Date: 2007-05-25
To: View Entry
Miles today: 135.0

Good Morning, everyone...This is Audrey typing...So, we made it to Erwin. Last night we planned to camp underneath the bridge by the Nolichucky...ultra elusive hobo chic...but we ended up caving at the thought of a hot shower and clean clothes and spent the night at Uncle Johnny's hostel. As of yesterday, I don't think I have ever smelt so smelly in my entire life, so not showering for another 12 hours simply wasn't an option. This morning I woke up around 8am and peddled this goofy little antique bike (a child's bike, no doubt...I'll never be tall enough for the big kid bikes!) to the salvation army to buy a light weight skirt to hike in...I'm pretty sure that at some point in time, the skirt i bought was a very elaborate table cloth. Anyway...so that was really exciting...We rolled into Hot Springs last Thursday, sometime in the early morning I suppose. We spent the night at this charming victorian inn, Sunnybank, owned by a charming man, on a charming street, in a charming town no less; Charming! After spending about an hour in the music room (because there is a music room), it's safe to say that I am now a classically trained banjo player...yes, a classically trained banjo player, which just may be an oxymoron. Friday morning we made our way to Damascus for traildays...3 days of hiker madness. I'm pretty sure no one slept the entire time we were there; sleeping was a frivolous thing at the time. We made it back to Hot Springs sunday afternoon and started hiking to Erwin. The first day out of HS was pure hell, let me tell you. Ping, Sunburn, Pittsburgh and I all decided to skip the shelter and camp by this lovely patch of poison ivy. In the night, we were attached by a vicious gang of baby deer, so we didn't sleep too well. Sleep deprivation aside, the next 3 days we busted out 60 miles. We conquered Butt Mountain! Yes!Wednesday, on our way from Flint Mountain Shelter to Bald Mountain, we got caught in a HAIL storm...I'm not even kidding, hail...I think pittsburgh and I somehow managed to hike 10 miles in 3 hours that day...lightening storms and open mountain patches will do that to you, I suppose. Also, on the way into Erwin yesterday we spotted a rattlesnake...just hanging out on the trail, doing rattlesnake things.Missing Bill, Ted and Hillel, who sadly had to leave us last Sunday...Bill & Ted are either on a mission to DC or traveling through time in phone a booth...Hillel had to return to the daily grind...hope to see them all again in the passing months.It's past noon now...we're going to get back on the trail in a few hours. We should be rolling into Kincora (I don't know if I spelled this correctly) in the next 3 and a half days...there we'll be doing a short slack pack and taking a zero day...then it's on to Damascus...again!Someone better remember to tape my soaps for me, if not, how will I ever know if John and Marlana get back together??! Okay, bad joke. But yeah...what's going on in the real world right now? War still going on? Gas still expensive? Is G'Dub still aiming for best performace in a presidency? Are Brad and Angelena still together??!? I must know!Random things that Pittsburgh and I talk about on a daily basis:1. The Artist formally known as Price2. The band The Walflowers and how Bob Dylan probably wrote all of their songs just so know one would find out that Jacob Dylan has no actual talent.3. Things one can make out of potatoes4. Global Warming and how much of a liberal lie it is!Just kidding about that last one...it's communist propaganga, too!Well, that about sums it up, folks! Take care.with much love.