I woke naturally at 5:20 and was out of tge hostel by 6, walking by the light of my headlamp for the first hour. I took a couple of wrong turns, first on the side trail from the hostel to the AT, then once I found the AT I turned south instead of north, and kept going until things started looking too familiar.
Around 8am I tripped on a branch tyatvwad sticking into the trail, and started tumbling downhill. I didn’t fall far but the fall bruised my left thigh, so walking for the rest of the day was painful, and slower than it would normally be. I hiked until 5:30 pm so in theory should have done 23 to 25 miles but I only managed 20, and there wasn’t even that much climbing.
Flash caught up to me around 4 pm, but to be fair he says he slept in until 9 and didn’t hit the trail until 10. He flew past me.
Bucky and I kept passing each other, his pace is slightly slower than mine but I kept stopping for breaks or snacks or to look at plants so he would pass me, then off I’d vo, and he would step asidenas I caught up.
Much of the day was through hurricane blowdowns or the green tunnel of great rhododendrons, so not too visually stimulating. To compensate I spent a lot of time identifying plants with the Seek app, and then calling out each plant’s name as I walked past. I think I could probably ID at least 100 species of Carolinian ground plants and trees at thus point.
The shelters are farther apart here than further south so it’s challenging to plan for a shelter stay that fits with the mileage I’m aiming for. I passed one around 2pm but it seemed way too early to quit walking. Ao I’m camped on my own in a gap that should have both a good sunset and a good sunrise. Supposed to be mild overnight, low teens.
Leftover pizza for dinner. Going to bed early since I woke early. Maybe I’ll get a 25er in tomorrow. Or maybe my leg will hurt more and I’ll have to limit myself to 10 or 15. O matter, it’s great fun however far I go.
Mile 397.3 to mile 417.5 = 20.2 miles
