing the staff at an AYCE wants to see, but they treated us well. The four of us proceeded to destroy the buffet one sausage patty at a time. We squabbled over who can eat the most. They say I am all talk and cannot eat prodigous quantities of food. However, they simply do not understand my methods when it comes to the mass consumption of grub. Its all about pacing myself, not simply jumping out of the gate and slamming all the food at once. Anyways, we had bigger fish to fry in town so we raided the dollar store and stunk up the local library as we checked our e-mails. I said my farewells to N&C and Sticks as they were going to push on to Muskrat Creek Shelter. I stayed in town for the afternoon and went to stay in Blueridge with Lauren's Grandma, Nancy. I am planning on zeoring on Sunday.Nancy picked me up in town and drove me back to her place. She has a wonderful home in the mountains. I enjoyed a long shower, a nice dinner, and cleaned my gear. Nancy is a truly great person and we chatted for several hours. Thank you for your kindness!It sounds like there has been a bad twist of fate in the hiking plans for Lauren. Due to some untimely circumstances she is not sure, and we don't know, if she'll be able to hike the A.T. this year. She should know sometime next week. I hope it works out for her.Well, I am going to crash on my cozy king size bed, smelling rosy clean. I am pooped. Goodnight.One Year ReflectionThe previous day and the start of this day had been the longest wet stretch I had yet to experience. It was hardly demoralizing being all wet, especially since I was going to be taking a zero day, but my first brief glimpse of the misery that was to come.I broke camp in no real hurry and toodled on along to the gap. The hike was really nothing special. There were some trees in bloom, and I saw my first Ladyslipper, a relatively rare flower. As I came near the gap I heard several voices in unison yelling "Rowboat." It was Sticks and the gang and they were waiting on me, as they had a hitch into town. I came jogging out of the woods, saw them sitting in back of a truck, and I instinctively tossed my pack in, hopped in, and was off to town.As we were being driven to Hiawasse, going 40mph twisting down the mountain roads, in the back of a truck being driven by someone I didn't even know, with 3 strangers I had only known for several days, I couldn't help but be dumbfounded by the situation I was in. Back in the "world" doing something like that would be entirely unheard of - infact most would deem it stupid, crazy, irrational, dangerous, wreckless, etc... I chuckled to myself and knew I was living an adventure I had dreamed about for so long. In a still foreign way, it was incredibly validating.When we did get to town, I learned that the driver was none other than Tater, who had graciously given me a Mountain Lightening at Unicoi Gap. I ate a big breakfast in town, went to the dollar store with the crew as they resupplied, and then made my arrangements to get picked up by Nancy for my first zero day.I arranged a meeting place at the Holiday Inn express in town, and I just sat down in the grass, looking and smelling like a homeless person, and waited a little over an hour while she drove in. Nancy arrived in nick of time, as it was just starting to rain. I bought her dinner on the way back to her home in Blue Ridge.Nancy has a wonderful cabin up in the mountains, and she graciously opened her house to me. Lauren was supposed to pick me up with Nancy, however, Lauren managed to screw things up by failing to graduate from college, decided to not tell her family until the day of commencement (really angering them), and consequently not keep up her end of the bargin with Nancy who was housing me. I had only met Nancy for about a total of 45 minutes prior to this occassion, so Nancy was really going out of her way to pick me up. For that I am still very greatful. Thanks Nancy.I wrapped up the day with a nice long shower and curled up in a comfy bed. A great end to my first week of hiking on the trail.