Date: 2011-03-24
From: Big Spring Shelter, NC

To: Wayah Gap
Miles today: 6.0

Long time, no update. I guess the last one was Big Springs shelter on Saturday night. It¢s Thursday now. Sunday, I got up early-ish and got on trail just after Ron and Currahee. That dog, Cricket, ran up to my spot, and I heard those two ladies, but didn¢t see them. I caught up with Ron and Currahee at Rock Gap shelter and stopped for a hot lunch and to rest my feet. While we were there, Peregrine came in and talked for a bit. Ron and Currahee left about 20 minutes before me. The next bit was steep, and I caught them on the way up after awhile. When it went back down, I had to sit and rest my feet. They went by me and I wouldn¢t catch them again. Those few miles down to Winding Stair Gap were terrible. My feet got worse and worse until I was just crawling along. And the terrain wasn¢t even steep or rocky. I finally made the gap and Barbara picked us up with perfect timing. She dropped us at Ron Haven¢s and I got a chance to meet him. He was incredibly nice and said he¢d run me to the doctor the next morning. I cleaned up and ordered another cheeseless pizza, which was even better than the last one.Monday, I rode the 9:00 AM shuttle out and got dropped at the urgent care place on the way back. It was really tough watching everyone climb out and get back on the trail. The good news was that Bel Air Dave (now ¢Torch¢) was out there waiting to ride back in. It was also great getting to hear Ron talk up and back. He¢s known up and down the trail and has an endless supply of crazy stories. He also used to drive a truck and was a pro wrestler for six years.They dropped me off at Angol, and I had to wait an hour or two. The doctor was a very nice lady and confirmed that I have plantar fasciitis in both feet. She said to get stiffer shoes, which I¢d already decided to do, rest a few days, ibuprofen, ice, and stretch. I was upset that¢s what it was, but glad she wasn¢t saying I needed a month off or anything.I went to Three Eagles for shoes, and they were great. After helping me try to figure out which were vegan for an hour, we thought we¢d have to order them. But while I was waiting for a ride from Ron Haven on their porch, the girl came running out with a pair. The Merrell rep had called back and said a pair the catalog said were leather actually weren¢t. I even got a free pair of Superfeet. They were out of stock and gave me the test ones. When I finally got back to the motel, I saw Dave going to do laundry, so I joined him. The laundry¢s in this little low-ceiling room under the motel. After a bit, Backyard Boogie, an older guy from Tennessee, joined us. He¢s another character with a great accent and a million stories. We were talking for at least an hour, then a guy whose name I forget came down. His 18-year-old son is hiking and he hiked with him the first 100 miles. He runs a home for troubled kids in Ohio and we wound up talking about that for at least another hour.Monday, Barbara gave us a ride to the grocery store and I got town food so I wouldn¢t spend a fortune eating out. When we got back, I¢d forgotten Fritos, so I walked down to the gas station. On the way back, my feet were hurting, so I stopped in this crazy biker bar for a drink, which was an experience.Tuesday, Murray and I went all over. He¢s got the trail name ¢Cheap Chardonnay¢ and had two shirts made at the place across the street. We went to Rathkeller for lunch then to the kilt store. Unfortunately, they started at $300, so Murray didn¢t get one. We finished up at the other outfitter, Outdoor 76, then back to the motel.I ended up spending most of the afternoon with Boogie. We went back to the outfitter, then sat in front of his room with four new guys until fairly late. One of them was a young Marine who¢d served in Iraq, and another had been in the Navy and was from Baltimore. Ron Haven came by after a county council meeting and cracked us all up with some Green Acres impressions and stories from Trail Days.I hardly did anything yesterday (Wednesday). I slept in and caught a ride to the store with a couple of Masons and a pit bull. I resupplied trail food and walked back. Ron¢s son was playing banjo with a hiker who had a guitar, which was nice.This morning, I went to the post office to mail some stuff home and some ahead to NOC, then caught the 11:00 AM shuttle.I walked down to Siler Bald shelter for lunch, but it was too windy, so I moved on. Oh, I saw Kyle and Chris in town. They were getting a later ride and should be staying at that shelter. I¢m camped way down by a creek out of the wind. It¢s still really cold, though, and it¢s only 6:30 PM. Tonight will probably be pretty bad.My feet were sore today, but not nearly as bad as before. They kind of got to a point then no worse. I did almost seven miles with the walk to and from the shelter. If I can keep them as good as today and they start improving, I¢ll be all set in no time.Phew.