Date: 2004-07-14
From: Eagle's Nest Shelter

To: William Penn Shelter
Miles today: 19.2
Weather: light intensity shower rain

I write to you atop a shelter packed with about 16-hikers. Jester and I are catching up on old times. Gordy, Booboo, Arms, Eric, Mama¢s Boy and numerous others are here. Gordy is strumming on her guitar and I¢m happy to be in a dry, warm place. Today was rocky and wet, constantly sapping my energy, but enjoyable nonetheless.We awoke just before 8:00 am. The other hikers, with the exception of Ishmael had already departed. Gordy and I began singing, ¢Lovin¢ in My Baby¢s Eyes¢ and ¢Angel from Montgomery.¢ The harmonies simply clicked and I was delighted to begin the day in song. By 9:00 am the mist had started. The first 4.5 miles passed quickly as we played, ¢The Song Game: Part 2.¢ Gordy or I would name a word, and then we would try to think of every song we knew containing that word. The mist was pleasant and the day cool and perfect. That would change!Slowly, the mist turned to a massive downpour. The nice trail slowly turned into a stream. We laughed and waded through that stream. We crossed ¢slickery¢ rocks followed by more stream hiking. Some people would get down. I¢m generally upbeat and Gordy is free and airy. As the rain intensified, so did my rush. Gordy and I were both in our own little worlds, occasionally interrupting the trance with fits of laugher. Smiling and soaked, 10-miles in, we hit a campsite.Yesterday, I was afraid of the ¢shart.¢ Disgusting as it is, today I was thrilled to bury a solid poop. WOOHOO! We ate food, hiked off again into the rain, crossed a rushing creek and found a treat on the other side-Baked Beans! I packed out the beans for the next shelter. We passed Dingle, Skirt, Harry and Sunshine and talked to each of them. There were more than a few confused looks as to why we were hiking Southbound, and it was wonderful to catch up with all of them. We kept hiking through wetness and slipped on the rocks. We talked about Gordy¢s life as a ski lift operator and how I nearly killed myself going down a Black Diamond on only my second time skiing. Through fun, rain and rocks we hit the famed 501 Shelter.501 Shelter is basically a hostel with no caretaker. As we stepped in, tiredness overwhelmed me. As I cooked, I began to get dizzy. Gordy and I finished our gift baked beans (shelter should be fun tonight!) and I told her to go ahead and hike on ~ I needed a nap. I think I passed out less than one minute later. It was 6:00 pm when I woke up and a hiker name, Mike, was there. Apparently, the 501 Shelter can receive pizza orders, but I had no money and neither of us had a phone. Sad to leave, but rested, I packed my gear to head out for the last 4-miles of the day. There may be no worse feeling than pulling on wet shorts, wet shirt, wet socks and wet shoes. (Sploosh!). I headed out and the sky opened up again, pouring rain.I just laughed in the soaking downpour, but soon it stopped. Minus the occasional rock, my last 4-miles were easy. I looked out over a beautiful mist-enshrouded valley and I just smiled. As I walked, I meditated and prayed. I was so lost in though-it was great. When I reached the shelter I was ready to continue on for another 8-miles but Gordy wasn¢t about it. I will do 20+ tomorrow. Now I¢m relaxing and jamming out. We just sang, ¢I Know You Rider,¢ by the Dead, and we sang ¢Amazing Grace¢ to the tune of ¢The House of the Rising Sun.¢ We¢re closing with, ¢You are My Sunshine.¢ I¢ll close this entry with a quick rhyme:We hiked as far as we could getOver massive rocks and crazy wetNow we¢re chilling, singing songAnd I really feel I belongSo I¢ll enjoy it where we areAs Gordy strums on her guitarUntil no one else makes a peepAnd I drop off now into sleep Goodnight, Beatbox ttt