“What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly: it is dearness only that gives every thing its value.” – Thomas Paine

Day 67

With more rain in the forecast, I decided to start the day wearing my new Salomon XA Pro 3D trail shoes without any socks. They worked like a champ right out of the gate, easily handling the climbs, mud puddles, and rocks. As I climbed the first hill out of Pearisburg, I passed a hiker who asked for my trail name. I told him the whole 3-minute story of how Sir Fob W. Pot came to be. I asked him about his trail name, Stan. He said his parents gave him that name when he was born and it stuck. I wasn’t sure if that was a joke or not so I half-laughed to cover my bases.

As I approached the Rice Field Shelter at noon, the Virginia skies opened up and the rain began to fall. I ducked into the shelter along with Cambria, Two Souls, Blade, a German Shepherd, and several others. I started eating a Slim Jim which caused the dog to jump up into the shelter, get all in my face, and start drooling. I gave her half a Slim Jim, overly generous by hiker standards, and she licked me on the mouth. That seemed like a fair exchange. Once the rain lightened up, I headed back out and continued along fairly level terrain. While climbing Dickinson Gap, I saw and spoke briefly with Princess Grit and she asked me to tell the story of my trail name to a hiker she was with. I’ve told the story so many times that I think it’s time to start changing it up. I may have B.W. Pot be on different trails and amusement parks around the world, defiling them at various times of day, even with people watching. Sorry in advance, Kyle.

A short time later, after a 15.9 mile day, I stopped for the night and stealth camped among some tall trees at mile 650.1. My new trail shoes had passed their first test, even without socks. Still, I plan to wear socks on most non-super rainy, non-stream fording days as that makes the shoes a tad more comfortable. Despite the mud splashes from my knees to ankles, it had been a good, mostly rainy day on the AT.

Day 68

Today was dark and cloudy the first half of the day. I spoke briefly with Sasquatch, a southbounder, at Stony Creek Valley. I thought he’d be taller and hairier. In the early afternoon, the rain started falling again, and would continue off and on the rest of the day. About a mile after Bailey Gap Shelter, I hit a several mile long section of really rocky terrain. I had to concentrate on each step to keep from rolling an ankle. The rocks and mud slowed my pace considerably.

After a 16.7 mile day, I camped with Two Souls, Grit, and others near the War Spur Shelter. The talk around camp centered on the tremendous amount of rain we’d experienced in Virginia so far. Someone said they talked to an elderly local man who said it was the rainiest month of May he could remember in the past 80 years. I was once again asked about my trail name and told a story about the time Kyle, a third grader at the time, pooped himself on the Runaway Mine Train at Six Flags over Georgia. I felt a bit regretful later over this fabrication, but that should subside with each false re-telling of the story.

Day 69

The climb up to Kelly Knob was brutal this morning. I climbed nearly 2000 feet over a little more than 2 miles. It wasn’t raining, but the terrain was muddy from all the previous rain, and the vegetation I frequently brush up against was wet. All that plus the humidity and my profuse sweating led to one soaked, muddy hiker by 9 a.m. As I guzzled a full liter of water and caught my breath at the summit, two deer darted by off to my right, a small reward for a tough start to the day.

At mile 676.3 I passed Keffer Oak, an 18′ around, 300-year-old oak tree. It’s the largest AT oak tree in the South, with Dover Oak along the AT in New York being slightly larger. I thought to myself, if that 300-year-old tree could talk…well, that’d be really weird.

A little while later, on a rock scramble near Sarver Hollow Shelter, I met a hiker named Crisco. Before starting the AT, most hikers are aware that it’s not possible to replenish the 5000-6000 calories you burn on a typical day. It’s simply tough to carry that much food because food is heavy. Well, Crisco took that as a challenge and began the trail carrying and consuming pure Crisco vegetable shortening which provides 110 calories of pure fat per tablespoon eaten. Thus, the trail name. So if he carries and consumes three cups of Crisco, he’s getting…well, I really don’t want to do that math.

At mile 682.3, the north end of the ridge crest on Sinking Creek Mountain, I arrived at a sign marking the Eastern Continental Divide. Curious, I decided to conduct an experiment by relieving myself on a large boulder near the sign. Sure enough, the flow went evenly in each direction down the sides of the boulder. I plan to contact a scientific journal in order to publish my findings. If they like my work, I may replicate the experiment on the Runaway Mine Train at Six Flags.

I finished this 18.2 mile day sleeping in the Niday Shelter at mile 685. Joining me in and around the shelter were several hikers, including Tennessee Troy, Little Bear, Patrice, Crisco, Sprinkle Toes, ETA, Future Dad, and White Owl. We covered a lot of ground in the camp conversation that evening. First, Little Bear, who you may recall is helping Lindsay and Patrice film a movie/documentary about women thru-hikers, informed me that Lindsay had to get off the trail to have surgery. She hopes to return and will continue with film editing and such while she recovers.

As for Sprinkle Toes, she earned that name during a cold, very windy afternoon in the Smokies. As she relieved herself behind a tree, she didn’t realize the wind was blowing her pee all over her left shoe and sock. She ended up with a pee-soaked sock and a trail name.

And that brings us to the fascinating, 70-year-old White Owl from Maine. We immediately hit it off and began trading stories. He has a great sense of humor and looks like my Uncle Phil’s twin brother. He recently saw two crawdads trying to eat a fish that was being digested by a snake. That’s awesome! He shared a picture he snapped after the crawdads scurried away. We also traded vasectomy and colonoscopy stories, much to the delight of the younger hikers around us who are just a few years removed from puberty. I don’t remember all the details from his colonoscopy story (a good thing) but his last sentence was, “And then, after raising my bare butt up in the air, the nurse looked at me and said, ‘That’s where I remember you from!'”

Fob

“When you realize you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible.”    – When Harry Met Sally

“I love you, not only for what you are, but for what I am when I am with you. I love you, not only for what you have made of yourself, but for what you are making of me.” – Roy Croft

Day 59

I awoke in a much better mood than the previous two days. In fact, I was giddy. I checked out of the motel and walked downhill about a mile to the rental car place. They put me in a brand new car with under 100 miles on it and I headed west toward Alabama and wedding week. It felt really weird to drive a car again, but I quickly adjusted. I cranked up the radio and sang my heart out for the next 7+ hours.  One song, The Proof of Your Love by for King and Country, hit me especially hard.  It talks about the importance of love, and that without it, it doesn’t really matter what you believe, say, or do.  I decided to add it to my every morning AT playlist so maybe that message will be driven deep inside my brain over the next several months.  At noon I stopped to refuel and grab a quick lunch at a gas station. Oddly, the thing I craved the most was cereal, so I got some sugar pops, a quart of milk, a pint of orange juice, and a banana.

The closer I got to Birmingham, the more excited I became about seeing and surprising Lil Jan. About 10 minutes out, I picked up Starbucks coffee for her, my friend Brad, and myself. Just before entering the driveway, I texted Lil Jan to tell her I missed her and that I hoped she was having a good day. Right after she responded, I came walking through the basement door where she, Brad, and Jenny were working on wedding signs. I asked, “Did someone order coffee?” and she looked up in shock and came running over to hug me. Surprising her with something that makes her happy is one of the greatest joys in my life. It was so great to see her and the Diamond family, who kept my early arrival a surprise. The only downside was that she wasn’t in the yellow, springy, reunion dress, but she still looked amazing!

Days 60-66 – Wedding Week

The entire week, with one exception, could not have gone more perfectly. We had a great, informal pasta dinner with the wedding party at Wes and Melissa Self’s home on Thursday night. It was refreshing to sit among people who were clean, smelled good, and peed indoors. I had to really focus on eating slowly, using utensils, and not doing anything socially inappropriate.  After dinner, against my better foot-resting judgement, I went outside to play knock-out basketball with the fellas. As I went for a rebound, a long distance shot ricocheted off the backboard and smacked me in my face, breaking my glasses and scratching my face. Lately, it seems I’m in the most danger when I’m off the trail, not on it! Fortunately, Wal-Mart was able to repair my glasses the next day.

On the health, hygiene and appearance front, Lil Jan and I, with the help of mediators, agreed that I would get a haircut and “clean up” my beard a bit, but not make it go away. That was a win from my perspective, although the beard mice didn’t like being disturbed. Another win was getting a 50-minute, deep tissue massage from a local spa, with the masseuse focusing on my feet, legs, and shoulders.

The Mexican-themed rehearsal dinner on Friday night went really well. I appreciate all the work put in by Lil Jan and her helpers to make it a fun, festive, and filling evening. It was so great to spend time with so many family and friends. They had plenty of questions and comments about my AT hike so far. The slide show video we put together to honor Kyle and Laci went over well. Jason, my eldest son, gave a terrific Best Man speech that not only roasted Kyle, but offered some on-target marriage advice. Olivia, Kyle’s ex-girlfriend and the Maid of Honor (weird, huh?) also delivered a sweet, heartfelt speech. The amazing Diamond family singers sang a song that I wrote, My Favorite Trail Things, along with a song of blessing for the bride and groom. It was a wonderful evening with love bubbling over between two families, friends, and the wedding party.

A few other highlights of the week included hanging a wedding poem (a series of wooden signs on posts) at the wedding venue with Scott (my brother-in-law), going to a local town festival with family and friends, and playing poker with Brad Diamond, Kyle and Jason, and the other groomsmen until late in the evening.  I was thoroughly enjoying this extended time on the mountaintop!

The wedding itself was magnificent in every way possible. In Laci, Kyle has found himself a Christian wife, beautiful on the inside and out.  Her parents have modeled a Christian marriage for her and others, and she has three terrific brothers who have welcomed Kyle in and think she hung the moon. This is an answer to many prayers by Janet and me going back decades. The wedding venue, featuring mature trees, ponds, rolling hills, a lodge and barn, provided a perfect setting. The weather cooperated and even featured a nice breeze. Mark Adams, who hired them both as youth interns years ago (where they developed feelings for each other) officiated and did a wonderful job. This young couple is so in love and you could just feel that in everything said and done. In a society where Biblical purity, saving oneself until marriage, is scoffed at and considered unrealistic, this couple stayed true to their values and pulled it off. I’m proud of them for that, and the commitment they made before God to be faithful to each other and Him for the rest of their lives.

The wedding reception was so much fun!  There was food, dancing, conversation, and lots of celebration.  The venue owner commented that she had never seen such a wildly fun night that didn’t involve alcohol.  Interesting observation.  I opted for more conversation than dancing, as my feet were still tender, yet improving.  I had some really encouraging and motivating conversations about the trail, my blog, and hopefully future book with several people I’d never met before.  It’s just weird to think that something I wrote alone atop an AT mountain can impact someone thousands of miles away.

On Monday, I said my farewells, kissed my wife, and drove back to the trail rested, restored, and rejuvenated. As previously planned, I made the switch from my Oboz Sawtooth hiking boots to Salomon XA Pro 3D trail running shoes. These would be lighter, quicker drying, and more agile, while giving up some stability in return. I was anxious to try them out in AT conditions. That night I also laid out all my clothes and tent and sprayed them with Permethrin, an insecticide that not only repels but kills ticks, mosquitos, chiggers, and other insects. After spraying them inside my motel room, I noticed the instructions said to do the spraying outside. So I went to bed that night on a bit of a Permethrin high, assured that any bugs in my ears, nose, and mouth had been decimated.

I was in a good place mentally and physically, and it was time to get back on the trail and continue my journey to Katahdin.

Fob