Date: 2006-05-06
From: Dennis Cove (Kincora Hostel)

To: Vandeventer Shelter
Miles today: 17.5
Weather: broken clouds

Due to taking a zero day yesterday at Kincora we got up pretty early to pack for the trail. To help out the process of getting ready we gladly took advantage of the kitchen to make a hot breakfast with coffee. After saying a few good byes Shasta, H-Bomb, Roxy, and I hit the trail around 8:00 am. From the hostel down to the trail I kept Roxy on her leash but shortly after entering the wood and getting on the trail I removed it and she did extremely well. She stayed right behind me and didn¢t leave the trail. This section of trail is pretty but very rocky and semi-difficult for hiking. Although it was rocky and which made for rough hiking Bob and many other volunteers have spent countless hours of service moving rocks to make stairs on the trail. This effort made huge improvements for the path. It was really impressive to see what can be done with a few old rocks and a lot of hard word. The stairs led down to Laurel Falls where we posed for a quick picture before wandering through the ¢canyon¢. It really wasn¢t a canyon but felt like it as we hopped from creek bank to creek bank. Another really impressive project for this section of trail were all the bridges that have been built to help cross the streams in Laurel Fork Gorge. Although the bridges were nothing as complex as the Golden Gate Bridge they were very nice pressure treated walkways with handrails elevated high enough to combat heavy floods. Really the most impressive thing was how did they get all that material into a gorge where no roads exist and no power is available? Just on the other side of the gorge while climbing up too Pond Flats we ran into Model-T and Ranger Dawg. They had decided to do a day hike from Watauga Lake back to Kincora to spend the night at Bob¢s again. We stopped and chatted with them for a while and continued on toward Watauga. Around noon we emerged from the wood at the Watauga Lake Recreational Area. By this time the River Weasel caught back up and informed us that his parents were planning to meet him in the picnic area and were welcome to join. Along the way to the picnic area he talked some guy on a party barge out of a cold beer or two for the wait. We found a good location so we dropped our packs and kicked our shoes off for a while. This area was just beside the lake so we had a great view of the water. Since it was a little too chilly to swim we all gathered around in the sun and kicked back. Shortly after this Weasel¢s mom and dad arrived and began to dig out some trail magic from the car. After hanging out for a while his parents offered to run us into town for some Bar-B-Q. I volunteered to hang around the lake to watch over our gear and to watch Roxy. This also gave me a good chance to take a nap by the water. Upon returning they brought me back a huge Bar-B-Q plate, which was gone in no time. By the time we finished eating it was nearly 5:00pm so we rushed out for the trail. It wondered around the backside of the lake and started to ascend up to Vandeventer Shelter where we planed to stay for the night. Just before starting up the mountain we crossed a few good-ol-boys on another party barge. These guys were living it up and having a good time. They were being really loud and we could hear them talking long before we passed the slue that they were in. Without going into too many details one made note of how he had a ¢good time with some chick a few nights ago¢ and another about how ¢messed up¢ he had gotten at a party recently. Not long after hearing these stories they spotted us hiking. One yelled out, ¢Where ya hikin to?¢ Shasta spoke up and said, ¢Maine¢. Another spoke up and said, ¢Where¢s that?¢ As she began to tell the story of the hike one of the guys said ¢Well no S*#*¢. They were utterly amazed at this point and had many questions especially for Shasta and H-Bomb since they were females and weren¢t from that area. Out of the blue one of the guys asked, ¢You guys smoke pot or drink beer?¢ We told them thanks for the offer but we would have to pass today because we still had a long way to go. Not long after our really intelligent conversation with the boys we crossed Watauga Lake Dam and started the climb. The next couple of miles were really a challenge, but the challenge was rewarded by good views of the lake from the ridge above. When we reached the shelter it was starting to get dark and luck us the shelter was empty. We found a note that Jangles left behind stating that they stayed there the night before and were looking forward to seeing us soon. Hopefully it would be in Damascus. We settled in for the night and gathered on the rocks behind the shelter for dinner. It was a nice place but best of all had a good view below. While sitting out on the rocks a little mouse started nibbling on my fingers in an attempt to get something to eat. It wasn¢t hard enough to break the skin but it sure got my attention. We finished eating and settled into our sleeping bags for the night. I decided to stay in the shelter tonight and this will only be my second time since starting the trail that I have stayed in a shelter on the trail. In the middle if the night I was glad that I had chosen to stay in the shelter because a really bad storm him and flooded. Along with the rain came much cooler temperatures and by daybreak it was down right cold, foggy, and really wet. Tonight at Vandeventer Shelter: H-Bomb, Shasta, Roxy, and I