Updates and an October Hike Part 2.

A Long Day.

North of Damascus VA on the
Appalachian Trail

To continue on with the hike, I awoke early to a quiet camp, well that is not true....10 or so hikers means a cacophony of snoring!  I think the only persons who as a group snore louder must be persons in the employ of Fire or EMS!  Ok, so other than the snoring, it was a peaceful morning. Dawn was just breaking and the soft light of morning was just beginning to creep in between the trees.  I visited the privy and yes the story of the Lorax is still written on the privy wall, and then proceeded to break down my camp. By this time, hikers were stirring and beginning to wake up and move about.  Within an hour, everyone was scurrying around, eating, and packing up for another day of hiking.

We had planned to leave camp and hike to the next shelter for the evening.  However, it appeared as if the shelter was only 6 miles away and we would probably be hiking on and stealth camping along the trail to add a few miles to the day.  Well, we made good time and everyone arrived at the shelter just after noon and we decided to hike on for a few miles and find a camping site later.  So we hiked on.

We hiked about another 4 miles and I had plans to camp down by a river at a beautiful campsite I had found the last time I had hiked this area.  As luck would have it, it was taken up by a large group of campers so we moved on.  We ended up crossing HWY 58 looking for a shelter but the one we found was rocky and by the road.  Noise and the possibility of drunken local campers coming in to the site for a weekend camp helped make the decision to move on easier.  This began the discussion of cravings for Mountain Dew, Diet Pepsi, and ice cream.  So, as it was less than 5 miles to Damascus a plan was formed while hiking that we would continue hiking into town.  Long story short, I "bonked" on the trail as I found I had little energy to hike up the last mountain and was passed by my hiking mates.  After a 20 minute break, and some food, I proceeded up and over this mountain and began the 2 mile downhill walk into Damascus.  The problem was it was 2 miles of walking a rocky trail in the dark with only a small headlamp to lead the way.  All in all it was a fun walk in the dark and I  highly recommend night hiking.

I was met in Damascus by my friends...haha they found me at the gas stations sucking down Mt. Dew and ice cream, headed to dinner and then back to the hostel to rest. 
.....I love the trail and am craving a long hike. If I can find the right winter sleeping bag, I will be back in Damascus soon!

So, I will actually finish the next couple of days of the trip in a following post.  As soon as I find the time.