Date: 2008-09-15
From: Tom Floyd wayside

To: Skyland
Miles today: 34.3

The Long Version:The alarm sounded early, barely audible over the ocean-like wind that had lullubyed us the whole night through. We packed in the dark and slipped silently from camp.We ate our granola breakfast on the rocky outcrop of Possum¢s Rest while cornflower blue clouds played shadow puppets across a full moon. The stars disappeared into a sky turned pink. As we stood to leave, we startled something in the nearby blueberry bushes. It leaped over the brush and ran from us ¢ a small black bear. Hank finally had his bear. Still, the sun had not even peaked over the mountain tops. The day was ever so young as we stepped into the Shenandoahs with a bear already in our pockets and high expectations.Oh, how we adored the Shenandoahs! We raved on and on: Lovely hiking trails that were easy on the feet. Gentle climbs through pretty woods. Deer that watched us with gentle eyes as we passed.Then a crashing. A startling breaking of branches as another bear crashed down out of a tree just by Hank. It was so fast, so strong, so incredible that Hank declared it to be one of the most amazing animal experiences on the AT.Not an hour later, a cub passes in front of us on the trail. It paused to look at us. Shining eyes and fuzzy ears. It didn¢t look real ¢ like someone¢s Teddy come to life. Perfect moments such as this pass on and so did the bear, which trotted off into the thicket.We walked under old twisted oaks and through the pale yellow of aging ferns. At an overlook to the valley and to the fading blue layers of the mountains beyond I whispered to Hank that I loved the Shenandoahs. Black-throated blue warblers and ravens called us onward.We hiked hard to a wayside where we picked up a light lunch of two barbeque sandwiches¢¦and fries, a bag of cheetos, a klondike bar, a large tea, four pecan twirls, a pepsi, and a grilled cheese sandwich.Back in the woods, we ran down the grassy hills. The trees were tall and the air moved freely through them, cooling us as we ran. We ran for fun and we laughed as we went.The terrain flattened. The age of the trees hinted that it was years ago a farm. We found an apple from an old tree ¢ a perfect balance of sweet and sour.At an overlook to the valley, of the river sparkling below, and of the mountains rolling on and on into the distance, I yelled to the world that I loved the Shenandoahs. Pilated woodpeckers and blue jays called us onward.Daylight was fading when we spooked the three turkeys. They bobbed and ran down the trail. The view from every overlook begged us to sit and stay forever. Sit and stay to watch God in action as he sang color into the sky.We pressed forward. The ground cushioned our feet. Just before dark, we arrived at the lodge. A doe and her young spotted fawn grazed at the entrance. The shy fawn hid behind his mother as we passed.We did not check in immediately, but climbed a rock to watch the sky finale into the most unbelievable pink. The stars reappeared into a sky turned black. The temperatures dropped, the wind returned, and we retreated into hot showers.At white linen table clothes with cloth napkins, we toasted to our longest hike ¢ I with my local Chardonnay, Hank with his microbrew Porter. As we were leaving, the man with the velvet voice and acoustic guitar played my favorite song.The short version:Today was a good day.