GG and I suddenly have the hostel to ourselves! We make fresh hot waffles and coffee, included with our stay. I spy a jar of peanut butter in the cabinet. House rules say anything in this cupboard is up for grabs, so I slather it on my hot waffles for the best breakfast so far on this section.
Cantaloupe pulls up and we are back on the trail by 8 am. The thermometer display in truck reads 35F when we get out and we are on top of the ridge with a stiff wind blowing, the wind chill in the upper 20's.
We cross over to the leeward side of the ridge after 30 minutes, and with the sun shining brightly we are shedding layers quickly. This is going to be a beautiful spring day!
We walk along the ridge for 2 miles before descending another 3 miles to Jenkins Shelter. The first 5 miles have been super easy. We enjoy a quick snack and we are off again.
We pass an older couple hiking the opposite direction and we stop for a chat. They have backpacks and tell us they are thru-hiking, or really flip-flopping. They started in Damascus and they are heading south until they reach Springer, when they will flip up to head north. They are repositioning their vehicle occasionally, using shuttles along the way. One of the things I love about this trail is meeting people who are hiking unconventionally, demonstrating there is no "right" way to hike. A popular saying on the trail is to "Hike your own hike," or HYOH.
The day is beautiful; the sun is out, and the views are spectacular up and down the valley to our west. Our elevation gain is broken up throughout the day, which is wonderful. The only problem is the wind, which is brutal and in our face every time we hike on the western side of the ridge, which is also the windward side, and the trail is on this side of the ridge very frequently. My skin is going to be terrible after all this wind!
The trail is extremely narrow in many spots, so we step carefully, since the ground drops off steeply on the downhill side of the trail. Someone decided to carry in an old school chair to an overlook and it makes quite the artistic still life pic.
We decide to get picked up in Bland and go back to Weary Feet to resupply. We have extra food in the truck, and we can shower and get cleaned up before being returned to the trail tomorrow morning. Julie, the owner of Weary Feet, has someone that can come pick us up.
We only have to wait for 15 minutes before a car pulls up and we are back at the hostel by dinner time. I am numb with cold but in good spirits. We have the same room that we stayed in last week. There are a lot more people here tonight, including Timex, who is heading home tomorrow morning.
Today's stats: 16 miles, 2700 feet gain, 3700 feet loss
Trail Stats: 592 miles, 145k feet gain
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