The first order of business today was to summit a peak called Big Butt – now there’s a mountain I can really relate to! (Who names these things, anyway!?) At 4,750 feet, it’s the highest peak of this trip. On my way, I met a pretty sizeable turtle who was sunning himself in the middle of the trail. Here he is – unfortunately he was too shy to peek out and look at my camera.
Though it was fun getting to the top of the mountain, the real reward was in pressing on to a spring four miles past, where I was finally able to take in some much-needed water. At a shelter near the spring, I ran into four hippie types – thru-hikers who were just starting their day. As I stopped to chat with them and take a brief rest, two of them rolled their own cigarettes, another lit a stick of incense, and the fourth practiced yoga. (I am not making this up!) The whole scene reminded me of a humorous book I read recently in which a sort of uptight conservative guy finds himself “living in the woods with some beatniks” for a few months. Here I was, kind of doing the same thing, feeling all Bohemian-like and almost fitting in. I totally blew my cover, though, when the hippies happened to mention that we were in a spot with a great cell signal: I took out my phone to call Jay, and my inner Bohemian got immediately upstaged by my Midwestern Pollyanna self as I started chattering. “Hi Honey! How are the kids? How was Joe’s T-ball game? Did Maria do okay at 5th-grade camp? Have you been watering my flowers?” After I put my phone away it occurred to me I must’ve come across just like Florence Brady to these four earthy hikers. Ah well.
Turns out the hippies ended up at the same place as me tonight: Hogback Ridge Shelter. I’m glad to be with people tonight, after spending several evenings solo. Also at this shelter is an older couple named Bonnie and Phil. Being from Indiana, they bring the evening’s Midwestern Pollyanna count up to three, including me. They are in their seventies and are so adorable together. They have a very meticulous routine for cooking their dinner – they brought their own homemade backpacker food which they had dehydrated themselves, and I must admit, it looked a lot better than my reconstituted black bean soup. As I chatted with Bonnie after dinner about Michigan and my family, her eyes lit up and she asked, “You didn’t happen to write an article for the ATC last month did you?” I felt like such a celebrity! She had read the article just before beginning this trip. Even the hippies fussed over me for a few minutes.Tomorrow will be my last day on the trail. I had intended to hike for seven days, but since my plans got all bungled due to the bear problems at Walnut Mountain, I’ll end up covering all my planned miles in six days rather than seven. I don’t mind admitting that my body is completely spent and I’m absolutely giddy about finishing early.
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