Date: 2010-05-26
From: Glasgow, VA

To: Brown Mountain Creek Shelter
Miles today: 20.0
Weather: broken clouds

Woke up this morning, the foot was stiff and sore, but no worse off than before so I decided today was as good as any to head back on the trail.There was a big group of us ready to hit the trail again and Muddy Waters (who had been doing trail magic the night before at the last shelter) arrived just in time to offer us a ride back up to the mountain.First things first though, when we first came through the weather was rainy and it was rather cool. Now that the sun was out and the mercury up, we were all ready to jump off the James River foot bridge into the cool water below. I would say that jumping 40+ feet isn't very difficult, but I admit climbing to the very top railing was rather scary. Scary as it was.. I did it twice Everyone else with me jumped from the top as well, most of them several times. It was past two before I decided I had better get on the trail and left the guys behind.Just about a mile up the trail I stopped for lunch and not a mile later I stopped at the shelter for a dose of caffeine and a quick break (hard work it was taking yesterday off!). The first shelter out of Glasgow was in a beautiful location and I was tempted to stay, but these little black biting buggers were all over me and my legs were still recovering from the last few episodes of biting fly infestations, so I hiked on.The day started out (as most do from town), with a climb. The day was hot, but I hiked rather slow and my refreshing dip in the river earlier had made the climb much more bearable. It was quite satisfying to stand on a rock outcrop near the top and look at the river below knowing I hiked up here from there. Although it's always satisfying to reach the top of the summit, today's summit held a sad story for little Ottie Cline Powell whos body was found after wandering seven miles from a schoolhouse in the late 19th century. The memorial that stands near the summit is the exact location his body was found on that fateful April day.Despite the story of Ottie, I was still happy to be at the top because it meant I got to go back down for a while, which is always (almost) a good thing. I arrived at the Punchbowl shelter in time for dinner, the location was beautiful and right next to a pond. I heard at night the frogs will lull you to sleep (or keep you up if you're that kind of person). I felt pretty good at this point and the thought of night hiking had been lingering in my head for a while so I ate dinner, fed Kelly, and as the sun set (near nine?) we headed out. Despite a thin layer of clouds, the near full moon allowed me to hike for nearly an hour until I was forced to turn on my headlamp. I enjoyed the glow of the moonlight on the leaves of the trees and saw my first fire fly, ever! It was very exciting but I was dissapointed I didn't see any more. I've also discovered that certain spiders are reflective and without good sight I find the rest of my senses become more keen to everything around me. I saw a deer about halfway to the next shelter (or at least its glowing eyes), but it wasn't long before I scared it off and it bounded in the opposite direction.In some ways I wish I had done this hike during the day. I could hear plenty of creeks and had an idea that the terrain was beautiful, but all I could see was the direct trail ahead of me. It wasn't until 12:30 in the morning did I finally arrive at the shelter where I proceeded to set up my tent and never had I been so happy to go to bed. The night hiking experience was amazing, and the first real night hike I have done since I began my journey. It does seem the miles go a bit slower at night, possibly because you don't have the terrain to entertain you. Maybe next time I won't leave ten miles to do in the dark.