July 7th/8th
Mile 911.6

Waynesboro, VA will stay with me for a while.
When I got to the highway, a list of trail angels led me to meet “Miss Lady”, a retired woman with a pick up truck and an affection towards shelter dogs. After showing me around town, she dropped me at the hiker campground- a baseball field with an power source and a water spigot.
I walked to the Heritage, a bar with a dog friendly, back patio and drank a couple beers. It was there that I met a couple, Stef and Pat, and their dog, Samson. The YMCA was closed for Independence Day weekend and they graciously took me to shower at their empty rent house. I walked out of the bathroom after a luxurious hot shower and immediately stepped back in and closed the door. Stef and Pat were in the empty front room, on top of one another, thrusting and grunting away. I decided to take another shower to let them finish up.
They took my to his brother’s house to smoke and his brother took us to a friend’s house. A live streaming Phish concert, mushrooms, beers and weed, but all I cared about was the pig- carnitas, pulled pork tacos and ribs. I ate more meat than I had in months.
Andre, a dreadhead with a grumblin’ low voice, a game of pool, a Virginian reggae band..
They let me sleep in a big bed in the basement with pillows and all, but it was not till 3, almost 4 in the morning.
I gorged on breakfast and they took me to a natural rock slide and swimming hole. We drank an entire bottle’s worth of bloody marys.
Stef and Pat were the Disco Biscuit fans Captain Krasney warned me of. The kind of people that party too hard, hold little responsibility, and would take a beer out of your cooler without asking. They bought me a couple of beers at the Devil’s Backbone Brewery and out of no where, Stef started freaking out at Pat and left us in a drunk rage. I managed to collect my belongings and had just decided to pitch my tent on the brewery grounds when the most beautiful woman I had met on the trail offered to take me home. Connie turned out to be a massage therapist and as soon as I sat down, she started rubbing my sandpaper paws. Imagine, if you will, a beautiful woman, a beer, and a foot massage all in one moment…
Connie and Mike had just come home from a climbing trip in Wyoming. They gave me all the leftover food from their trip ( I’m thinking a good 10 lbs of high quality food, here), a week’s worth of dog food, a 3 month supply of Frontline flea and tick, and she tapped my sprained ankles and Mike drove me to the trailhead.
It was his first day back on the job and his procrastination was a hoot! We drank coffee on his tailgate and talked about just going for whatever makes you happy.
As always, getting back on the trail after a zero day was hard and the completely ridiculous weight of my pack made for slow walking. 8 miles in, Rogue and I walked into one of the campgrounds in Shenandoah National Park. I spent a while in the bath house and meandering around the information boards, when, a gentle fellow, Cliff, invited me to the spare tent spot at his campsite. I was in no rush to make miles, so I set up camp next to his motorcycle. Cliff is a cooky grandfather, adventure-seeker, traveling around on a motorbike and we sat around and drank beers and talked of his sailing experiences, Neil Young, and his neighbor, Mr. Dave Matthews.

I’m on my second cup of coffee. It’s strange being around car campers. I guess, it’s interesting to see the camping habits of non-hikers. 900 miles of ‘back country’ camping does that to you. A woman in the bathroom kept the water running while she brushed her teeth and my hiking attire draws a stare, strange glances. I feel elitist around these people who haven’t hiked but a few hundred yards from the pavement.

13 miles isn’t too shabby for leaving camp at 10.. maybe after..
I had a good day. Morale was high after my two cups of caffeine and the trail through that park has been quite nice. (read: stoner stroll friendly) I saw 5 bears within 9 miles. None were all that big, but they were not all that afraid nor surprised to see Rogue or I (which was a tad frightening). My ankle has not really bothered me, but I tripped on a rock and nearly fell. I managed to keep upright, but I did tweak my left foot/ankle somehow and I hope it won’t be too swollen tomorrow morning.
Also, I started my period a coupla minutes ago.. Diva Cup to the rescue, again!