Date: 2005-05-02
From: Overmountain Shelter

To: Campsite along a stream
Miles today: 18.2

Hopeful:   It's Hopeful here, at the end of the day, sitting in the tent, in my sleeping bag, listening to the stream, hearing the laughter outside as a few people still linger by the campfire before going to bed. I'm the only female tonight with Papa Bear, Free Radical, L.B., Circuit Rider, Sherlock, Beantown, and of course, Red Wing. But they are all great guys-- especially Red Wing!   My legs are tired. We've had 3 very long days-- 20 miles, then 18 and another 18 today. Yesterday was full of climbs, and while I'm definately in better shape than a month ago, several long days in a row will probably always wear me down.   ***Highlights today: Barns, Balds, Burgers, Blue Blazes & Buddies.1) The Barn-- What an incredible spot (the Overmountain shelter where we stayed last night)! And fun, once we were inside our tent (still inside the barn) and safe from mice. We wanted to rename Hot Flash "Dances with Mice" after the way that she flew into the air and stomped around after seeing one run toward her.2) The Balds-- Wow! In the past two days we've been on at least four balds. That's a mountain without trees at the top and you have views on all sides. The wind gets really chilly up there, but you feel like you're on top of the world.3)   The Burgers-- We had great motivation to hike today because we knew that there was a road crossing about 1/2 way through our miles where we could get to a burger place. It was a mile off the trail, but we easily got rides both ways and we easily devoured burgers, fries, milkshakes and nachos. The long days of hiking, especially with big elevation changes, really do directly affect our appetites! We realized that we need to be carrying more snacks than we had been originally, in order to stay strong throughout the day. Lots of the guys out here are really worried about losing too much weight. Red Wing thinks that he may already have lost 10-15 pounds, so we're brainstorming ways to get more calories and more quality ones for him (he can't afford to lose much!). In my case, I seem to be about the same weight as when I started (women's bodies tend to conserve better), but I do have much more muscle, so maybe it has my body redistributing resources a bit.4) Blue Blazes-- The entire Appalachian Trail is marked by small, rectangular, white blazes painted onto trees or rocks. They work great for staying on track, unless it's snowing! Anytime we see a blue blaze, it indicates something of interest that is off the trail, such as a water source, a shelter, a campsite, or overlook. Many times we avoid blue blazes, saying, "Those miles don't count!". Today, however, we heard of a Jones Creek waterfall, just 0.1 mile off the trail and we followed the blue blazes for it. Wow! It was beautiful and reminded me of the Upper Penninsula of Michigan.5) Buddies-- We spend the past couple of nights and tonight with our friends Circuit Rider and Sherlock, who we know from back in Lake Ann. What a treat and an encouragement! We caught up on each others' hikes, and even got to pray together for a little while as we walked this afternoon. They are two people who we really respect for their love for God and love for people.