Date: 2014-04-27
From: Spring Mountain Shelter

To: Hemlock Hollow Inn
Miles today: 5.3

I left camp this morning around 7:00, Scout was the only one that beat me out on the trail. Everyone in the other tents were just starting to move around as I was hiking out. I took a couple more Ibuprofun before I left hoping that the medication would kick in and let me walk with less pain. I really don't know what started the problem it was like a pain sensor switch was just turned on and I can't figure out how to turn it off. It really has me worried because I can't walk without limping and that can be a problem since I have about 1900 miles left to go. Anyway, I have to start walking to see what happens. The start of the hike was mostly downhill and should have been easy, but no such luck. It kind of feels like shin splints, the pain is worse about a third of the way to my knee. The fact that the pain is in my right leg also has me worried that it could be related to the cuts on my leg from falling on the rocks a while back on the trail. My mind is thinking that there could be some kind of infection in my leg that I can't see and it is really causing the pain. When I walk it feels like something is rubbing inside my leg like the swelling is pushing some tendons or something together. After hiking 5.3 miles I came to a road where I had to make a tough decision. Either I could continue hiking north 51 miles to Erwin or I could hike about a mile west to a hostel and sit out a couple of days. Discouraged with myself I made the easier choice, go take a couple of days off and see if things got better. The people made me feel right at home even making me some fresh coffee. Then they took me back to the bunkhouses and showed me around. There are several buildings all made from lumber that once were trees on the property. They had showers, store, dining area, and kitchen. They also have a few cabins and the main building has a porch on two sides with a stream running below. I tried to debate the merits of staying here for a few days or going home to recover. It would be better to spend my free time visiting with family but it may also be harder to get back on the trail. I decided to stay and get my leg ready to go after the bad weather goes through the next couple of days. Lots of tornadoes and storms headed this way, this place will be packed with people waiting out the storm. The cold stream is good for soaking my legs, I don't know why my ankle looks so swollen, I sure don't remember rolling my ankle anywhere. I have also been putting antibiotics on my cuts they still have a little redness, the lower one is pretty deep but is kind of scooped out so it probably would have been hard to stitch up. The cell phone reception is very poor, making it hard to talk to family back home. At least I have plenty of time to get caught up on my journals. I didn't think they were cooking supper tonight, it was after 7:00 so I went back to my cabin and fixed a camp meal. When I walked back up to the main building they were grilling sandwiches. They had a huge bonfire after dark so I went over for awhile but my leg needed to rest so I didn't stay very long. I went to bed about 10:00 wishing I was in my own bed back home. Mailman