Date: 2019-03-30
From: Long Branch Shelter 

To: Long Branch Shelter
Miles today: 5.0
Weather: overcast clouds

I went to bed early, and fell asleep pretty quick. But then tossed and turned much of the night, as it got colder and colder. I realized around 3:00 that my sleeping bag zipper was pretty messed up leaving the bag open and me cold. I needed light to fix and eventually found my head lamp which was inexplicably buried in the last place i looked. I was much warmer with a sweater and hat on, and the bag closed. I got up around 7:15, though it had been light for some time. The Fitbit said I¢d gotten over 10 hours of sleep which was wonderful. I felt pretty disorganized and it took me around an hour and twenty minutes to get all packed up. I felt good when I started off but was huffing and puffing before long. I stopped to get extra water as there is none between Long Branch and Albert Mountain. I didn¢t want to carry the extra weight but knew it was the wise thing to do. I passed a northbound hiker pretty soon. I said good morning and he looked at me like I was a bug. I don¢t know his name but I gave him the trail name of Sociopath. I then came across an elderly man. I almost didnt stop to talk after my brief interaction with Sociopath, but I¢m glad I did. His trail name is Luke Walker, and while he was only 5 years older than me, he could easily have passed for 20 years older. I learned he had been battling leukemia for the past several years. And he was spending the time he had left backpacking. He was on a thru hike and had done the first 100 miles. He is keeping a blog at mountains that remain.com and has been on the trail 22 days. He served in the military for 20 years and is from Alabama. He was diagnosed in 2017 and only given a few months to live. He sold everything and went to Montana to hike until the snow was too deep deep. He wintered at home before spending the next summer hiking all over Colorado. His doctors are telling him he can¢t complete the AT but he sure wants to. He says he¢s feeling the leukemia now and things aren¢t working right. Read his blog and keep him in your prayers. I hope to see him again when we turn northbound later today. Some other folks I met included Scott from Sarasota (sort of a boring trail name), Beast (he was a large hairy man), Pop Tart (who has thru hiked twice but was just out doing a section hike). Pop Tart was hurrying into town to escape the weather and get to a McDonalds (eh, no thank you) as the weather looks grim tonight. Rain is coming ahead of a front that is going to bring markedly colder weather (I was already cold).I did the 2.5 miles to Albert Mountain by 11 and am waiting for the Gainesville Gang. The tower is open and it¢s lovely to sit up in the enclosed room, seeing 10s of miles in all directions while listening to the wind howl. It¢s great to be out of the wind. The Gainesville Gang arrived around 2:30, and I was surprised to see two unexpected faces. Two friends of Mama Bear came as well. They are from Sarasota. So that makes 8 in our group. Here¢s the rundown: Mama Bear, Machete, Stitch (Kim), Willow and Beast (Machete¢s Daughter¢s), and Katie and Ebony from Sarasota. We returned back to Long Branch and thankfully there was one tent site left that we fit four tents into. And the fifth tent went into a flat space that two folks who were using hammocks. We had a good dinner and are preparing for a cold wet night. There¢s talk of coming off the trail Sunday night die to temperatures in the low 20s.  Steps: 22,200Floors: 120