Date: 2018-04-24
From: Dicks Creek Gap

To: Plumorchard Gap Shelter
Miles today: 4.5
Weather: moderate rain

When I got up, I had to get to computer and internet to straight out the problem with Red Roof Inn that I stayed in Arizona before I flew out to Atlanta. (They charged me twice for one night stay)I then had my free breakfast and quickly get in my dorm and pack everything as I can.  The same shuttle driver who speed up past tanker, seemed to annoy me few times, by saying 9AM and its even not 9.  He show up in my dorm room like 3 times to be sure I am ready. I looked at my watch, it shows 8;55AM, it was only 5 minutes left, so I finishing and tidying up my backpack and he even show up, and said let's go. I was like 5 minutes early?As I get out of my dormitory room, I realized that hostel time is 5 minutes faster than my watch, and its 9AM.I hurried and got out of building and in my mind, was busy thinking of that white bearded guy who annoyed me the last hour in the morning for his shuttle on time. I took my boot on, and looking for that guy again to be sure he do not leave without me. I was like wait, wait and wait please, I took the 2nd boots on and ran to the van as I could.I tied my boots in van.  Got dropped off at Dicks Creek Gap. That is where I started my hike.It was raining when I hike up to Plumorchard Gap Shelter. It got cleared up. I start to unpack my pack and got space in shelter. Then I un-tied my boots. I took both of them off. I still did not notice the difference in measurement and appearance.  The problem was that the appearance of both boots were covered with wet mud. The boots would be brown if its dry but when its wet, it goes black but with mud, they goes unnoticed.Then when I want to hang my boots with my string, one of my boot have loop but the another doesn't. I was like, what? how come the loop was missing, and my thinking, oh I must've broke it off. My eyes were fixing on the boots for few minutes to figure out what is going on until I start to realize that I took wrong boot, I said F**K! Everyone in the shelter were looking at me, they wondered what goes wrong. I said, look at the boot.  One hiker did not recognize the difference until I keep pointing at the boot and the another boot, see the difference? He start to notice and laughed. Everyone in shelter laughed. I was like no I am not going back for another 4.5 miles down to T.O.G to change my boot and then back again for another 4.5 miles.An hour later, another section hiker I met at T.O.G. showed up at shelter. I even looked at his boot, hopefully he had my boot but it was not him. I asked him about the wrong boot. (he knows very little sign language and fingerspelling) he said oh, that was you or that was the boot. He told me someone at T.O.G was looking for her boot.  I asked him who is that person.  He said It was a chubby lady with a dog was trying to recover her boot.  I asked him if she was mad.  He said no but she was confused why her boot was missing. We indeed, laughed for a bit.  My thinking pop up, was that same lady and dog I talked about at trail magic at Walasyi Center? I am not so sure. I also hoped that lady and dog would come and we can switch the wrong boot back, but she never show up.