Date: 2007-11-18
From: Trout Creek, (VA 620)

To: Niday Shelter
Miles today: 8.9
Weather: few clouds

Carol had breakfast ready at 8:00 am, after which Ron and I left for the trailhead at Trout Creek, which put me on the trail at 9:45 am. I couldn¢t have asked for a nicer day ¢ cool but not cold; sunny and bright. Many of the trees are mostly muted yellows and tans and burgundies with the rich green of the conifers interspersed. I was again reminded of how the mountains can resemble those rumpled, old, handmade, Irish sweaters in their soft, understated hues. I was a little concerned about how early it now gets dark (5:00 pm is dusk, and it is totally dark by 5:30 pm now), so I kept my pace up and did not even take time for lunch (Carol¢s big breakfast was still repeating on me well into the afternoon anyway!). I did take a break for a few minutes at the Audie Murphy Memorial on top of the mountain ridge where America¢s most decorated World War II hero died in a plane crash. It was quite touching. Other than a young couple enjoying lunch in the woods with their two dogs, I did not see any other people all day long. I did hear a few gunshots, however, so I know there are some hunters in the woods, which is why I have my pack, covered in one of my brother-in-laws blaze orange vest. He also gave me an orange hat, which was too warm to wear while I walk, but I put it on whenever I stop so someone does not mistake me for some young buck (ha!). At a little after 2:00 pm. I arrived at the Niday Shelter and found a good source of water nearby. Finding water was a bit of a surprise since this part of Virginia is in drought conditions, and most of the streams I crossed during my hike to get here were bone dry. After I took care of my water needs, I then gathered firewood and set up my tent inside the shelter to get maximum warmth and stay out of whatever wind we may have this evening (which, from the looks of things, probably will not be much). By the time twilight arrived, I had completed an early dinner of beef stroganoff (one of my favorites!) and got Ms. Piggy (my food storage/bear bag) high up in a tree a good 40 yards away from the shelter just in case there¢s a bear or two with an interest in leftover beef stroganoff. Besides the temperature being colder (although so far it is nothing like last night!), and there being fewer hikers on the trail (read, "none"), and the days being shorter, there are two other notable differences about hiking at this time of the year. One is that with the trees being without leaves, you can see much farther into the woods. It is not as claustrophobic as the trail can be in some places, and it reminds me of how things were in Georgia when I first started out several years ago. The second thing has to do with the leaves on the ground. Not only does it sound different to go rustling through the woods, the trail is often hard to see, and several times I had to purposely look for a white blaze to make sure I was still on the trail (once I was not!). The leaves also obscure whatever is underneath them, making it difficult to see potential hazards such hidden rocks or roots.It is now 7:00 pm, and it has been dark for nearly two hours. I am going to try to stay awake until at least 8:00 pm, although given the day¢s activity and my relative lack of fitness; it feels like it is already past midnight. I am using my bigger, Gregory Palisades pack that I started out with at Springer because, although heavier, it has more space for winter clothes and an extra sleeping bag liner (the one I tried to use as a summer bag and nearly froze to death a couple of years ago, which is the same one my friend Fern described as a ¢cheap hotel bath towel¢). Anyway, it should be great as a liner in case things really get cold tonight. I have a very small, controlled fire going in the fire pit, which is nice. It is both warming and mesmerizing (Tom dubbed campfires as being ¢Ranger TV,¢ which could just as well be ¢Hiker¢s TV¢ here on the trail). I find myself writing a few words and then staring at the flames and the embers before returning to my writing. It is incredibly quiet in the woods now, and I am very much alone. I remember when I started this journey and how frightened I was the first few times I was this alone in the woods. Although it is not without its moments, being here is certainly ¢okay¢ with me, and I do not feel the least bit threatened. Tomorrow will come, and more than likely I will still be here to see it and hopefully enjoy its fullness. As I walked along the trail today, and as I sit under the half-moon in front of my fire, I find myself carrying on a number of conversations with God. I have a lot of questions these days (as I have seemed to have had most all of my days), but I do not seem to be closer to knowing the answers. Am I doing with my life what I am supposed to be doing with it? Is this it, or is there more? Something¢s are going quite well for me these days while others aren't. I know that acceptance is the key to finding any degree of happiness when dealing with things that I cannot change, but I still do not like them. I keep wondering if there isn't more I can do or should be doing? Its questions like these I pose to the Great Mystery which is part of the reason I find the Trail so appealing and refreshing -- it gives me time to talk and listen to my Higher Power. I just wish He/She would speak louder, because it's hard to hear the answer amongst all the other conversations (past and future) that seem to be going on in my head most of the time, too. Oh well. It is getting on to 8:00 pm and time to bank the coals and head to my tent in the shelter for a good night¢s sleep (I hope). Tomorrow I can suit up and show up for another day on the Appalachian Trail and maybe find some answers or at least some clues and possibly some additional "tincture of acceptance". Maybe I will even find a moment or two of grace. I look forward to finding whatever I find.