For those of you wondering if I was eaten by a bear, fret not. I am alive and well but had a couple of days off the trail and am still adjusting to finding good reception at the right time.

It is a wonderful thing to visit an old friend. My childhood pal from down the street now lives in Georgia, and we agreed to meet up when I approached his house. I got off at Unicoi Gap, which is a common place to head into town. A lot of hikers catch a shuttle service into town, especially because most hostels and hotels offer them, but I was headed in a different direction. It was rainy and relatively cold when I arrived, and I figured hiking would be better than standing in the rain, so I set off in that direction, hoping I would not have to hike the full fifteen or so miles. As I waded through the knee-deep mounds of wet garbage on the shoulder (ranging from beer cans to televisions to beer bottles), I was passed by gangs of jeeps and modified diesel trucks taking the mountain curves at 70 mph. Not too far down the road, I got picked up by a very generous fellow. Matt said he had a farm near the Appalachian Trail and had hiked it quite a bit. He was happy to give me a ride, but I am pretty sure. I was much happier. Other hikers have had similar luck catching rides, so I must say that I am very impressed with the southern hospitality that I have seen so far.

Speaking of which, the Grace family was super generous in allowing me to stay. It was so wonderful to see them all and catch up. They are wonderful people. I had not seen my old friend Foster in quite a few years, and so I was wondering how it would be, and how different he would be. I knew things were going to go well as soon as he drove me home in his glorious classic car. And I knew things were going to be even better when he asked me. “Do you like the band Cake?”

So we listened to Cake and hung out. Our friendship had easily sustained over the years. Great movie watching, epic games of scrabble, and of course – showers. All in all, it was amazing, and I wanted to just move in, but it was time to hit the trail again.

So I did. Foster gave me a ride back to Unicoi Gap, where I got off, and I spent most of Wednesday hiking. I managed a 17-mile day, ending at Moreland Gap. There were also a few more miles to and from shelters and water sources throughout the day but 17 miles on the actual trail – not too much to report there, as I was mostly just walking, trying to make up for lost time a bit. I am mostly on schedule, but I would rather be a bit ahead, at least starting out. The last few miles I ended up catching up with Hamp and Katherine, with whom I had camped a few nights prior. They are a lot of fun, and I enjoyed camping with them again. I started a campfire, and we stayed up late into the night (relatively late, “hiker midnight” is considered 10:00 or sometimes earlier) chatting and horsing around. It was generally awesome as they, like myself, really enjoy what they are doing but do not take it all too seriously.

Foster and the Grace family: thanks for Cake in my head instead of christmas music, thanks for everything. It was a great time.

-Firewalker