Date: 2004-06-18
From: Hog Camp Gap Campsite

To: Tye River Campsite
Miles today: 19.4
Weather: few clouds

So we¢re really back on the trail again for real, I guess, as of today. We got a relatively early start this morning but took it easy all day taking breaks by brooks and at vistas. Virginia continues to be overwhelmingly beautiful. It¢s hard to write about, especially because it feels so cliched. It¢s almost impossible to describe how beautiful almost every moment out here is. It¢s easy to take it for granted, and I do sometimes, but honestly, most days I revel in it. Today we had a couple more mountains that were mainly bald on top, where you could see vistas on both sides, surrounded by brush and wildflowers. I love walking through open fields, and I love the different wildflowers we see by the week out here. And I love the moments when the sun breaks through the trees and you have a spot of perfect light¢it feels like heaven opening.We climbed Spy Rock today and went up to the overlook, a great rock scramble and view. What was cooler, though, were what seemed like rain pools at the top, where there must have been thousands of tadpoles living. The water was thick and black with them. I don¢t know how they survive up there in the sun, or if those pools dry up, or how frogs survive up there. It must be a mile to the nearest water. We also climbed the Priest, a legendary mountain, infamous for it¢s 31 switchbacks. They¢re actually on the other side of the mountain, though, so we encountered them on the way down and the climb up wasn¢t bad at all.At the Priest Shelter we ran into a group of girls from an outdoor school. I¢m not sure if it was some sort of rehabilitation program or not, but they were the best-behaved group I¢ve encountered out here. They had a huge tarp that they all slept under to leave room in the shelter and they all cooked dinner together and were friendly and well spoken. Their teachers told us that their school was 100% outdoors. They have some classroom time, but mainly they¢re just outside. It sounded like a cool experience for any student. We also saw our first rattler at the shelter! Some of the girls found it under the shelter coiled near their backpacks. It was huge. Much bigger around than I had expected and about four feet long! They got closer than I would¢ve liked, but I snuck a peak too, and tried to get a picture.We were left then again with five miles to do before dark and after dinner. We thought we had enough time, but we ended up hitting dark the last mile or two. Very frustrating. I become less and less tolerant of hiking after dark. Frankly, I loathe it. It feels impossible to avoid some days, but almost always because of poor planning or late rising. If you¢re somewhere that you can¢t throw a tent up when it gets dark, you¢re screwed whether or not you like it. I just wish we planned our mileage better so we could get to spots with camping at better times. I may have to break down and get a watch. Evidently time does have meaning on the trail, at least if you want to get to Katahdin by October 15.When we did the math, we discovered that it only required an average of eleven-plus miles a day, so maybe we shouldn¢t worry about mileage. But the thought of hiking in Maine in October isn¢t too appealing to me either. As I discovered in the Smokies, I don¢t much like snow. So I have this three-way dilemma: either 1) start waking up early, thus giving my hike the time-pressure and urgency of a job; 2) hit Katahdin in October, and end up hiking the last month in snow; or 3) reconcile myself to hiking in the dark. I can¢t somehow seem to figure it out. When I¢m hiking after dark, those three choices tumble round and round in my head like clothes in a dryer. I know every day I hike in the snow I¢m going to hate myself for not going faster now. But I hate the idea of waking up to an alarm on my thru-hike. And I hate walking after dark. So then I¢m back where I started. To make matters worse, hiking after dark is a vicious circle itself¢if you don¢t get to sleep before twelve you wake up late the next day and you¢re left hiking after dark the next day, too. And hiking the same mile after dark takes twice as long. And camping is horrible, too¢at night you walk right by campsites that would be idyllic during the day. I don¢t know what to do. Somehow, I have to break this habit.