Date: 2005-03-15
From: Woodly Gap (GA Route 60)

To: Neels Gap
Miles today: 10.6
Weather: light rain

DAY 4It was a damp morning, but at least there was no rain, when Josh dropped me off at Woody Gap. Shortly after I left Woody Gap, I caught up with Dorothy and Toto. They were obviously having a difficult time. They were getting their gear reorganized when I passed them. But they are persevering. There is a lesson for me as well.The sun came out as I started the steep climb up Blood Mountain. It was turning out to be a nice day. I thought about how difficult the climb would have been with a pack on. The thought crossed my mind that I was cheating by slack packing. Coming down from Blood Mountain was difficult as the Trail blazes were not clear. However, I got down to Neels Gap in a little over four hours from the start of my hike at Woody Gap.At the Neels Gap outfitter I picked up a mail drop I had sent several weeks before. The outfitter charges a dollar for holding mail drops, which I think is entirely reasonable. The mail drop has more stuff than I need right now and is only going to add unnecessary weight. I called Josh Saint, but had to leave a message on his cell phone. I hoped he would get the message and not leave me stranded at Neels Gap. I walked through the Walasi-Yi hostel and found it rather unpleasant. I am happy to be spending another night at Hiker Hostel. I even got a bed tonight.While I was waiting for Josh to pick me up at Neels Gap, I saw Rocky and Baby Steps passing through. They are not staying at Neels Gap and are pushing on to a campsite a few miles up the Trail. I noticed that Rocky has new pack that she must have bought from the outfitter at Neels Gap. Josh eventually picked me up and we headed back to Hiker Hostel. He also picked up two other hikers at Neels Gap: ¢Skylark¢ and her partner ¢Nu-B¢. When I got back to the hostel, I met ¢Double Healer¢. He is about ten years younger than me, but like me, he is a Vietnam veteran. He is hard of hearing , so it was hard to communicate with him at first. He was a Navy Corpsman in Vietnam and as such he is a person of respect for a Marine veteran like me. Most Marines have an inherent dislike for sailors. We have a variety of derogatory names for sailors. However, to Marines a Corpman is a demi-god. Double Healer thru hiked several years ago. This time he is going to hit the highlights of the Trail. As he put it, he was going to ¢smell the roses this time¢, rather than chase the ¢trophy¢.Tonight I¢m cooking my dinner at the hostel rather than go to a restaurant with other hikers. At least I will be eating up some of the weight I will otherwise be carrying. And I¢ll save a few dollars, not that saving money is a big issue for me on this adventure. I have set aside $5000 for my hike, and I will not hesitate to spend a few extra dollars to be a bit more comfortable. Tonight, I am sharing a bunk room with the McCarty family. They are rather interesting as they are husband, wife, and their ten year old son. (They will later be known as ¢Troll¢, ¢Anchor¢ and ¢Oblivious¢.) Mrs. McCarty recently retired from the Navy after twenty years of service. They will be starting the Trail tomorrow. -Swamp Fox