Thursday, June 1, 2017
After the thunderstorm passed through last night there was no more rain. The air remained cool and damp when I woke up.
While preparing breakfast I talked to Pigpen, who was feeling better after yesterday’s migraine headache. We discussed where we were heading today.
Pigpen was glad to know I was planning to go to Laurel Creek Shelter, and she said she thought she would go there too. She told me she hadn't yet camped by herself and appreciated knowing someone else would be there.
| Weather | Partly cloudy, warming to the mid 70s |
| Trail Conditions | A few rocky and overgrown sections, a couple of steep climbs and descents |
| Today's Miles | 14.6 miles |
| Trip Miles | 673.2 miles |
I took extra time packing this morning, partly because I needed to make a minor repair of my tent. I discovered there were a couple pinholes near one seam. I didn’t notice any leaks last night resulting from them, but it seemed like a good idea to patch them.
My tent is made of a product that used to be called Cuben Fiber, but is now called Dyneema Composite Fiber. It’s extremely strong and waterproof, yet is very lightweight.
My pack is made with a version of this same fabric, but is more abrasion resistant.
Cuben Fiber was originally created for use in the sails of America’s Cup racing boats.
Repairing it was simple because I carried with me some tape specially made for Cuben Fiber repairs and sealing seams.
Finally, I was packed up and left the shelter at 8:45 a.m.
Starting out, the trail seemed to be flat, though in truth it was making a gradual climb.
This kind of terrain was starting to get a little monotonous. It seems odd to say this, but I was missing the "pointless ups and downs".
Later, a few rocky sections made the trail a little more of a challenge, but it remained mostly easy-going.
The sun was never alone in a clear sky, but the clouds didn't get in the way of its rays shining through the trees.
For this reason, the air was warming, but it wasn't getting uncomfortably hot.
After hiking four miles, I took a short side trail to a spot called Wind Rock. It was a cliff that offered a broad view of the valley.
Mountain Lakes Wilderness Area stretched across this view, so there were no buildings or roads to break up the expanse of tree-covered mountains.
The elevation here was 4,091 feet, which was the first time the trail had gone higher than 4,000 feet in more than 40 miles.
I knew there wouldn’t be many views today, so I stayed here awhile to enjoy this one.
In the afternoon I passed a few more sights that broke up the monotony of the even terrain. One was a harmless, medium-sized garter snake, curled up and enjoying the sun.
About 20 minutes later I saw some mountain laurels filled with white blossoms.
Though mountain laurels are generally shrubs, these were more like trees. They lined both sides of the trail for a short section and were covered with many blooms.
Galax were also in bloom, though they were not nearly as plentiful.
I've read they're sometimes called wandplant or wandflower, which you can understand when you see the flowers shoot from their leafy base.
For nearly the whole day I only saw a few hikers. They were all either section hikers going south or elderly day hikers. No NOBO hikers passed me.
After making a long descent to Virginia Highway 632, the trail went immediately back up, but this time more steeply. Finally, the trail was returning to a familiar pattern.
Once it reached the top of a mountain called Kelly Knob the trail again made a steep descent. This descent, though, added the thrills of slippery mud.
When I arrived at the shelter I was surprised to see no one there. I expected at least to find Pigpen here.
It had seemed odd enough there weren’t many people on the trail, but it was especially unusual that no one had stopped at the shelter.
This put me in a foul mood, which was made worse by the discovery of trash left in the fire pit by the shelter.
After setting up my tent behind the shelter, I cleaned up the garbage in the fire pit and prepared my dinner. The whole time I expected someone to arrive late, but no one did.
After I was settled in my tent and just falling asleep, I heard off in the distance the howling of what I first thought were coyotes. When I heard the sound again, now much closer, it sounded more like dogs carrying on.
Then I heard the howling again, but this time from a different spot.
And again, now down the hill.
It was as if dogs had surrounded my tent, though from a distance of fifty to a hundred yards away, and were howling at each other.
What was going on? This was getting a little unnerving.
Then I heard a man shout to the dogs, "Get on up here!” and suddenly they were quiet.
Now it all made sense. The dogs must have been coonhounds and they were out on a training run.
I lit up from Reno
I was trailed by twenty hounds
Didn't get to sleep that night
Till the morning came around
I set out running but I'll take my time
A friend of the Devil is a friend of mine
If I get home before daylight
I just might get some sleep tonight
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