Date: 2004-07-06
From: Near Loft Mountain Campground

To: Oppressive Heat
Miles today: 14.0

A good start to the day. The cut on the sole of my foot looked okay and I slept well.During the morning, I backtracked a short ways on the Appalachian Trail in order to pay a second visit to the public campground where I had some tasks to perform.The trail circumvents much of the campground, but it is largely hidden from the view of the campers. But at one spot, the passing hikers and campground occupants are visible to each other. The campers relax on lawn chairs beside their RV's and tent trailers. They cook hot dogs, steaks, or whatever suits their fancy. Down slope on the trail, occasional long distance hikers trudge by, wet with perspiration and hunched forward. I wandered into a washroom in the campground and cleaned my face and hands. I placed my head under a sink, turned on the water, and soaked my scalp and face. I took some liquid hand wash from a dispenser and used it as a shampoo. An electric air dryer for hands did the job with my head.I stopped by the campsite where some of my hiker friends had stayed last night. They were still there, sitting around the picnic table, lying on the ground, and basically hanging out in a state of lethargy. I visited the camp store to buy some fresh food and met up with Inchworm. We chatted briefly and I told her I would see her later on the trail. At a ranger station I made some phone calls.When I finally hit the trail, the sun was high in the sky and the weather was hot and humid, possibly the most oppressive temperatures I have endured on this journey.The heat slowed me down, especially during the ascents. While hiking, I drank a voluminous amount of water, often spiking it with a sports drink mix. Soon, I was getting low on water. During a rest stop, I took off my socks and aired out my feet. In spite of my dwindling supply of water, I poured some on to my sweaty feet, especially over that cut on my sole.During the mid afternoon, a thunderstorm moved in. This time, I got lucky and avoided a soaking by ducking into a ranger station. I used a water spigot at the station to replenish my water supply.Usually, the weather cools and the humidity drops following a thunderstorm. Today, the humidity eased briefly and then it spiked. I hiked up the last two mountains of the day in sweltering conditions. At a viewpoint, I cooked my supper. Swedish arrived with his brother whose trail name is Ottie. Swedish's clothes were soaked. I asked him if they had been caught in the open during the thunderstorm. He replied that his clothes were wet not from the storm but from sweat.The final ascent of the evening took me, Swedish and his brother up the slope of Hightop Mountain. The temperatures remained hot and a veil of humidity permeated the air. Our clothes and our skin became saturated with sweat. The bandana which I use to wipe my face was wet in a slick kind of way and smelled like ammonia. Under normal circumstances, I would abhor the notion of holding it. During this ascent, I frequently pressed it against my perspiring face.We reached Hightop Hut¢a shelter¢late in the evening. I erected my hammock and hiked a short ways down a spur trail to a steam. There, I gave my raunchy body a sponge bath. Ah! That was refreshing.I put on my sleeping clothes and hung on a line my raunchy hiking garb. Within minutes, large numbers of moths had landed on these clothes. I think they were attracted by the salt from my sweat.After dark, a large animal was moving about near my hammock. I stepped outside the hammock and aimed my headlamp toward it. Off in the trees, a pair of glowing yellow eyes peered at me. The eyes moved up and down and side to side. The animal was a deer.The notion that I must hike for several weeks in sweltering weather like this is a sobering one.