I got up to the call of nature at 4:45 and by the time I got back to my sleeping bag the threesome were getting up, so I did too. They left by 5:45. I had been telling them the night before how long it took me to get on trail so was fairly happy this morning to be hiking by 6.
I had 37 miles to cover to get to Harpers Ferry and I wanted tomorrow’s hike to be 18 miles or less so I would have time to visit the outfitters, which meant at least 19 today. That meant skipping a visit to a restaurant that’s very hiker friendly just a quarter mile down the road from the trail crossing (the most frightening crossing I’ve done so far). I could tell as soon as I started the section north of there that I was the first hiker of the day, because I was silk blazing, a term Two Esses taught me yesterday, which refers to walking through a lot of cobwebs.
Soon after that I spotted an odd shape on the trail, which turned out to be a box turtle. It didn’t budge, just stared at me.
The tip of my right trekking pole was bent out of shape and would soon need replacing. I had also lost the basket on that pole over a week ago, but then found a larger basket, blue instead of black, to replace it. So I was happy to find a full replacement tip with proper basket lying on the trail. I kept an eye out for a rock formation with the right shape, that I could use to remove the breaking tip. Eventually I found one, and presto, my pole was fully restored.
It was very hot and humid. I believe the high was 95F or 35C. So it was both a relief around 3:00 to feel the air cooling, and a concern to hear approaching thunder. I made it to a shelter by 3:20, and around 3:50 the threesome were there to stay overnight. The rain started at 5. It wasn’t a deluge but it was enough that we were glad to be sheltered from it. They said they had a great time at the restaurant and ate with Uncle Science and Mojo.
Lone Star told stories from his time as a military commander, in particular about not very smart privates who went AWOL or faked allergies to try to avoid getting deployed to Iraq. The rain was letting up so once he’d finished one of his stories I said goodbye.
My problem now became going far enough for tomorrow to be a reasonable day, while having a flat spot to stay the night. And finding water for supper, but not having to carry it too far. I had bad luck with tentsites, they were either very bumpy or very slanted. FarOut comments mentioned some sites up by a lookout but it was far. I kept on through sunset and dusk. At the bottom of the hill I had to navigate some big boulders. I had my pole straps around my wrists but instead of using my poles I was grabbing trees to keep my balance. My left pole got wedged between two rocks as I was swinging around a tree. I heard a loud crack and cried “Nooooo!” I had snapped the pole. I was able to push the break, which was at the top of the middle section, into the top, and just shorten the middle section and lengthen the bottom section, and the pole worked fine. Problem solved.
I reached the site at Raven Rocks by 8. The last ten minutes I had to use my headlamp.
My first priority was a tree for the bear rope because finding the right tree limb and tossing a stone over it with a rope attached is hard enough to do in daylight. Then start supper cooking, put the food bag in the tree. and put up the tent as supper cooked passively in the insulated liner. I managed to do all this with still a little light in the sky.
I was just starting to eat when the rain started up again. I quickly threw everything into the tent. I finished dinner in there and even managed to wash and dry the pot and spoon from inside the tent.
I didn’t go to sleep until 10. For a hiker that’s like staying up until 1 a.m.
Mile 988.1 to mile 1009.5 = 20.6 miles