Waking up (365:150)
For once we didn’t hang around too long drinking coffee and eating breakfast.
Even then, it was still ten am before we were back on the trail. It took us an hour and three quarters to hike the two and a half miles back to the trailhead, which included a 550 foot gain in elevation.
Along the way, we saw a very large black snake sunning itself. This was obviously the weekend of the ticks, mosquitoes, and snakes. Just before we arrived back at the trailhead, I’d decided I’d had enough and it was about time the hike stopped, so my timing was quite good. We chatted for a couple of minutes with a guy who had three horses out on the trail, and then it was time to pack up and leave. Well if we hadn’t got a flat tyre we would have left. I couldn’t be bothered to swap the tire, so I got out our portable compressor/jump start machine which Jim and Carol had given us for Christmas with just this sort of eventuality in mind.
It put air in the tire alright, but it took a long time. The motor overheats and cuts out after a while, so you have to let it cool down before proceeding. It took 30-45 minutes to get the tire up to pressure. It was nigh on one pm before we finally left the trailhead.
Distance hiked: 15 miles and a total of around 1,000 feet of elevation climbed.
On our way to pick up Lanie from her grandparents, we went to Theodosia to see the Bull Shoals lake. The campsite and buildings there were completely underwater, which was just a foot or so short of the bridge deck. very impressive.
Today’s alternate shots & extras
Copyright © 2011 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.