Today's Miles: 20.6
Total Miles: 885.8
It was so so cold this morning, so I packed up quickly and headed out to warm up. I have to be at a certain point in the next few days to catch a bus back home for a wedding, so I have to make decent mileage. Much to Doc's dismay, there were no bears around last night despite this being a hotspot for them. I think that's the only reason he's been hiking with me - he hopes my bear magnet will be stronger than his bear repellant so he can finally see one, but it hasn't worked out too well for him so far. He even put a fortune cookie outside my tent last night, and I think he was secretly trying to attract them to me even more. It's ok Doc, I'm on to your tactics.
Not too far into the morning, a passed a hiker heading north. He said he was a NOBO and was still trying to finish the whole trail this year. It's been a while since I've seen a NOBO out here that isn't a section hiker. All I can say is good luck at this point. He's running out of time and still has a long way to go.
There was a small deli right off the trail at a road crossing, so I decided to stop for a breakfast sandwich. It was conveniently about the time I started to get the feeling back in my fingers too. I somehow lost the trail getting down to the road and kind of slid my way down a steep decline on loose leaves and dirt down to a road that parralled the trail in the end. I still have no idea how I messed that up.
The weather was great for the rest of the day. The temperature in the afternoon has been perfect, and the skies were blue without a cloud in sight today. There were some rocky sections that slowed me down some, but there were also some nice ridgelines with great views.
There was supposed to be a water pump just after crossing a closed road. Taxi and Pumba caught up at this point, really hoping to get water here. I still had enough, but helped them find the pump anyway. I got there before them, but discovered the pump didn't work. They weren't too happy to learn this, so I told them there was some type of YMCA outdoor center across the road that might have something. They decided to check, and I continued on. I didn't see anyone else for the remainder of the day, and they all stopped to camp a few miles back.
I'm staying at the Mohican Outdoor Center tonight in one of the lodges. I decided I would be much more likely to get started in the morning if I was inside someplace warm since tomorrow is supposed to be another cold morning. It was also nice to be able to shower, and I have the whole place to myself. Apparently this place is run by the AMC, the same one that operates all the huts in the Whites. It seems like a pretty large outdoor area. There are plenty of campsites, some lodges, and a lake nearby. It might be a nice place to spend some time in the summer months.
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