Project Eveningland

2/24/2023 Friday

The climb into North Carolina is infamous. Mitch and Bill (and to a lesser degree Will) were filled with nervous energy in the morning. I used to feel that way at a hostel on the morning of departure. Still do sometimes. Will and I set a more leisurely departure. Mitch was about ready to crawl out of his skin if he didn’t get going. He and Bill caught the early shuttle. We caught one just after eight. Lennon got a pic with us after he dropped us off.

The new pack (an Etowah—it’s a cottage maker from Alabama) works pretty good, though the ventilation on my back can’t match the Colonel. I mailed the Colonel (the old pack) to my parents. I can switch back to it on 3/10 when my parents meet up with me if I need to.

It was such a pleasure to hike with Will today. He gets my jokes. Knows how to joke back. The repartee is like cool water on a dry day. The guy loves Star Trek but hates DS9. DS9 is the best Star Trek. Nobody’s perfect.

I hit the NC border sometime after lunch (shaved ham and cheese on a bagel with mustard and mayo and lots of other garbage and also pounds of nuts it feels like). If you can get down a whole bag of peanuts, it’s over 500 calories. That’s most of the way to the calorie count of a dehydrated bag meal only lighter with no prep and it’s over with before you know it. I think I easily cleared 1200 in just snacks today.

We hit the NC border and I snapped a selfie while a woman from Israel (Lady B) also got pics. The pic I took today looks much much happier than the pic I took at the same spot two years ago. I’ll attach for comparison when I get around to doing another picture based post.

The uphills after that were quite as heinous as I remember. Near vertical stuff. It’s as though switchbacks were sinful. Then steady rains came. The rhododendrons shone with rain. The hills never seemed to end. The final three miles of ascent to Muskrat Creek Shelter area seemed more like six. I grabbed water a quarter mile before the shelter but didn’t filter it. I had to pee too but wanted to get to the shelter and set my pack under the roof. It’s hard to hold two liters of water in a bag, a trekking pole, an umbrella and also pee with any degree of responsibility.

I made it and the shelter was full—of bags and also alternative ideas for where I could sleep. The picnic table is under the roof, why not sleep there? How about on the ground. I’ll tent, thanks. There was a well drained site right beside the shelter. I grabbed it without hesitation. Now that I can set up the outer part of my tent in the rain very easily, I’m not tempted by a crowded, stinky, loud shelter so much, even in the rain. I’ll be drier and warmer under my tent.

I set up the rain fly first then went back to the shelter for dinner (another truly massive ham bagel and various sides). Then I set up the inner parts of the tent during a break in the rain. My last evening chore before settling into the tent was to filter water. At this point my body reminded me that eating half a pound of ham in a day (two bagel sandwiches) may provide protein but it may also cause some GI distress. Which it did. There’s a privy here, thank the gods. If you’ve ever pooped in the rain, you’ll know how much of a difference a roof makes to the efficiency and bearability of the task.

It was at this shelter last time that I spoke with my maternal grandfather in a dream. He told me, while standing next to some farm buildings, that he was proud of our family. It felt as real as if it had happened when I woke in the morning.

Tonight I am just happy to be warm and dry in my Durston tent, an irregularly shaped shelter which from the underside looks not unlike a large canvas circus tent rendered in miniature. It is deeply cozy in my warm bag and dry clothes. I do not look forward to packing up in the rain tomorrow. Rain is part of the deal.

My body is doing well. I put on an ankle wrap midday but felt little or no pain in the second half. My joints are mostly just tired but I’m being cautious. Although I feel stronger than I have in years, it will be a while before big miles. My ears are sunburnt—I must have missed them out when I applied sunscreen early in the day, during the sunny hours.

Also, I met the famous Fresh Ground at Around the Bend. Nice guy.