Date: 2009-11-07
From: Virginia

To: Damascus
Miles today: 104.0
Weather: clear sky

I finally caught up with Tex and Lightweight! It has been a month exactly and 500 miles since Lightweight kept hiking after I got sick. It was so good to see both of them, and I look forward to continuing the journey with them. My mom and Jess drove up from Georgia for the weekend to celebrate my birthday, and it has been really good seeing both of them too. They actually let me slackpack on Friday, and I was able to crank out 25 miles, which let me catch up to Tex and Lightweight. They brought me all sorts of goodies and food, and it was amazing! I specifically requested a couple of home cooked meals that my mom brought up. The cheeseburger soup she made was great! This morning Tex, Lightweight, Mom, Jess, and I went to Waffle House for breakfast, and it was delicious! I haven¢t had Waffle House in half a year! It¢s good to be in the south again. Lightweight has never been to a Waffle House, so it was cool introducing him to buttered grits and greasy hash browns. Smothered, covered, and diced are terms he has now been introduced to. Tex, Lightweight, and I got to slackpack today for 14 miles which was nice. We were hiking and came upon many interesting things throughout the day. The first was an abandoned school bus that had been transformed into a livable area for hikers, or a homeless person. We explored it for a while, walked on top, and had a nice time. We also ran into some cows today on the trail. Close encounters with cattle have been more recent lately, and sometimes the cows simply stand their ground right on the trail. They are big animals, and I admit that I am somewhat intimidated by their oafish appearance, especially the ones with horns. It is fun chasing the smaller ones though. Well, when we were walking in this pasture today there was a stubborn cow that wouldn¢t move. We tried to coax it to budge by yelling, but it took the heroism of Lightweight to get it to move. It was fun. I am glad to be hiking with SOBOs again. In other news, I will have less than 500 miles of the trail left by tomorrow. I am a little sad about this. The other night I couldn¢t sleep because I know that my journey will be coming to an end soon. I am enjoying everyday, and I am not taking anything for granted. I have seen so much these past few months, and my thirst for adventure is still very strong. I wonder what I will be doing next summer. I still have a long way to go, but coming to this realization really puts things into perspective for me. Even though it has gotten cooler at night and the slippery fall leaves make things a little more challenging, I am still having fun. A couple of mornings I have had to thaw out my breakfast because it¢s frozen! In a few days I will be in Damascus, Virginia with Tex and Lightweight, hopefully taking a zero. I haven¢t had a zero day for over a month, and by the time I get to Damascus it will have been over 600 miles since my last zero. My body needs a rest. It¢s good to be alive, and it has been a wonderful weekend spending time with family and friends. On a side note, it was very exciting watching the Georgia Tech game tonight in my warm, dry motel room. Go Jackets!