Blizzards and Buzzkills

It has been one heck of a week! Last post was in Erwin and since then we have walked over 110 miles through blizzards, a 6300 foot mountain , tornados, lightning, and a run in w/ johnny law.

Our walk out of Erwin was nice... we stopped short and made stew, smores, and talked about ridiculous stuff around a campfire. InTents, Hardcore, Little Tree, and Hatchet (w/ Jadis) in the ensamble. We left late the next day and waited for the Kiwi girls to catch up, which they did and we all walked for a few days together. The section called for the steepest climb on the trail, so we decided to walk 22 miles that day, with more than 6000 vertical feet ascended, and temperatures in the 70's... a beautiful day. Roan Mnt was the name of the peak, not much of a view, but a great shelter where we all cooked a well deserved dinner of rice in the attic of the hut. But when the sun goes down, we make our best time and we hiked on...

That night we stayed in a barn converted to shelter and the temp dropped significantly. Tents had a great idea to turn off our headlamps as we arrived at the shelter/barn... only seconds later we walked through a huge mud puddle only feet before the shelter... thanks Tents... good idea!

As we left camp the next day we found ourselves in a blizzard. Now this was expected, everyone had warned us of this as we passed them the day before... but the snow was coming sideways and up from below as we traversed across several balds. Winds were gusting to about 60 mph and the temp before chill was about 20. Quite a difference from the day before! The only way to stay warm while out in the woods is to either build a huge fire and live next to it, bundle up in your down sleeping bag... or walk... without stopping. That day we walked in very cold sideways snow for 10 miles until we got to a road crossing... and a sign promising hot chocolate and hot food at a diner 1 mile down the road. So we walked... and got there to find a CLOSED sign... they don't hold bankers hours at small diners in the hills of Tennessee, but the cook was still there and took pitty on our cold wet bodies and let us in and fed us meatloaf, cornbread, beans, homefries, and pie. I ate two, cleaned both plates.

Well back on the trail and the weather only gets worse. At this point there are 7 of us, well only 6 because Hardcore got lost and didn't catch us until the shelter. The snow started to pile up and the temp kept droppping. We made it to a very nice, but cold, shelter after 16 miles of pretty thrilling hiking, it really was, i enjoyed the snow... that night was really cold... didn't enjoy that night very much... after a safety meeting in the penthouse of the shelter (it acutally had three levels), I got into my sleeping bag, snuggled up next to a shivering dog and waited until the sun came back up! When it did, some of the group left, but Tents and I stayed in for a bit enjoying the warmth of the sun and our down bags.

That day we walked through a foot of snow at times... mind you this is April 9th in Northern TN. The temp was still about 20, but the wind died down. The snow was really soft and fluffy because of the cold temps. Kincora, a hiker hostel, was our light at the end of that tunnel... but when we got there, they were full up... we were greeted with amicable faces as we shook off the cold, they all handed us warm chocolate drinks, chili w/ cheese, and offered to let us share their bunks... I wish this was the truth, but i cannot say our arrival was nearly as glorious, so we left the fairweather hikers and caught a hitch in the back of a very cold pick-up to a place promised to us with little optomism... we just wanted food and a warm building for an hour to get ourselves back together. Our plan was to head back onto the trail and brave one last night in the cold... but a hostel appeared on the horizon and we greatfully embraced the roof and warm solace. One night, a good meal, some beer, homecooked breakfast sandwiches!

Onward to Damascus we embarked. The journey started with a huge climb and then descent to a lake where we met up with the Bangor Boys. The day was warm, and the snow was pretty much gone. The next day was full of safety meetings, as I met up with some friends from Hot Springs and we enjoyed a day in T-shirts. The moon was bright and full, so we hiked into camp under its glow until Tents fell flat on his face, and then we put the headlights on! The next day it was sunny when we woke and I made the mistake of embracing the warm sun, which was followed by a fast scramble to get my rain gear on before my shirt was drenched by the fast approaching thunderstorm... the morning was wet, and 3 in the group yellow blazed (hitch hiked) ahead, and I continued the walk in a thick fog. The sun broke again and then as we made it to camp that night a tornado/thunderstorm blew in over us and graced us with a bit more liquid sunshine, but luckily we were setting up our tents, and we all enjoyed the protection of our thin nylon walls!

Into Damascus the next morning, marking our entrance into state #3, Virginia. Well we had all heard about Damascus and how friendly of a town it was... a clever rouse that we did not find to be the truth... in fact at first quite the contrary...

I beleive in beer and good times... the people here do not. We had trouble finding a place to stay w/ a dog, and eventually settled for a gravel parking lot for $10/night... shower and towel included!! After shaking of my dissapointment with the sleeping arrangements, we headed for the beer store. In this little town... you cannot drink in the Hostels... in fact it isn't wise to bring any such contraband or paraphenilia into this town for reasons that the reader can assume if so inclined. Anyway, we got our beer and snuck down to the river and under the bridge to consume our hoppy beverages... very much not the prefered location for enjoying some afternoon suds, but this was our only option...this and "the" bar. So after our 6ers were complete, we packed out our trash and recruited some hikers to enjoy a pint at the pub.

Well the pub was shack with 3 beers on tap, none worth mentioning. The bar stops and stares when you enter, and since we outnumbered the clientelle already purveying this establishment, our confidence was not shattered by the disdainful glare we all received upon our entrance into Dots Bar. Sitting down and ordering a pitcher of beer goes as well as it should... Hatchet and I split a pitcher and order some food... then to the jukebox to liven the mood... as I was selecting a the musical choice from a jukebox uncontaminated by good music, Hatchet yells down the bar (side-note: the following contains profanity not suitable for church conversation, meeting your girlfriends parents, or in a job interview) "Hey Spaceship... Fuck You!" Being a degenerate from a generation left to fend for ourselves in a world void of morals and worthwhile role models, this came as no shock to me... in fact I found this pretty funny, so I reply "Hatchet... Eat A bowl of Shit" down the bar accross 6 other hikers none of which appeared to be offended by our boyish gesture of affection... however, back in the kitchen where burger flipping was taking place, one person did find this gesture to be offensive, and this person was the bar owner...

I was confronted by the bartender, the owner's daughter, and she informed me that I needed to settle up and leave... the obvious question ensuing, to find that profanity is against the law in bars in Virginia.

Now, if I walk into a library... I hush up... when i walk into a bar I let loose... and since there weren't any signs noting that profanity would not be accepted... I didn't think our conversation was totally out of line... but we had to pay, so I was going to finish my meal and beer... and since the offense wasn't aggressive by any means, it could be assumed that our slow pace came as no suprise to any witnessing this comedy unfurl. But then another hiker got upset and started to raise his voice in disapproval. His loud demeanor and drunk appearance sparked the owner to call the police. We finished our beers and as we were heading out, the fuzz headed in. The owner pointed us out as the two who she wanted to leave, the cop asked us if we understood what she was asking and we acknowledged and appologized... mid appology the large cop decides to grab Hatchet by the arm... and naturally Hatchet pulled away... so the cop grabbed him again and put him in an arm hold and started pushing him out of the bar... pushing me and the other cop over, so I try to stop myself from falling and touch the cop next to me and he puts me in a hold and brings me out... so now we're outside of the bar... and the big fat cop handcuffs Hatchet and stuffs him in the back of the cruiser... I couldn't beleive this... for no reason... and not provoked by any means. Well we don't live in a police state, and this was not nearly called for considering the situation so I voiced this to the fat cop in charge... he was not ammused and said "One more word out of you and you'll be in cuffs" to which I responded "One more Word?" with word emphasized. Cuffs on me... then this guy that was being loud in the bar comes out and starts yelling at the cops to let us go... which sounded like a good idea to me... but we remained in cuffs. Mind you we haven't been arrested, not maranda rights yet... just being detained.... this is when you start to play by their rules... so we did.. and after almost freezing my but off (the cop had to put my hat on for me) the fat cop in charge decides to let us go... and in his friendliest voice asks us if we will be back for Trail Days (a big celebration for AT hikers and why the town is supposedly the friendliest on the trail)... man... the nerve of that cop... clearly we won't be back to a place that disregards common descency (mind you we were cursing in a labeled bar).

So I was about to leave town when we found this really nice cottage called Rubys Rest... a nice family with a fenced in yard... and enjoyed a nice Easter Sunday w/ friends and beer, quickly forgetting about the night before!

We're off for VA... not sure how often I'll get to a computer. No more Spot, weighs too much and isn't much help for me... sorry to all who enjoyed this... it's just not that practical in light weight backpacking... assume from this point on... no news is good news!!

Got to go, computer is about to shut off!

G