Pete here...okay, you might have read about this in a previous blog about some of the things that went down on the Two-Day Sierra Club Backpack on the Grayson Highlands. I had looked forward to this after the embarrassment that happened on High Knob two weeks ago when the Big Lummox tapped out! So, I knew it was going to be a hard weekend as I would have to carry 190 pounds plus 30.
You might think the rain might bother me since I am like a hiking cyborg, but a few showers won't slow Pete down. Now to the part of the story that you heard from the Big Lummox about how he thought he lost me and how I showed back up, well, here is the real story! When we stopped so the Lummox could take off his rain gear I decided to head down the AT (Appalachian Trail) to get in some white blaze time. I knew I could catch back up as I was hiking with a group of tortoises!
When I looked back up the top of the ridge I spotted the Big Lummox coming back. I just imagine him panicking with tears streaming down his face when he realized I wasn't there to carry him and that big backpack...boo hoo! Anyway, I knew I had to catch up because he is lost without me. So after dodging mules and leaping the swollen stream, I climbed back in the pack and he found me. He couldn't have been happier, he can't do it without me.
Anyway, Will (another superb Hike Leader unlike others I know) got us to the campsite, and while fun I was itching for the trail. That night I slipped out of the tent hiked to the big rock in the dark. The next day the weather was better and I had to carry 220 pounds. We finally got on the AT and stopped at the rocky pinnacle on the east side of Wilson Ridge. Before I knew it the Big Lummox surprised me and took off and while I was a little put out that he left me behind, I need a break. The reason he had the energy to climb that is because I had carried him all day!
Well, I got back on the trail again Wednesday this time for a pansy hike in the Roan Rhododendron Gardens. Don't get me wrong I like Catawba Rhododendrons, but I was just up here last week. The only thing that saved this was getting to drag deadwood out to the Roan High Bluff. Then there was the embarrassment of the Big Lummox not even bothering to wear hiking boots and ugly socks on top of it. I don't know why I even bother sometimes!
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