Date: 2005-05-22
From: Troutdale Baptist Church Hostel

To: Partnership Shelter
Miles today: 14.5
Weather: clear sky

The Troutdale Baptist Church takes in hikers and bikers for a donation. There I was able to take a shower, wash my clothes and then I spent a warm comfortable dry night (no bed but I had a roof over my head, it looked like rain again but it didn't do anything). I even got to get a phone call through to my wife Brenda to tell her I missed her and all was OK. This morning as I was about to leave and as I was putting in my donation into the donation box, someone there started some fresh automatic drip coffee. I just had to stay a little longer. The people there at this time, Colorado, Marshmallow and Story (hikers) plus Zapman and Sparky (bikers). The next thing I know the minister's wife came in with a stack of pancakes a foot high and again, I just had to stay a little longer still.    I walked down the road to the Camp Store (closed on Sunday) to hitch a ride and was picked up within minutes. A local couple on their way to church loaded my stuff in their SUV and then dropped me off at the trail head. As I got out of the vehicle Spoonman was standing there (too cool). "SPOONMAN", I yelled, he was grinning from ear to ear. Lizard walked up as we were talking and then out of nowhere, Tom from the Mount Rogers Outfitters, pulled in to the parking lot. Tom was there dropping off some slack packers that were going to hike South back to Damascus. He asked me how my gear was working out and I said all was fine except for a pinch I felt on the top of my Montrose Trekking shoes (two eye holes down). He recommended skip lacing over the pinch area and I retied my shoe accordingly (the things you learn if you keep your ears open). I thanked him again for the "Good Sale" and he wished us all luck as we headed North again.    Before we left Lizard said that she hasn't seen any Lady Slipper flowers as of yet. I seen and photographed a few in the Smokies and told her to keep her eyes open because you never know. A few miles up the trail I found some and left a note on a tree nearby for her to find it too. Spoonman told me he was standing there and when she walked up to him he was again grinning. He told me that he told her, " Wilderness Bob left you a note, look there" She was reportedly extremely happy and took photos as well.      I also found out that Noonin, the third person who hiked with Spoonman and Lizard, was getting tired of the hike. I believed then that he was about to leave the trail. Unfortunately I do not have a photo of the three of them, I wish I did, they were all good people. I did run into them all once again but failed to photo. I finished early that day ending up and staying in the "Partnership Shelter". This was where everyone was talking about the fact that there was a shower, phone and that a local restaurant delivered, and yes they did do just that. That night I ate a Pizza. I also ran into a thru-hiker named Pirate. He thru-hiked 9 times so far and has been on the trail for 15 years. He started when he retired from the Navy and all but for a month a year, has never left. I asked him why and he said he had nothing better to do. I guess you have to walk in his hiking shoes for a while to figure that one out. I also met Skywalker (6 foot eleven inches tall, I wondered how he got his trail name, duh) and Parson (SOBO section hiker). There also was a former thru-hiker there pulling trail magic. TABA (there and back again) had a box type van and he bounced the trail with a certain group of hikers for quite some time. I saw him on and off for quite some time. He was always willing to give a ride, smile or just sit and talk (he was a nice person). I remember he laughed at my stupid jokes.    That evening I heard for the first time on the trail, a Whippoorwill (a nocturnal song bird). I haven't heard one since I was around 14 years old. It brought back memories of my youth. Spoonman and Lizard were there at the shelter and just around dark, as Spoonman predicted, Noonin came in for the night.