Date: 2013-05-08
From: See you on the other side Camp

To: Cherry Gap Shelter
Miles today: 9.0
Weather: light rain

After some pretty hard rain during the night we packed up our belongings and a lot of our stuff was just soaking wet. This is the worst part of hiking the AT. We were lucky however that we did not get wet ourselves because we were dry in our tents or under the tarp. We got on the trail and after a few miles down in the gap, we saw some familiar faces. The first person I saw was Nomad. She came up and gave me a big hug and nearby was Mountain Man. Also in the gap was The Family, which consists of Borders (the dad), Doobie (the mom), and their 9 year old girl, Pink Panther.We hiked up some huge hills, so the hike was pretty difficult. We crossed a road at a camp area where there was a stream for water and saw a truck parked. There were two older gentlemen there talking to a hiker we'd just met named Chuckles. They said they were hunting for Ramps, which are onion like plants that grow wild in the area. They offered one to me as I was about to continue my climb. As someone who is not a fan of raw onions, I was pleasantly surprised by the taste. They were actually quite tasty. They told me they used them for potatoes and other dishes where you might otherwise use onions. While we were having lunch there I saw some trash that someone left and placed it on my backpack to pack it out. I try to do what I can to help clean up the trail when uncaring people trash the trail. If everyone did this it would really help. The hikers creed is to pack out your trash and "leave no trace". Forgetting that I just put the trash in my pack, complete with broken glass from a bottle, I cut my finger. It wasn't bad, but it did bleed a lot. I treated it with antibiotic ointment and a bandaid and moved on. It's important to keep cuts clean on the trail to prevent infections. We get pretty dirty on the trail and don't have facilities to clean up like we can when home.We continued our hike with Chuckles and when we got to the top of a large mountain, came upon a spruce forest which was beautiful. The ground and trees were covered with green moss or something that enhanced the beauty. When we arrived at Cherry Gap Shelter we saw Strider who we already knew, and we met a German called "Bird", bit he had trouble saying it so it came out as "Burt". We also caught up with Indie who was waiting for us when we arrived. I'm not crazy about sleeping in shelters because people snore, floors are less comfortable than the ground, there is no privacy, and worst of all, there are mice crawling all around at night. My worst fears were all realized that night. I could hardly sleep due to the noises of snoring AND farting, the shelter was full, and I heard mice getting into my backpack which was hanging on the wall beside me. It seemed like every time I would almost be asleep, I heard a rustling sound near my backpack. I turned on my light to see it and sure enough, the little bastard was staring his beady eyes back at me. I grabbed a broom laying near me and hit the backpack running him off. This went on for most of the night, so I didn't get much sleep that night. The thing I feared most was a mouse chewing through my pack or food bag. These items are expensive so I didn't want them ruined. I'd heard plenty of stories about mice encounters, but this was my first. It's bad, but still probably better than pitching and picking up a tent in the pouring rain. One measure taken to prevent mice from getting in food bags is to hang a string with an upside down can between the ceiling and food bag. Mice can climb down a string, but can't get around the can. When they get to the top of the can facing downward there is nothing to grab onto. Otherwise the mice just follow the cable to the food bags and chew through them. This same principle applies to the bear cables. There are metal spacers placed between the tree and cable holding the food bags. Mice are wildlife I don't care to see on the trail.