Project Eveningland

3/2/2023 Thursday

Will found our accommodations last night severely wanting.

He said a bug kept landing on him in the night, though I never saw any bugs down on the bottom bunk. (Should I have tried to gaslight him? Blamed male hysteria?) He told me all he could think about last night was how many other people had touched the bare mattress (I found the mattress’ non-absorbent outer shell comforting because it looked wipeable, though I can’t vouch that it’s been wiped in the last few years and would bet against it). I think of it like falling asleep in the airport or that old couch in our graduate student offices that I used to nap on. Yeah it’s not clean but what’re you gonna do?

He was determined to set off today—not even the idea of an upgrade to a premium room down in the little hotel could sway him.

Sure hope this rain holds off so folks can make it up sassafras mtn—that climb is heinous enough without rain. I helped Elena (who’s also leaving today) resupply in the tiny shop while I upgraded myself to a room in the Dogwood Hotel. “Hotel”—I think it’s just a mega cabin that they converted into lots of little (but very nice!) suites. I have a tiny balcony!

Will texted with Mitch, and then me. Mitch is zeroing up at Sassafras because he wants to dry out all his stuff, which got very wet during his misadventure last night (he must have had to make do with a very marginal site).

Zero days are so tricky. I used to get frustrated because it can be so hard to relax, to turn off your brain, when you’re used to always thinking about the next meal or where you’re going to stop, or the next resupply. I’ve come to understand that relaxing is in and of itself work. Not because it’s hard always or should be, but because it takes time. It’s a skill. It’s work on the trail to calm down, self-soothe, have some quiet time. I don’t know if this is a common experience.

Lunched at the restaurant sitting by windows overlooking a rushing brown river. Very comforting. I ordered fettuccine alfredo with blackened chicken. It had bacon. Got a side salad with ranch and a soda water. Bill came in and sat right down. That’s trail intimacy—I’d have done the same. He had steak fajitas, the daily special. I’d say that most people expect a sizzling skillet, generous fixins, and a little make-your-own setup. This was not that. The food was good though. Our stomachs are small. It’s hard to eat enough.

I went back to my room and napped for almost three hours. Ben and I “hung out” (by phone) for an hour or two while he cooked dinner and I packed and repacked food. I have a cold pizza I ordered at lunch. I don’t have to go back down all those fucking stairs and hills to get back to the little general store for anything.

I want to watch Star Trek Picard but all the suspense feels like too much when I’m trying to stay low key. That’s a sign of how damn good this season is: you actually want to see what happens next. It’s not like the first two seasons where everyone’s fucking mad at Jean Luc Picard and everything’s fucking sad and heavy. It’s a space adventure with think-y elements! That’s what Star Trek should be, whether serialized or standalone. There is, it turns out, such a thing as too much “feelings talk”—looking at you Star Trek Discovery, though not with any particular hard feelings. The dialogue is lovely too. Mild spoiler: Seven is in a bad situation and Geordi LaForge’s daughter says just the kindest thing to cheer her up and it’s a wonderful, brief little performance that tells you that these characters are emotionally aware and have a warm friendship. Not everything has to be super dramatic!

Did I mention that there’s a new character living in my head? He gives me advice when I’m feeling stressed. He sounds like Mike Ehrmentraut (sp?) from Better Call Saul and its inferior prequel Breaking Bad. Here he is responding to hiking dilemmas: “here’s what’s gonna happen: the shelter is gonna be full, so you’re gonna keep walking until you find a flat spot. Look for a well drained site. Just set up and rest. If you need to make an important decision, it can wait until morning.” But you have to do it in his gruff manner and accent. It’s exceedingly calming in an emergency or stressful situation.

I’m gonna go down into the common area and eat my pizza. Aiming to get ten hours of sleep tonight. I’ll be walking in the rain for 14 miles tomorrow, then catching a shuttle to a hostel at Stecoah Gap where I can sleep in the dry during horrid weather.