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Published: September 6th 2006
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Off the trail and I'm sitting outside this little grocery store in the middle of nowhere waiting for a ride to the motel. Can't say I HIKED to VA 611--more like limped/hobbled. This knee is not to be hiked on. I gave some thought this morning to hiking back 1.9 miles to the road to Bland. And then again, I also gave some thought to trying to make the 40 miles to Pearisburg in 3 rather than 4 days. I SO wanted to do this hike. Foundation $$ has been pledged on my mileage. I've prepared, worked out, dieted and practice hiked to get here.
I put on dry socks and my boots look half dry on the outside. I have used up all my blister care pads and all my duct tape on my ankles and feet. I have 3 bandaids, a little bit of gauze and 1 moleskin left. I could have dealt with the blisters, rain, damp and SPIDER WEBS. But I could not sensibly continue on this knee. It was a worse injury waiting to happen for not having a strong leg. It got to the point where there was even pain on the
flat parts of the trail.
As I hiked, I kept repeating: "Strong woman! Strong woman! Strong woman!" as a mantra to keep my attitude good. I sung that old hymn: "And He walks with me, And He talks with me, And He tells me I am his own. And the joy we share as we tarry there, no other has ever known." But then I had to consider if I was stupidly insisting on integrity towards my decision to hike no matter what vs. honoring my body. Would I be able to go back out after a couple of days of rest and ice? Shoot! I'm even willing to rest in Pearisburg and be flexible about picking up from there and skipping these next 33.9 miles! The old Shari would never be so flexible as to want to skip a section! How's that for personal growth!
I was so strong 3 years ago hiking in PA. And truly I'm pleased with my endurance. (LOL...typing this now from my journal, I guess I wrote that rather a lot.) The blisters would truly have sucked for 3 more days, but I probably could have coped. I did a
Looking back...
Last signpost I passed...indicates it's 7-3/4 miles back to the last road crossing. boots-off break today (aprilmoon would be proud of me) and all my bandages were holding tight.
So, I hobbled down VA 611 to VA 42 to hitch a ride. I stood in front of this house where an older man was sitting on his porch. No ride for the first 30 minutes. I saw the man get up to go inside and I called out, "Excuse me, sir! Sir! SIR!" And the door slammed. Maybe he was deaf. Benefit of the doubt. So, I started hobbling and hitching.
Two very young men in a pickup (with a gun mounted on the rearview window...yikes, guns again) picked me up. I "hoppped" into the back of the pickup. They were just "going down the road a bit" and not as far as Pearisburg. I asked if they could take me as far as a phone and they said they would. I got a bit nervous when they turned off VA 42 onto another road. I know where 42 goes...but not the next road! But they pulled up to Trent's Grocery on VA606--a resupply spot recommended in the Appalachian Trail Companion (a guidebook)!
So, used the pay
Gypsy moth cocoon
Saw several, though not as many as in a plague year. phone with my credit card and called Brenda at the Rendezvous Motel and she's on her way. I've got to stop meeting her this way. Back in 2000, Brenda picked up up in Bland and shuttled us to Catawba when i broke my foot. I'd really like it to be that I only meet Brenda upon hiking in to Pearisburg to her motel.
Anyway, I figure I'll stay 2-3 nights there and figure out what I'm doing next. Rest and go? Go to Ellen's in PA? Go to my brother's in CT? Go home to AZ? I keep hearing aprilmoon's voice saying: "This just sucks!" Lordy, she's the best hiking companion and my dear, dear friend!
So, this just sucks. A whopping 35.1 miles. Well, it does validate leaving at Woody Gap 20 miles into my first hike in 1998. It's the exact same knee problem I had then....and that time I also had bronchitis. I don't quit easily. Anyway, I recovered from that knee problem and have hiked over 675 AT miles and unknown other miles elsewhere since Woody Gap. Maybe it's just this part of Virginia....a broken shoulder, a broken foot and now this blown out knee. Maybe I should just wait until Mike and I are full time RV'ers and he can do support for me to hike. So far, I haven't bawled like when I left Woody Gap. A couple of tears in the eyes in frustration when I wasn't getting a ride while hitching. Poor Brenda! I stink and I'll have to get in her car!
Today I saw a day hiker doing a piece of the trail with Ryan, a Maine to Georgia southbounder. After I told them I wasn't doing so great, they asked if I needed help. When withll I learn to ask for help?!?!?!? Later on, 20 minutes before I reached VA611, I met a girl southbounding from PA. She was very aloof and not terribly friendly. She didn't have a shirt on (yes, she had a sports bra on!) and you could see bruises or healed/scarred abrasions from the waistband of her pack. She should have worn a shirt.
I saw horses, cows and 3 deer. Other than that, scared more grouse and talked to a bossy squirrel. It's a beautiful day. Glimpses of gorgeous farmland and rolling green mountains. On the mistier days, it looked like the Smoky Mountains with the mist rising from the coves. Tuxedo had shown me a photo he had taken on his digital camera where he was between cloud banks...a sea of clouds below him and swirling clouds above him. Cool pic!
Well, here's Brenda pulling up now!
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