We scheduled a 10a pick up at the trailhead. Since we had only camped a mile away, it let us “sleep in” until 7a. The sun peaked out, painting the rainfly in a pretty pinkish orange.
When we arrived at the parking lot, a woman named “Hopper” was there. She was meeting friends at the same place and brought blueberry pancakes for other hikers. It was a great way to start our zero day. We also ran into our friend Silky, who we hadn’t seen since Trail Days. She was the one that updated us on Socks. Rodney, our ride, was there right on time and we were off to town!
It was morning when we got to the inn. They let us check in early, a true kindness to these thru-hikers. We got in and focused first on getting clean… and eating. After getting Subway, we took turns with laundry and showers. As I was trying to clean off my legs and feet, I realized that some dirt doesn’t wash off. Some has to be dug out. Which seems like such a great analogy for life, doesn’t it? Even after some intense scrubbing, I still didn’t come out fully clean (that part is entirely literal). Dirt stayed lining my toenails. Eh well, maybe on my next shower.
Warthog, Snow Monkey, and Wonder Woman went into town for our resupply. I stayed back to work on photos and to call family. We spent part of the afternoon zoned out and tuned into the tv – something we never get to do anymore. When all was said and done, we went down the street to the Sunday River Brewing Company for dinner. We filled up on burgers, sandwiches, clam baskets, and fries. Rodney was kind enough to drive us. Happy and full, we stayed up too late and finally, crashed. Ah… town life.
-ansel