Date: 2009-09-08
From: White House Landing

To: Cooper Brook Falls Leanto
Miles today: 13.7

I slept another 8 hours but a bit more broken up into short blocks. Still, it was 8 hours. I very much enjoyed the beauty and hospitality of this place. Some hikers think this is too costly but I thought prices were quite reasonable, especially considering the remoteness of the location and the difficulty of getting supplies in here. Linda and Bill were very kind to me and I appreciated it. Breakfast was at 8 which concerned me as it means a very late start. Hopefully I will move quickly on the trail as I have to at least make JoMary Road to get my food drop and I would like to go a couple miles more. Linda saw Baxter (the moose) across the end of the lake this morning and he appears to have a girlfriend. She had binoculars, which helped. I was in the first of 2 boats back to the trail. I said goodby to Memere, Grey Feather and Amoeba and was back on the AT by 9. It was a late start but I felt good. The day was beautiful; I had energy and I was not coughing! I did blow out some huge globs of gunk from my nose but, all in all, I am feeling quite a lot better. NOBOs Wiz Kid and Fidget passed me on the trail in AM. I saw Don't Panic getting water at the spring near Potaywadjo Spring shelter. Later, Fiddle also passed. I had my lunch at a beautiful little pocket sandy beach on JoMary Lake. I had been passing all these lovely lakes but not put a toe in the water. I decided that even if I had a late start, I should enjoy the beach. Since my knee had the staph infection I cannot really swim as kicking hurts and the knee feels "loose". I surely didn't want to get in trouble in the wilderness so I contented myself with wadding in my underwear and splashing water on myself. It was lovely! I had another one of those marvelous feelings of being all alone in a beautiful spot in the wilderness on a perfect day, wading on my private beach as if I owned all this glorious country. Amazing! And how lucky And blessed I am to be here doing this. Back on the trail in the afternoon I saw Leon & Halifax. (Halifax is a dog.) At Antler's Campsite where I stopped to get water I met Walker, Texas Ranger, and Ugly Stick. I gave them the last 2 pieces of pizza as I don't want to carry extra food and I would be picking up a food drop at Jo Mary Road. They told me my food drop person was there and waiting for me and worried about me. That seemed odd. She had told me where she was leaving the drop with instructions on how to find it. She was not supposed to meet me at this drop. Later on, down the trail, Carpenter, Double Zip, and Kanaki passed me and told me the same thing. I had been hiking very well all day but I tried to hike faster to see what that was all about. From what they said I think she got the dates mixed up and was expecting me yesterday. As fast as I could go, I could not get there before 4:30 and she was not there but my food was, just where she said it would be. I packed up the food drop and charged up the trail. Getting to Cooper Brook Falls would be a nearly 14 mile day - not bad for an old lady, especially since I could not start until 9. I made it in to the shelter just before 7 and darkness. It was a good day's hike, with almost no coughing. At the shelter I met Nancy, a SOBO section hiker several years younger than me. She and her husband were doing the 100 mile wilderness but her husband got really bad blisters and went out with my food drop person, Kathy Preble. She will only go as far as Gulf Hagas but it was nice for me to have company at the shelter. Cooper Brook is quite lovely, with cascading waterfalls within view of the shelter, or at least from the spot to get water. It was really nice to be able to hike well today. The trail had more smooth and well graded areas today which certainly helped. But it was nice to actually feel like I was hiking well. It is good to be here and life is good.