18th August
19.5 miles
Wilson Valley Shelter (2085.7) to Bushcamp (2105.2)
The sore throat and swollen glands seemed to disappear as I slept restlessly. Did I mention the sore throat and swollen glands returned late yesterday? Several coyotes wandered noisily through camp almost tripping over my tent, so I was told the next morning by Thumper. Apparently they were rather noisy but I wouldn’t know.
Rain started to fall in the late morning. Not before we had the opportunity to climb several mountains with endless views of the wide open forests of Maine.
With the rain came a slower more delicate hiking pace. Rocks became slippery, exposed tree root became treacherous and every step could have ended in pain. I twisted my ankle in a direction it was not designed to twist. Fortunately there was no damage. Thumper head butted a tree branch and lost the battle. Head wound tend to bleed a lot and look worse than they are.
The rain slowed some hikers down as they crammed into shelters earlier than normal. Thumper and I cannot afford such a luxury. We only have a limited amount of food and can’t spend too much time retreating from the rain or we will certainly run out if food.
At 6pm we set up camp on two small but flat areas next to a small stream. Rain drops persisted as we cooked our dinner and chatted. The rain was only drizzle with occasional larger drops that accumulated on the leaves and tree branches before landing on our tents. We went to bed early.
Next : Day 126 – Night Hiking
All the best information on the Appalachian Trail:
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Hey Brad, a couple of posts ago a fellow named Roy mentioned that he had been following you since day 1 on the PCT. I have too, and am sad to see this end. I too am looking forward to following your next adventure(s).
I was thinking of you recently while doing a section of the PCT near Scissors Crossing.
With all of the peaks you’ve hiked to the top of, have you registered on peakbagger.com? You should, mate! I’d love to see what you’ve completed.
Looking forward to this final week. God bless you. Good on you, mate!
Mike M, Riverside, CA
Thanks for the kind words Mike. I’ll need to have a look at Peakbaggers, I’ve never much been into stuff like that. Yes the AT hike is coming to an end but I have loads more adventures planned to start real soon.