2017 Appalachian Hike

I didn’t sleep well last night. It got much colder than I anticipated. It got down to 38 degrees last night in Pearisburg. We were about 2000 feet of elevation higher than that so it was somewhere around the freezing mark. My feet kept getting cold. My sleeping bag and everything thing I own was damp. My friend Alli warned me that at some point everything I own would be wet. She was right and I am sure this won’t be the last time. 

Engineer, Maple Syrup and I all got up together and hiked the eight miles to Pearisburg. We started at 6:00. We could tell there were some great views along the way but it was super foggy. No vistas. 

It was going to be a three quarter mile hike from the trail to town, but as soon as we started hiking on the highway a guy in a SUV pulled up and offered us a ride. Of course we said yes. 

He dropped us off at the “Very Luxurious ” Plaza Motel. It was about 9:30am and our rooms weren’t going to be ready for another two hours. 

We went next door to Dairy Queen and had breakfast. I didn’t even know Dairy Queen served breakfast. I drank at least a gallon of coffee. 

We then checked in and got our keys. The old fashioned kind. 

I have to tell you that southern hospitality does exist. Linda is awesome. She did our filthy laundry and was exceptionally nice about it. 

Every thing I owned was dirty so I wore my raincoat around my waist while she did my laundry. 

After laundry Engineer, Maple Syrup and I went to lunch at the Chinese buffet across the street. 

$8.79 for all you can eat. They didn’t make any money on us. Oh, and the sweet tea. I have learned to love this southern sweet tea. 

All three of us went back four times. I ate way too much. 

After lunch I went to Food Lion to shop. They didn’t have the Mountain House dehydrated meals I like so I improvised and bought some Knorr noodles and tuna. I also bought some Quest bars and Clif Bars.I’m going to try something different for lunch. I bought some tortilla shells and peanut butter and jelly. I see a lot of hikers eating this and it looks good to me. So I’m going to try it. 

I went back to my room and spent the afternoon sorting, drying, cleaning and re packing. 

Engineer and I then went across the street to the Mexican restaurant. Maple Syrup’s room is quite away from here so he didn’t join us. 

Road Runner did join us. He’s about my age and from Seattle. He just retired to. 

It is good to regroup a little bit. I will take three showers before I leave here. I took one about noon. I’ll take another before I go to bed, and another when I am get up.  

I ordered some meals and a waterproof iPhone case from amazon to meet me in Daleville. My daughter Megan is getting me new shoes and mailing them to me also. After Daleville I should be set.