partnership shelter to unnamed campsite

these full days are starting to wear me down a bit. i start looking forward to crawling into my sleeping bag before the sun is down.

we had a nice, lazy morning at the shelter. the shuttle we thought we could take could not be reached as there was no cell service anywhere around the shelter, and the phone at the visitors center wouldn’t call outside it’s area code which was needed on this case.

we had breakfast, packed up, and walked out to the road to hitch a ride. just as we got there, a car pulled up and hikers jumped out. the driver was going back to town and offered to take all of us. bugs and lyric rode in the cargo area with bugs’ backpack, kick, rocket, and maestro were in the back seat with their backpacks on their laps as well as lyric’s, and i was in the front with my backpack on my lap. (once in a blue moon it’s good to be the tallest.)

the driver took us to wal-mart for resupply which was a little difficult because everything came in a bulk pack, and there was very little in thr name of fruit (or anything not processed). eventually we went next door to ingles for the rest.

from there we hit mcdonald’s, but they were only offering their breakfast menu which didn’t inspire me. after everyone used the mcd’s wifi to download new music on spotify, we headed to the outfitter. i stopped on the way at KFC and got some chicken tenders.

at the outfitter i got some dinners, fuel, and was offered an11:00 beer while i shopped. the rest of the crew went to a coffee shop and i caught up with them, got a coffee and ate my chicken tenders at the outside tables.

kick at some point in town announced that he wad staying. his ankle had swelled up from the big miles he did catching up to us, and he didn’t think he should keep going. he also reiterated to me some things he said a few weeks ago about wanting to go it alone for a bit, and a desire to ensure he was doing what he wanted and not just going along with the group.

we said our good byes, and we walked back to the center of town and got a hitch in a giant black dually truck driven by a guy wearing nothing but shorts with a belt sporting a big texas style belt buckle and sneakers. his scruffy small dog was with him in the cab. he dropped us off at partnership shelter and we chatted for a few minutes before he took off and we got hiking.

the hiking day was a short 13.1 miles, but with a stop for dinner at a restaurant we had to walk by 1.5 miles from camp.

we all hiked together, plus another hiker, ‘mixed up’. the pace was a little difficult for me, as it was slower than my normal pace, and i found it tiring. it was also another hot day, so again i had my umbrella deployed against the sun. i’m looking forward to some leaves on the trees.

the trail started hot, rocky, and rough, but gradually gave way to hiking through fields of freshly sprouted spring grass. the group played some word games to pass the time. there were also some times when i couldn’t hear the group, and i listened to the spotify playlist magz made me. (my very own playlist!)

eventually we reached sweetwater venue where we had dinner. it was a strange restaurant. an old barn (but you couldn’t tell from the inside) split into two rooms. one side was a gift shop selling a very strange assortment of things, and the other a giant room with tables. all the food was served on or in styrofoam, with plastic cutlery. sodas were served in a can with a styrofoam cup of ice. i got a ‘smashed burger’ which is exactly what it sounds like, some mac and cheese, and a couple got dogs.

after dinner bugs and lyric stayed at the restaurant to play cornhole against the locals, while rocket, maestro, and i hiked to the camp site. it was a small wood between some pastures. a few hikers were already there. we pitched our tents, hung our food bags, and i went to do my daily bath and get water. while i was there, lyric showed up. apparently they had only stayed 20 minutes, and had won.

some additional images from today: