Woke up to the sound of rain. Yesterday’s forecast said the rain would stop before 8am. I waited in my tent for it to stop. It didn’t. Finally, at 9:30 I gave up. I packed up my tent in the rain, a muddy and wet process, and got on my way. The other hikers camping around me did the same and most had left before I did. The trail turned into a creek. There was no hope of keeping shoes or feet dry or clean but you don’t care after a while. These Darn Tough socks have been awesome. Never get a blister, feet stay warm even when completely wet and never wear out.
The rain diminished over the morning but the fog hung around.
About 5 miles out from the camp I crossed by this memorial to Nick Grindstaff. Nick became a hermit and lived on the top of this mountain in a cabin alone for nearly 40 years. The cabin is long since gone although if you look you can see some of the foundation left. He had a pet dog and a steer according to legend. The epitaph which may not be legible at the bottom reads “lived alone, suffered alone, died alone”. Seems pretty grim.
I’m hiking with Nero and Fourth Quarter in the afternoon. Our travels took us through a pasture. Cool AT sign on the barn.
Then we shared the pasture with some cattle. This young bull kept an eye on us as we passed.
Fog didn’t lift today so there were limited views. Everything is damp and temperature is cool so I decide to sleep in Double Spring Shelter. I had no interest in setting up a wet, muddy tent. The shelter sleeps 6 and me and my hiking companions grab the last spots. Wilderness Bob, Rose, and Random are the other three. We share trail info over dinner before calling it an early night. It will be another night in the 30’s. I thought it would be warmer here by now.
Did about 11 miles and climbed approximately 2,000 feet.
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