Date: 2021-05-08
From: Partnership Shelter

To: Lindamood School
Miles today: 8.6

Holy cow. Well, it was time for reality to step up and remind me that the honeymoon phase is ending, and my starry-eyed optimism was naive, and that hiking is hard. The biggest mistake I've made so far is that I'm still hiking in my Clark's sandals. I decided to wear my regular clothes for these first few, shorter days and my sandals have been fine, until they weren't, which was today. They are hiking sandals, but apparently the term "hiking sandal" must be taken very loosely, and doesn't apply to eight mile treks over mountains. Ouch, my feet hurt!I knew today was going to be tough. My longest distance yet, with one short but very steep climb, and one much longer, higher climb up Glade Mountain, followed by a very steep downhill. Altogether, a long day with no easy sections. So I was nervous about it beforehand, and it lived up to expectations. Hiking guru Warren Doyle said "You can't walk too slowly going uphill." I took this maxim to heart and crept very slowly up the steep uphill sections, heart pounding and lungs gasping. Then, believe it or not, I was even slower going downhill. It is so easy to picture turning an ankle, or even worse, falling down, (and then falling, and falling, and falling, all the way down the mountain.) Some sections are so steep! I've been watching Quicksand's hiking videos, and he is such a good natural walker, he skims along seemingly effortlessly across the ground. I don't skim. I creep on the uphills, and downhills, and rocky sections, and any part with mud or big roots. That's approximately 95% of the trail. On the other 5% I plod. So there is creeping and plodding, with some stumbling thrown in here and there just to change things up, but there is definitely no skimming in my hiking game. I rely heavily on my hiking poles.So there I went, sweating heavily and praying and singing and realizing I was sunburned on the back of my neck because the trees aren't fully leafed out like they are at home. But I kept going, one foot after the other. It's just walking. So I kept walking.A mile and a half from the end point was a shelter and I stopped to get off my feet and take a drink. There were two women there who had both started at Partnership Shelter, as I had, and they were both stopped for the night because "that section was hard!" and they were done. I still had some distance left to walk and knew I could do it, so maybe I'm not totally lame. They were nice ladies and I enjoyed my visit with them, but eventually I had to get up and go. My endpoint for the day was at Lindamood School, an old one-room schoolhouse from 1894, used up until 1939. I knew I was going to be late to meet St. Mike because I had been so incredibly slow hiking over the mountain. By this time my feet were hurting and I was realizing that the sandals were a mistake. Still...you just keep walking. A tenth of mile from the school I met Mike walking toward me! He had been waiting and finally decided to come look for me on the trail. So back to the motel on sore, tender feet, with screaming calf and thigh muscles, and a sunburned neck. It could be worse--my back is fine! And tomorrow's a short day, and I will be wearing my trusty Oboz hiking shoes!On an unrelated note, I've noticed a disturbing fashion trend among the thruhikers, both male and female--super short shorts. And while they do all have long, lean, muscular legs...it's disconcerting. Takes me back to 1970s era basketball.I live to hike another day!