Double Bow
New member
- Joined
- Apr 29, 2005
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Timing, planning, and other things beyond my control
The past week feels like it was a month or a year ago. Bland now has a certain nostalgia about it. I wound up meeting Clean Shave and sharing a motel room with him and there were others staying there as well, so we actually had a ball there. I did a mad dash to get to Pearisburg to get a package there before the post office closed on Saturday so I wouldn't have to wait through the long weekend in that town. In Pearisburg I had cheap Mexican food, counseled a suicidal guy at the bar, and learned that you can get breakfast at Dairy Queen. The best part was having a guy called "The Captain" take my pack in his truck to his place while I hiked the 23mi there for a huge party/hiker feed that he was having. I only managed to find his house in the dark by dumb luck, but so many things out here happen this way: better than could be planned and completely by surprise.
I came across wonderful cold beverages as "trail magic" several times. There's nothing I crave more on the trail. I've been struggling with my pack weight still and am hoping to send a third batch of things home. Now that I am here in Roanoke visiting with Heather, Matt, and Georgie, I have prepared another box of stuff to go back to NH including my sleeping bag which I've replaced with a light liner bag and a thin fleece blanket.
The timing for my visit couldn't have worked out much better. Early yesterday morning, my tent collapsed on me as I slept. Apparently one of the connectors between two seconds of pole snapped in the night. Also, my water filter completely failed on me and the manufacturer (MSR) basically said, tough luck. Packing things up, I headed out quickly over a long difficult ridge by Dragons Tooth. I was especially concerned about being able to get to the Catawba post office before it closed at 5pm. I finally made it down off the ridge to the road and from there went down the road and around the corner to a store where a bunch of hiker friends were hanging out. What was originally just going to be a quick stop for cold drinks and maybe a bite of lunch turned into something much longer. We played up our roles as "Hiker Trash" hanging out on the sidewalk eating food, drinking drinks, and some smoking cigarettes. Eventually we shared a couple six packs relaxing in the shade. It was a lot of fun and it inspired me to say "One of the best things about hiking the Appalachian Trail is not hiking the Appalachian Trail". What I meant is that it's the moments in between that are often when the best memories are made.
Looking at my map I saw that I could just go down the road to the post office and skip a featureless section of trail which all agreed was fine since I'd be walking from one point to the next. As I walked there, the third gear failure occurred: the temporary fix on my shoulder straps of my pack gave out... just a little before I picked up the replacement ones Mountainsmith sent me through the mail. I chilled out on the lawn of the PO replacing them while Heather came to pick me up.
Today, the good folks at Walkabout Outfitters helped me get a replacement connector and a new filter. I also got to spend quality time with Heather and played with baby Georgie. It was a good relaxing day that I enjoyed freshly showered and then wearing freshly laundered clothes. I also finally ate my fill. Tomorrow I'll be sad to say "goodbye" to my dear friends, but I'll have the consolation of climbing McAfee Knob which is said to have the second best views in Virginia. I'll also be feeling better about my gear, though I'll now be carrying a ton of food. One important lesson I'm learning is that things don't always go as we plan, and that can be the best news of all.
The past week feels like it was a month or a year ago. Bland now has a certain nostalgia about it. I wound up meeting Clean Shave and sharing a motel room with him and there were others staying there as well, so we actually had a ball there. I did a mad dash to get to Pearisburg to get a package there before the post office closed on Saturday so I wouldn't have to wait through the long weekend in that town. In Pearisburg I had cheap Mexican food, counseled a suicidal guy at the bar, and learned that you can get breakfast at Dairy Queen. The best part was having a guy called "The Captain" take my pack in his truck to his place while I hiked the 23mi there for a huge party/hiker feed that he was having. I only managed to find his house in the dark by dumb luck, but so many things out here happen this way: better than could be planned and completely by surprise.
I came across wonderful cold beverages as "trail magic" several times. There's nothing I crave more on the trail. I've been struggling with my pack weight still and am hoping to send a third batch of things home. Now that I am here in Roanoke visiting with Heather, Matt, and Georgie, I have prepared another box of stuff to go back to NH including my sleeping bag which I've replaced with a light liner bag and a thin fleece blanket.
The timing for my visit couldn't have worked out much better. Early yesterday morning, my tent collapsed on me as I slept. Apparently one of the connectors between two seconds of pole snapped in the night. Also, my water filter completely failed on me and the manufacturer (MSR) basically said, tough luck. Packing things up, I headed out quickly over a long difficult ridge by Dragons Tooth. I was especially concerned about being able to get to the Catawba post office before it closed at 5pm. I finally made it down off the ridge to the road and from there went down the road and around the corner to a store where a bunch of hiker friends were hanging out. What was originally just going to be a quick stop for cold drinks and maybe a bite of lunch turned into something much longer. We played up our roles as "Hiker Trash" hanging out on the sidewalk eating food, drinking drinks, and some smoking cigarettes. Eventually we shared a couple six packs relaxing in the shade. It was a lot of fun and it inspired me to say "One of the best things about hiking the Appalachian Trail is not hiking the Appalachian Trail". What I meant is that it's the moments in between that are often when the best memories are made.
Looking at my map I saw that I could just go down the road to the post office and skip a featureless section of trail which all agreed was fine since I'd be walking from one point to the next. As I walked there, the third gear failure occurred: the temporary fix on my shoulder straps of my pack gave out... just a little before I picked up the replacement ones Mountainsmith sent me through the mail. I chilled out on the lawn of the PO replacing them while Heather came to pick me up.
Today, the good folks at Walkabout Outfitters helped me get a replacement connector and a new filter. I also got to spend quality time with Heather and played with baby Georgie. It was a good relaxing day that I enjoyed freshly showered and then wearing freshly laundered clothes. I also finally ate my fill. Tomorrow I'll be sad to say "goodbye" to my dear friends, but I'll have the consolation of climbing McAfee Knob which is said to have the second best views in Virginia. I'll also be feeling better about my gear, though I'll now be carrying a ton of food. One important lesson I'm learning is that things don't always go as we plan, and that can be the best news of all.
