I didn’t sleep well at all our first night camping in the woods. It was due to a combination of below freezing temps and 50 – 60 MPH winds violently blasting the sides of the tent all night long. At some point early in the morning I was able to finally fall asleep. This didn’t last long though. We were awoken by the sounds of other hikers packing up their stuff and eating breakfast. As it turns out we knew several of them. They felt bad for not making room for us in the shelter that night ☹
We slowly got up and starting packing our stuff. I was just happy to see that everyone made it through the night safely. I finished packing up before Larry and joked with him about him taking longer than I did. Joking of course because he obviously had more to pack then I did (his tent). While trying to put my tent up the night before a lot of my stuff got wet. That meant that my already overweight 40 lb pack was now more like 45 lbs. The sun was out and it was surprisingly warm. Which meant my 2 lb jacket would also be attached to my pack adding even more weight.
I thought maybe I could eat whatever the heaviest food was in my bag for breakfast to help lighten my load some. But in hopes of avoiding yet another night of arriving at our next shelter too late to get a spot or good tent site, before I knew it, we were heading towards the trail to get started. I told Larry I needed to call my Dad to let him know we were alive and ok. And I also wanted to make sure he got home ok too. Larry was talking with a fellow thru hiker we just met Old School. I made a quick call to my Dad and turned around and Larry was gone. I grabbed some water at a nearby stream and headed up the trail.
I thought the weather forecast for today was 100% rain. I was happy to feel the sun shining on my face. It warmed me thawing my body from the previous freezing night. Its amazing how sunshine can completely change your mode. You could say my spirit had been lifted. It wasn’t enough to lift me physically though. I was exhausted from a sleepless night, and hiking 17 miles with a ~40 lb pack on back, in the rain and sleet. But I had to move on. When I spoke to my Dad we made plans to pick me up at Mooney Gap in 12 miles so I could re-evaluate my pack situation. IE: get rid of a ton of stuff. So that was where I was heading.
It was a beautiful day—so this really helped. I found myself really enjoying my hike. I wasn’t moving so fast I couldn’t see anything. I was more “present”. I stopped and took pictures of my surroundings. The flowing creeks, the waterfalls, the mountain views, etc. I found myself stopping quite a few times for water too. Just about every time I passed a creek I stopped and drank a bottle of water and refilled. I also stopped for a few snack breaks as well.
A few hours in I get a message from my Dad. To avoid a mishap like the previous night he called around to make sure the road was open. Mooney Gap was not open yet either. The next pick up spot was 7 miles further. This meant a 19 mile hike for me today (with overloaded pack and lack of sleep). Wow I thought. This is going to be a long day. I met a few other hikers this day: Chauncey, Easy, Pepe. We stopped and chatted for a bit. I couldn’t chat long though. I still had a lot of miles ahead of me, and ideally I’d reach my destination before dark.
The hike was fairly level with a few hills to climb. That is until I reached Albert Mountain. A 5200 foot mountain with by far the steepest climb I had encountered on the trail to date. As I climbed the huge boulders I found myself resting several times. I got near the top and stepped up only to feel the weight of my pack pull me backwards. I slammed my trekking poles down to catch myself. One hit solid rock and shot up out of hand. I fell forward onto the rock and watched my pole bounce over the ledge! Oh no. How far down did it fall? I got up and looked over. Whew! Only about 10 feet. I climbed down to retrieve it.
When I got to the top of Albert Mountain there was a fire tower. The views were absolutely amazing. The sun was setting. Man this is why I am here I thought. I took quite a few photos. I wanted to stay and watch the entire sunset. It would have been breathtaking. However, I was already taking forever. I needed to get to my destination. And the longer I waited the further the sun would set and the more I’d have to hike in complete darkness. So I captured what I could and marched forward. With my headlight on I saw an owl perched in a tree 15 feet off the ground right on the trail. I wish I could have gotten a better shot…
My Dad arrived at Rock Gap around 4pm to make sure he found the pickup spot and there weren’t any issues. I didn’t get there until after 10pm. I felt horrible my dad waited for so long. He didn’t mind though. I told him “boy am I glad to see you” he said the same back to me. We drove back to the cabin arriving after 11PM. I was happy to see my Mom was waiting up for me as well. She had dinner waiting. I love my parents. I finished up and we all headed to bed. We were all exhausted.
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