Date: 2006-09-18
From: Damascus, Virginia 

To: Hampton, Tennessee
Miles today: 41.3

Sorry everyone for the long absence of fresh journal entries, but I will try and rectify that in the days to come. Since it is possible I won't be able to type it all up in a few days I will start at the end and work backwards to Blacksburg, Virginia so that you have the most recent data. We got into Damascus, Virginia on the 16th of September. The weather was beautiful and we looked forward to a good day in supposedly the "Friendliest Town on the Trail." I got a steaming cup of coffee at the local gas station and had a good time eavesdropping on an amusing conversation between an indian gentleman and two larger southern women with thick accents. Strange contrast of cultures. Moving on I found the post office and opened up the bounce box by the local library. While there I recharged camera batteries and took care of the little things. Since we now have approximately 1 month left on the trail I mailed the bounce box home. Jon got many fine packages from his family, and I know that he and I have appreciated their contents very much. Now it was 11 o'clock the post office was closed and we were free to relax. Eating at a local italian restaurant was a highlight of town and we also got parfaits at the Dairy King. Yes, I said Dairy King. After that we headed down to the end of town and The General hung out in the town park while I walked to get groceries. The hike out of town was a larger hill than we expected, but once on top it was smooth sailing for the next few days. That evening we hiked ten miles, entered Tennessee, left Virginia(535 miles), and found a beautiful camping spot in a grassy clearing. That evening we feasted on our newly requisitioned food, drank some bourbon The Generals father sent us, and read aloud from a book of 100 best loved poems. The weather was spectacular and we had a wonderful evening. The next day we walked along forested ridges and I experienced Tennessee for the first time. Met two local hunters of the redneck variety, but they seemed to be fine fellows. In the late morning i got behind an older dayhiker and since he never offered to let me pass I trailed him by a few feet for the last 2 miles to lunch. Moved at a pretty good clip for a late 60's retiree. Certainly put me to shame. Lunch lasted longer than it should have due to a wandering spots of comfortable sunlight in a grassy field. We filled water at a beautiful piped spring and pushed on at a good clip. We had planned on doing 22.7 miles that day, but for once the hours in the day proved to short and we stopped by a spring having gone 19 miles. Before reaching that spot however I talked with a 2004 thru-hiker who informed me of good tentsites and a bear sighting from earlier that day. As a result we decided to hang our food out of harms way. This morning of september 18 we awoke early with anticipation of a few days off visiting my friend/california climbing partner Josh "Bivy" Youngman. The first four miles went quickly to the Vandervelter shelter. The shelter is perched next to a beautiful vista the gave a glimpse of distant mountains beyond a wide valley filled with morning fog. As we descended the large ridge we caught our first glimpse of the Watauga Dam and were soon walking across the dam that created that body of water. On the other side of the dam we found a beautiful shade tree and stopped for a brief lunch. After eating the road quickly presented itself and we walked a hot and tense 1.8 miles to the town of Hampton, Tennessee where bivy came to pick us up by an apparently round-about route. Nonetheless, we have now arrived in Boone, North Carolina and look forward to a relaxing vacation away from hiking.