Date: 2010-04-14
From: Wesser Bald Shelter

To: Nantahala Outdoor Center
Miles today: 5.7
Weather: clear sky

Got up at 7:15 hiking to the NOC today then not sure if staying there at the hostel or pushing on. Will decide later. 1:10pm Taking a break at the Rufus Morgan Shelter and getting some water, ran out a mile or so ago. The NOC is only .8mi but the rest is well needed. When you read the elevations from the companion it makes it seem like a steady downward journey but it runs more like a heart rate monitor on an angle, with lots of ups and downs. There's no sign for the shelter here which is tucked around the corner so if you don't see the blue blaze it is easy to miss. The sound of the stram is mezmorizing. Zeus has come down to get some water and we've chatted a bit, turns out he is from Oxford MA, and has family graduating from U-RI this year; the distances traveled to meet those already close. Sandals stopped by the stream as well and I met another pair of hikers; Breathless and Convinced, they both had Kelty packs. I really like kelty packs and it reminded be of the canvas one my brother had givven me in the past. Got my bones moving again at 2:30. 3:15pm At the general store across from the NOC outfitters, there is a sign on the door that says the hostel is full for the night, most everything is full in this area, oh crumbs. Went inside got a chocolate milk and a cream soda, so good! Met up with Krusty again. He recomended going to the Rivers End Restaurant across the way for the Mountsin Burger, man is it tempting. We'll see after I go pick up the maildrop from the outfitters. It would be nice to come back here and try some rafting. Well that was really cool. A teenage girl came up and asked if she could take my picture as a hiker. She is part of a travelling highschool. They travel all over the world. Right now they are doing a photography assignment where they have to go out and meet and photograph thru-hikers. Random incident; as I'm sitting here on the bench enjoying my soda a man came down to use the restroom. When he opened the women's room door I said "Excuse me, that is the ladies room" He paused then opened the door a bit wider and looked around it. "That is the womens room" I said again. He paused again then opened the door and went in anyway. Crazy. Picked up the maildrop, packed it and was heading across the bridge when Chainsaw called to me from the patio at The Rivers End. I joined him and ordered the Mountain Burger. I asked the waitress if it was possible to get a burger that was less than a pound of beef but she said, unfortunately, no. The cooks part the burgers out in the morning. Well, it didn't matter because when the burger came I ate the whole thing and all of the fries! Chainsaw invited Puma and Abby over for a drink to celebrate Abby's birthday and the four of us shot the breeze until 8pm. I had meant to be back on the trail sooner but am actually glad to have been sitting in the restaurant when a passing but soaking rain shower went through. Twilight time and I'm trucking up the mountain. At about a mile in there was a small but flat campsite so I decided to stay there. A mist had rolled in but it was warm. I had lost the daylight and still needed to hang the food bag. Silhouetted against the early evening sky was a good branch. I found a rock, tied it and threw the line over the branch first shot too bad the rock wasn't heavy enough to come down within reach with the line. In Franklin I had picked up a headlamp to use but lost it the very next night. I felt around for a heavier stone, once set again I threw the line again, again it went over first shot. Extremely happy to have set up camp in the darkness I tucked in for the night. A couple of hours later voices and headlamps were bouncing around the tent. It turnded out to be Chainsaw, Puma and Abby. Puma and Abby do a lot of night hiking and they talked Chainsaw into going with them. Chainsaw set up camp but Abby and Puma decided to hike on. Fell back asleep to a dog barking in the distance.