Rock n' Rollercoaster

Day 59 - 6/14/10
Today started well enough, better than the past few days. I was packed up, had eaten, and was on my way before 8am. Within a mile I came to a sign that signified the beginning of the rollercoaster, "13.5 miles of tightly packed ascents and descents" as my guidebook put it. I had heard a lot about this thing, even from Ian (my thru-hike gear and advice guide), so it had really been built up. It was tough, and is pretty much exactly what you'd think when you hear the name, but I also found there to be some flat sections dispersed throughout the peaks and valleys, which made it less evil than I thought it would be.

I plowed over several of the bumps and got to the first shelter (Sam Moore) a bit before 11. It was seven miles away, so I was very happy with that speed considering the terrain. I had lunch there with LoRod and Insane, a sectioner I met last night at Rod Hollow. He's not as crazy as you would think considering his name. I stayed for a little over a 1/2 hour, and after enjoying a tortilla with tuna salad, a dark chocolate Snickers, and some trail mix, I was on my way.

I had already been pouring out sweat from that first 7 miles, but man I was really soaked during the next few. Like my pants and boxers were dripping from all the water. I would stop and streams of sweat would start pouring off my elbows. The humidity was way up there, and with all the ups and downs it was even more tough to deal with. I had been craving a soda since yesterday when I had heard about (and missed) that trail magic. There was a hostel coming up, Bear's Den, where I would be able to get one , and since it was only .2 off the trail I figured it was worth the trip to satisfy my craving.

I ended up getting there a little after one, and found myself walking around back to the "hiker lounge". There was a code you needed to get in, and so a guy comes out, Red Wing, and tells me the code. He's the manager of this place, which is actually ATC owned. I let him know I'm just going to get a couple sodas then leave, but as time went by I found myself having a hard time leaving. An hour goes by, and I was still there. But you have to cut me some slack because this place is amazing, tons of bunks, amazing AC, sodas, resupply options, pizza and B & J's ice cream (if you wanted to spend a little extra $) and so much more. Did I mention that it's a stone castle? Well it is. And that's very cool too.

I ended up deciding to stay, which wasn't my plan at all, but you have to be adaptable, especially for a place like this. These types of hostels don't come around often. Plus I was in dire need of laundry after all these humid, sweaty days. I'm considering going commando tomorrow to see how that feels because I just can't deal with another day of wet boxers underneath my swim trunks. They never get dry, so the whole day you're hiking in wetness and chaffing.

I also decided to do a few of the extras here, so now I'm full of pizza and soda, and my laundry is currently being spun. Now that I'm here I'm also considering the 4-state challenge once again, because if I leave here I could set myself up nicely right at the border. The border is a little less than 18 miles away, so who knows. Then again if I do attempt it then I will have to rush through Harper's Ferry very early in the morning, probably around 5am, and I will miss the opportunity to get my picture taken and logged at the ATC. Man, so many tough decisions in these next couple days. Regardless of all that, I will be finishing the rollercoaster tomorrow. That's at least one comforting thought.

Total miles: 993.7